Water Heater Hell!

[Seth]

Water heater blues

IIRC, those heaters were installed BEFORE the deck went on..explains a lot doesn't it, Sean?

That bulge might be a longitudinal stringer-to help carry the weight of items attached back there-I seem to recall seeing them as we laid the boats up on the production line...
S

 

[treilley]

Sean, resurrecting an old thread

Sean, do you recall if the 11 gallon model will fit in the 35-3? My WH is shot and I would love to add capacity.

 

[Glyn Judson]

A speedy 11 gallon water heater search.

Tim, Curious, I went to trusty old eBay and came up with these two hits. Could one of them be what you're looking for? 1. Quick 11 gallon water heater search. 2. 200158216666 Happy Holidays to all, Glyn Judson E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, where it's almost 70 degrees. Ho, ho, ho

 

[Glyn Judson]

Oops, let's try that one again.

Tim, Now that's better. 1. 320198434275 2. 200158216666 Glyn

 

[Glyn Judson]

Water heater heck.

Tim and all, shortly after buying the Dawn Treader almost 13 years ago, I planned to replace the water heater but decided totally against it in the long run. My E31 was them powered by a raw water Yanmar 2 and as such, couldn't really get any heater really hot with fresh water. When I removed it, it had that familiar sound we've all heard from our youth, that of a shattered and leaking Roy Rogers Thermos bottle. There's nothing that can replace the sound of milk and broken glass sloshing around in your matching lunch box. I had to remove the cheap outer skin to get it out over the engine and in the process of getting it out came to realize that it was 110 volt only, now a silly waste of space as all I had to do in the slip to shower was to go up the gangway and there were lovely showers there. That space has long since been rebuilt to accommodate two dedicated #27 batteries that run the Adler Barbour unit. If I want to shower when at Catalina Island, I pour 3-4 quarts, yes quarts, of fresh water into my 1 gallon (really 1.5) stainless steel Hudson sprayer and heat the contents on the propane stove for five minutes. A quick spin on of the the top and a few short pumps and that's all it takes to provide perfectly heated water, enough for the two of us (separately) to have a Navy shower including two shampoos each with a bit of water to spare. If it's been left on the stove too long and is too hot, a mere twisting of the nozzle tip atomizes the heated water and it's just right again. My next door neighbor is a recovering plumber and with his help & pipe bending tools, the brass sprayer wand is now U-shaped so squeezing the handle delivers water right back at the user. I stow the empty sprayer with lid off behind the wet weather gear in the hanging locker when not in use and it virtually takes up no room at all. Why not use a Sun Shower you say. The big difference is that you can be showering within minutes of the inspiration and you can do it at 0600 too. Later, Glyn Judson E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, CA

 

[treilley]

This is what I am looking at Glyn:

http://www.great-water.com/pages/Isotemp/IT-BB-40-110.htm

My boat has a dedicated shower stall that we use often while gunkholing. We also love the hot water for cleaning dishes. I used a sun shower on my old boat and that was fine but it sure was tough to get motivated for a shower when you had to do it in the cockpit at 45 degrees or while raining.

 

[Glyn Judson]

Top drawer!

Tim, Now that's what I'm talkin' about. You have chosen the best of the best of the best when it comes to water heaters, good call. I guess my point in using the Hudson sprayer although not a lovely as the Isotemp is that within 5-7 minutes one can be showering starting with dead cold water. I assume the Isotemp will store water for a while giving anyone wanting one a jump start with the heating process. Related but totally off topic, I just found out from our independent mechanic that there's a Thermos jug behind the drivers headlight of our 2004 Prius. It's there to facilitate easier cold starts, proof of which is that I start to get warm air coming out of the dashboard within 15 feet or so of backing out of our driveway. Apparently it'll keep water relatively hot in excess of 24 hours. Hmmmm, a little midnight auto and I too can have my own version of an Isotemp. Happy Holidays to all, Glyn Judson E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, CA

 

[Loren Beach]

More Gallons = Good

One of the "keys" to hot water pleasure on a boat is in the specs for the heater above: 11 gallon.
Within the limits of your space available on your particular boat, more capacity is good for a couple of reasons:
1) Using any of it causes the infusion of cold water and thereby lowers the tank temperature as the new mixes with the old.
2) The larger capacity makes for a larger thermal mass, to help guarantee hot water the next morning or even later.

We threw out the corroded-out six gallon factory alum. tank on our boat and installed a well-insulated four gallon all-SS tank from Atlantic.
I would have put back a six gallon, but lacked room for that size in the part of the boat where I was relocating the new tank into.
While it certainly makes and keeps hot water, the dilution effect really reduces the temp once you start to draw on it. If doing that project again I would try much harder to shoe-horn into place, somehow, the six gallon version.
Best,
Loren