How To Replace Your RV Electric Water Heater Element - Suburban Electric Element Replacement
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- čas přidán 22. 08. 2024
- Electric Element: amzn.to/2PpyHQ0
Water Heater Wrench: amzn.to/2XtGX5Q
PB Blaster: amzn.to/39ZGIEv
Hot water heater anode: amzn.to/33scHw4
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In this video I show you the steps involved to replace your camper's electric element in your water heater. This is for a Suburban water heater's electric element. Most water heater's should have a similar setup, so even if you have an Atwood or some other brand, this video may be helpful to you. Please check the above links for the element and tools needed for this project. Let me know if you have any questions, thanks for watching!
Also, if your door latch broke (like mine while making this video) check out my video here on how to install that! • How To Install An RV W...
Amazon Description of Electric Element:
Suburban 520900 Replacement Electric Water Heater Element Kit
Electric Heating Element for SW12/16 DE/DEM MFG# 520900
1400 watt electric heating element. Draws around 12amps.
Replacing an RV electric water heater element, Suburban 6 gallon.
DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission at no cost to you. This helps support the channel and allows me to continue to make videos like this. Thank you for the support!
One of the most useful pieces of advice in this video is purchasing the tool specifically made for unscrewing the anode rod and the opposite end for the heating element. Thanks a lot for the video; got both of mine replaced this afternoon in about an hour and a half. First time doing it.
That tool was worth every penny! Glad you got the job done. Thanks for watching!
Great, but manufacturers need to make tool longer. I have to replace ours because high wind gusts keeps blowing out gas flame.
Former Loctite rep here...not selling anything, but: For all those NPT threaded items on your RV, and specifically the water heater parts, using Loctite PST thread sealant can be really good. The stuff only sets-up in the threaded joint, as excluding oxygen from it makes it cure, it remains weak enough to allow easy disassembl later while sealing a NPT joint to 150 psi if you just hand-tighten the fittings, and things won't vibrate apart later. Temperature resistance is good for the water-heating application. Buy one tube, and you will be able to use it pretty much forever, because it does not set-up in the tube. I've used it on my RV and my automotive-fluid threaded joints for two decades, never ha a problem.
Thanks for the info and watching!
This video was so very helpful. Thank you. The explanations were easy to follow and I love that you included the links to the parts needed. I am having to replace my element for the first time.
I'm glad it was helpful! Thank you very much for your comment and watching! Good luck with the replacement.
Thank you Brian I appreciate your video
You're welcome! Thanks for the comment and watching!
Messing with the relieve valve is not recommended. Many times will start to leak and need replacing afterward. Relieve the pressure inside at a faucet.
We haven't had ours leak yet. I like your idea of releasing pressure inside by a faucet. thanks for the comment and watching!
Great job and nice closeup shots, very helpful, I have an Atwood water heater and its on the inside of the bay and not on the outside like the suburban, again great job.
Thank you for the comment and watching! Good luck with the install.
One piece of advice when you spray any good penetrating oil. You immediately begin to tap on the frozen object to set up vibrations, this will greatly help penetrate in-between the frozen parts!
Good tip! Thanks for watching!
Hi Brian...great tutorial! Thank you for sharing this!!
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Thank you for the instructional video I hope I won't have to replace mine but eventually I probably will. Good job thanks.
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Thanks for showing that! I love learning new stuff like this. Much appreciated. I'm getting ready to check my outside fuses on my Norcold fridge because my fridge will only run on propane and not electric, so I'm hoping it's a fuse that I can access on the back of the fridge.
You're welcome, thanks for watching! Hopefully you get the fridge figured out. That would be lucky if it was only a fuse. Thankfully we haven't had any major appliance repairs....yet....lol! Good luck with the fridge and thanks again!
in the back in the stove pipe thing there should be an electric heating element check that first for power and if it has power and no heat i would say it is that it is just a place to start
@@lennyt5851 Thanks for the comment and watching Lenny.
Another tip that I am currently looking into.
If you do alot of boondocking and you have a solar set up. You can replace that element for a 12volt element, and have it use your panels to heat the water during the day after your panels are 100% full. You can even set your tank to hold a temperature if your batteries are over 80 or 90%.
I'll be looking into this to get as much out of the free energy rather than propane being used up.
That is awesome! I did not know those even existed. I will definitely check that out. Thanks for the comment and watching!
Also a good practice to NOW remove anode and flush out sediment from anode Out of the Water Heater at this time and when replacing anode element.
