Plumbing and Appliance
RV Water Heater Repair and Replacement Serving Long Beach
About 10 min left
OCRV Center repairs and replaces RV water heaters including Suburban, Atwood, Truma and AquaHot hydronic systems, covering gas ignition faults, electric elements, tank failures and control boards. Water heater work runs $350 for a service to $4,500 for a hydronic system repair or premium tankless replacement.
RV water heaters are simple appliances that fail in a small number of predictable ways, which is good news because it means diagnosis is usually quick. The complication is that owners frequently replace the whole unit when a $60 part would have solved it.
The most common calls are no hot water on gas, no hot water on electric, and a heater that leaks. Those are three completely unrelated problems.
Gas Ignition Faults
A gas water heater that clicks and does not light is usually a dirty or misaligned electrode, a blocked burner tube, or a failed gas valve. Spider webs in the burner tube are a genuine and extremely common cause, since the tube is an attractive nesting site and a partial blockage is enough to prevent ignition.
A heater that lights and then shuts down after a few seconds is usually failing to prove flame, which points to the electrode or the control board rather than to gas supply.
Checking the Simple Things First
Gas supply, tank level and the bypass valve position account for a meaningful share of no hot water complaints, and all three are free to check.
A water heater bypass left closed after winterization is one of the most common reasons a coach has no hot water in spring.
Electric Elements and Thermostats
Electric elements fail open and are inexpensive to replace. The important part is why it failed, and the usual answer is that it was energized with the tank empty, which destroys an element in seconds.
Thermostats and high limit switches fail too, and a high limit that has tripped will not reset itself. Both are cheap parts that get replaced far less often than whole water heaters do.
Tank Failure, Anodes and Leaks
Suburban tanks are steel with a glass lining and use a sacrificial anode rod. When that rod is consumed and not replaced, the tank corrodes and eventually leaks, at which point replacement is the only option.
Atwood tanks are aluminum and do not use an anode. Putting one in an Atwood accelerates corrosion rather than preventing it, which is a mistake we see regularly. Knowing which tank you have determines the correct maintenance entirely.
Tankless and Hydronic Systems
Truma and similar tankless units provide continuous hot water and save weight and space, and they fail differently. Flow sensors, scale buildup in the heat exchanger and control faults are the common items.
AquaHot and similar hydronic systems provide both domestic hot water and coach heating from one diesel or electric heated loop. They are excellent systems and they are complex, with a burner, a circulation loop, zone valves and a control system, and diagnosis takes longer accordingly.
What Is Included
- Bypass valve position and gas supply verified before any component work
- Burner tube inspected and cleared of obstruction on gas ignition faults
- Electrode condition and gap checked and set to specification
- Anode rod condition checked on steel tanks and correctly omitted on aluminum
- Element and thermostat tested individually before replacement
- Heat exchanger scale assessed on tankless systems
- Full hot water function verified at every fixture before release
Our Process
- 1
Basic Checks
Bypass valve, gas supply, tank level and breaker or fuse verified before anything is disassembled.
- 2
Fault Isolation
Gas and electric sides tested separately, since most units have both and only one may have failed.
- 3
Component Testing
Electrode, gas valve, element, thermostat and high limit tested individually.
- 4
Tank Inspection
Tank checked for corrosion and leakage, anode condition assessed on steel tanks.
- 5
Repair or Replace
Failed components replaced, or the unit replaced where tank integrity is gone.
- 6
System Verification
Hot water confirmed at every fixture with recovery time observed.
Frequently Asked Questions
My RV water heater clicks but will not light. What is wrong?
Usually a dirty or misaligned electrode, a blocked burner tube, or a failed gas valve. Spider webs in the burner tube are a genuinely common cause, since the tube makes an attractive nesting site and even a partial blockage prevents ignition. Before any of that, check that the bypass valve is open and there is gas in the tank, because those two account for a fair share of no hot water calls and cost nothing to verify.
Should I put an anode rod in my RV water heater?
Only if it is a steel tank, which means Suburban. Those use a sacrificial anode and it needs periodic replacement, because once it is consumed the tank corrodes and eventually leaks. Atwood tanks are aluminum and use no anode, and installing one actually accelerates corrosion rather than preventing it. Knowing which brand you have determines the correct maintenance completely, and it is a mistake we correct regularly.
How much does RV water heater replacement cost?
A service or component repair runs $350 to $900. A standard tank water heater replacement runs $1,200 to $2,200 installed. A tankless upgrade such as a Truma runs $2,500 to $4,000. AquaHot and hydronic system repairs run $750 to $4,500 depending on whether the fault is in the burner, the circulation loop or the control system. Most no hot water complaints turn out to be a component rather than the tank.
My electric element burned out again. Why does that keep happening?
Almost certainly because it was energized with the tank empty, which destroys an element in seconds. This happens most often right after winterization or after the coach has been drained, when someone switches the heater on before the tank refills. The element itself is inexpensive, so the fix is cheap, but the habit is what needs correcting. We verify tank fill status and check for a dry fire protection option where the unit supports one.
Water Heater Repair and Replacement is performed in shop at OCRV Center, 23281 La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887, serving Long Beach, California and the surrounding region. Call (949) 799-3387 to discuss your vehicle.
Get Your Vehicle Looked At Properly
Call the shop, describe what happened, and we will tell you what the realistic scope and timeline look like. All work is performed in shop at our 35,000 square foot facility.