Hot water comes out luke warm at all faucets on my new to me 35-3

[trichards]

Hey Guys,

Just bought a 1983 35-3 a few months ago and discovered that luke warm water comes out of the hot water side of all faucets (galley/head/shower) after sufficient heating time. I have a force 10 6 gallon water heater that is somewhat old but still in good shape. I tested the water at the heater itself by draining a sample from the drain valve, which came out really hot (like its supposed to be) but at the actual fixtures is only somewhat warm.. There is no tempering valve to mix cold and hot together (that i can find anyway), and there is no hot/cold manifold that would be malfunctioning and mixing hot and cold together. It seems to me that somewhere along the way cold and hot water are mixing together, but i have no idea where.. anyone else run into this? any ideas on a possible cause? any help is much appreciated!

 

[Christian Williams]

Hot/cold mix is controlled by the faucet, no? I'd start there. Access for replacement is probably a challenge.

 

[trichards]

Thanks for chiming in Christian! You are right, temperature is ultimately controlled by the faucet mixing the hot and cold together.. the 2 sink faucets (galley and head) I have on board are 2 handled faucets (not one where temp is controlled by moving the lever right and left).. with only the cold water turned on the water is just that....cold.. with only the hot side turned on the water is only luke warm while the water at the heater is properly hot. This is the case at every fixture i turn on only hot.. would one faulty faucet cause this throughout the system? i find it difficult to believe that all my faucets are misbehaving..

 

[Christian Williams]

A puzzle. After the engine runs an hour, my hot water is pretty much instantaneous at the taps (I have 2 handles too).

It does take the diesel an hour of cruising speed to get the water heater actually hot....

 

[Frank Langer]

There is likely residual cool water in the lines, so we need to let the hot water run for a bit before it goes hot, but then it should be very hot if your hot water heater is working properly.
Frank

 

[william.haas]

Most faucets have a “mixing cartridge” that needs replacing after time. Given the two are likely of the same era the parts could have degraded at the same rate. I suggest removing one of your faucet hot water supply lines and placing in a bucket, turn on the pressure pump for a few seconds, and then check if the water in the bucket is hot (while securing the line, taking proper precautions for burns, preventing for spills, etc.). If the water in the bucket is hot you know your issue is faucet and you can go down the internet rabbit hole to find a suitable replacement cartridge or faucet.

 

[trichards]

Thank you all for your input.. its much appreciated.. I finally solved the puzzle. The mixing valve in the shower was bad and was letting cold water mix with the hot creating the luke warm at all the faucets.. I really didnt think it would effect all the fixtures, but once i changed it out (and boy was that ever a chore) i had immediate hot water to all fixtures and the problem was solved.

 

[Loren Beach]

I understand now, belatedly, that EY must have installed some 'mixing valve' faucets in some of their boats. News to me. Our '88 had an expensive faucet in both galley and head, with hot and cold knobs to allow the user to mix for temperature happiness. I have replaced the galley one about a decade ago, and plan to replace the one in the head this winter. Over time, the chrome on the bases and the pull-out hose both degrade.

I am glad the trouble shooting ideas in this thread worked out.

LInk for ours: https://www.scandvik.com/index.cfm?method=products_detail&productID=95

 

[Nick J]

What mixing valve did you replace the original one with? Ours is leaking, so I have this chore in my near future.

 

[trichards]

What mixing valve did you replace the original one with? Ours is leaking, so I have this chore in my near future.

The one that was on the boat when i bought it was discontinued, so i wasnt able to get a new mixing cartridge for it.. instead i replaced the whole mixing assembly with a shower kit i got at lowes. I used delta model B112915. There may be better options out there, but i'm in a time crunch as we are trying to get ready for a Xmas sailing trip, so i needed it replaced asap. Good luck on your repair!

 

[Christian Williams]

On your 35-3, how did you access the faucet connections? On my boat it requires removing the galley sink.

 

[Nick J]

I'm not sure if you can do it without pulling the sink or cutting an access hole in the trash compartment. Pulling the sink wasn't too difficult though. The replacement sink im going to put in has a wide flange in the back where the faucet sits. That way I can connect everything up then just drop it in and connect the other end of each hose. I'm going to try to figure out a way to secure the sink with fasteners I can easily access and use some kind of gasket instead of sealant. Haven't figured that part out yet though.

 

[trichards]

On your 35-3, how did you access the faucet connections? On my boat it requires removing the galley sink.

It was the shower mixing valve in the forward head shower stall. I just had to remove the old handle and valve assembly, then fit in a new one. pretty straight forward. It was the tight space with limited hand access behind the shower knob that made it tricky. I lost one of my favorite ratcheting screwdrivers down behind there during this repair, LOL . But i'll trade a screwdriver for hot water any day! Its nowhere near my galley so no problem with sink removal thankfully.