Help! No hot water!

[txswamprat]

So, was looking forward to a nice shower this morning....didn't happen. I have an Atwood GC6AA-10E gas/electric water heater. Upon turning on the shower hot water, I got a spritz and then nothing. Checked all my faucets for hot/cold water. All cold water flows, no HW flow at any faucets. I am on shore power. Turned off electric HW for a bit then turned back on w/o results. Checked breaker and it was not tripped. Turned off electric and swapped to LP. Found in LP mode no gas being fed into burner and no ignition spark. Pulled fuse on HW circuit board and it is okay. Did notice this: when in electric mode and no LP I can feel warmth not hot coming from the vent and a quiet buzzing sound coming from the heater. I've since turned off the heater electric and LP. Did a YouTube search and found a video for my specific water heater but it dealt with troubleshooting the LP function which pointed to the heater circuit board. That may be an issue but doesn't explain lack of HW flow. Getting a voltmeter to troubleshoot as discussed in the video. I contacted Jayco and they couldn't come up with an answer. Will contact Dometic in the morning to see what they have to say. In the meantime, we have a nice bathhouse.

 

[CAG-JAY]

Did you have hot water previously or was this the first use of the heater?

 

[txswamprat]

Had hot water w/o problem for the last couple of months. Extended stay so on hotel services.

 

[Grumpy]

If you only got a "spritz" of water that sounds like either the shower head or the by-pass valves. If it was the water heater itself you would have had cold water.

 

[CAG-JAY]

Had hot water w/o problem for the last couple of months. Extended stay so on hotel services.

Hopefully someone has run into this before and can help.



A couple of things to check with the gas. Do you have gas in the tanks? If so did you turn the valves on the tanks only slowly to avoid them going into safety mode.



Do you have an outside shower and could it be turned on slightly?



I doubt that this is the case but the electric heating element will burn out in a second if turned on with no water in the tank.

 

[Colorado350]

So, was looking forward to a nice shower this morning....didn't happen. I have an Atwood GC6AA-10E gas/electric water heater. Upon turning on the shower hot water, I got a spritz and then nothing. Checked all my faucets for hot/cold water. All cold water flows, no HW flow at any faucets. I am on shore power. Turned off electric HW for a bit then turned back on w/o results. Checked breaker and it was not tripped. Turned off electric and swapped to LP. Found in LP mode no gas being fed into burner and no ignition spark. Pulled fuse on HW circuit board and it is okay. Did notice this: when in electric mode and no LP I can feel warmth not hot coming from the vent and a quiet buzzing sound coming from the heater. I've since turned off the heater electric and LP. Did a YouTube search and found a video for my specific water heater but it dealt with troubleshooting the LP function which pointed to the heater circuit board. That may be an issue but doesn't explain lack of HW flow. Getting a voltmeter to troubleshoot as discussed in the video. I contacted Jayco and they couldn't come up with an answer. Will contact Dometic in the morning to see what they have to say. In the meantime, we have a nice bathhouse.

Based on the above it’s NOT an issue with the water heater but rather an issue with hot water flowing from the hot water heater.
1)Have you checked the drain on the WH does water flow out and is it HOT?

2) Checked valves to ensure they are in the correct position?

 

[CAG-JAY]

Based on the above it’s NOT an issue with the water heater but rather an issue with hot water flowing from the hot water heater.
1)Have you checked the drain on the WH does water flow out and is it HOT?

2) Checked valves to ensure they are in the correct position?

I did not mention the bypass valves because he said he has hot water for the past several months. So unless they moved themselves that should not be the problem.



#1 is a good test. At least for hot water.

 

[TCNashville]

Could be the notorious plastic check valve on the back of the water heater.

 

[norty1]

X2 on the check valve on the back hot water outlet.

 

[EA37TS]

X3 on the check valve. Here's a YouTube that might help.

 

[txswamprat]

The aha moment! Check valve sounds like a likely problem. I did turn on hot water this morning with the water heater off to see if I had flow again. I did for a few seconds the flow shut off quickly. A second try and no flow. I did open the release valve at the top of the heater to see if I had water in the tank and I do. It was cold since I shut off the electric heater to ensure I didn't cause any damage to the heater. A check valve sounds like the most likely problem given the symptoms. In looking at the WH installation, looks like I'll have to pull it to replace the valve given the WH location. That's something I don't feel comfortable with. Rats!

 

[txswamprat]

Well, that was it. The OEM check valve was shot. Replaced with brass one. Accessed heater from behind thru storage after removing a couple of panels. Back online again! Thanks to all for your advice and insight.