Good point! Thanks for the tip and watching!
I dewinterized my trailer and dummy me flipped the hwh switch on but apparently didn’t have a full hwh. When I plugged back in I had an “open neutral” fault on my surge protector. Process of elimination got me to the hwh. Looks like I have a little work to do. Lol.
Ugh, sorry to hear that! Hopefully swapping out the heating element will do the trick for you. Thanks for watching!
Put pipe wrench on round part of socket and it will break free easily.
Thanks for the tip and watching!
@@ColoradoCamperman Good how to vid!
@@boatrvme8478 Thank you!
Thanks!
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Good Job. See you around.
Thank you! Sounds good!
I also wondered if you used thread tape on the element and/or the anode rod? Would be good to know. Thanks again
I usually try to follow what was previously done and would recommend you do the same thing. For me, there was no thread tape on the element, however, there always has been on my anode rod. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for the video.
Thanks for the comment and watching!
I am having a hard time getting my element out. What kind of stuff did you use to help loosen it. So many rust,corrosion products.
@@mondahudson2327 PB Blaster: amzn.to/39ZGIEv
I need to replace my heating element, I’ve done it before. This time my on/off switch broke(froze up) and it won’t switch to off. How do I replace that switch?
Not sure, I never had that break on us. Sorry I couldn't help ya!
Do you have to drain the water heater first before replacing the heating element?
3:18 of the video. Yes, you will need to drain it. Thanks for watching!
If ever your thread gets corroded but it still works, you can use our rotary thread tool. It can fix it asap! Unless you want to buy a new one :)
Good to know! Thanks for the comment and watching!
Having a hard time with that socket using the screwdriver.... I have a four foot crescent I think I can get it with that, as long as it don't twist that socket off LOL. Thanks for the info though yeah I think I can do this.
Yeah, I had a hard time too. I had to drill that second hole and that did the trick with the PB blaster. It was by no means easy. Good luck, hope you get it! Thanks for watching!
Smart using gloves to reduce nuckle rash! Did you use thread tape?
Yeah, that had the potential to be a knuckle buster! I think I did but I can't remember for sure. Sorry! Thanks for watching!
Do the water heaters ever need replaced?
Yes, my in-law's had to replace theirs. Ours has been leaking and I need to figure out if it can be fixed or if I need to replace it. Thanks for watching!
I can't get the SOB out. Used the blaster now my house stinks. 3 days straight now and still not budging. Had a friend of mine who is Very strong and still frozen. I'm afraid to use my propane. Any ideas?
Sounds like you need more leverage. I had to drill a hole in that wrench so I could get more leverage. It was still very difficult.
Hi I had a question I recently plugged my trailer in and I got shocked would you happen to know some good tips to solve that issue? thank you in advance
Where did you get shocked? From your RV plug? By touching the side of the RV? Somewhere else? I've heard of wires getting disconnected and touching the interior walls of an aluminum sided RV. It creates a "hot skin" around the RV and has shocked people before. I'm not an electrician, but it sounds like you have a short in the wires somewhere. You may want to consider taking your trailer to a shop that could diagnose where the short is coming from. Good luck and thanks for watching!
Just wondering if the guys who designed this
ever worked on it themselves
Right!?! These designers should be required to try their products and do normal repairs/maintenance to see what it is like. Then maybe they would make better design decisions. Thanks for watching!
And they should Beta test their design with a 60+ subject 😊
So I’m a little confuse you said is an electric element but you going to used when you going bud docking with gas🤔🤔
We were going to a campground with electric. Instead of using propane during that trip to run our water heater, I decided to replace this electric element. That way we could use the electrical element to heat the water versus propane. Hopefully that clarifies things. Thanks for watching!
@@ColoradoCamperman thank you for the quick response,looking forward to change my, thank you.
Do you have to match the exact wattage of what you are replacing or can you “upgrade”?
You will likely have to match the exact wattage. If you open your breaker panel, you should have a breaker just for the electric water heater. That should tell you the amperage for that breaker. If you try to "upgrade", make sure you are not exceeding the capacity of that breaker. Hope that helps. Thanks for watching!
Okay, this may sound silly, but what direction do I turn that sob?
Not silly at all! Counterclockwise should loosen the anode rod and the element. Good luck and thanks for watching!
How long did it take you to get that loose before you got it out? I've been at it all day and not budging.
I let the PB blaster sit on there for at least 20-30min.
@@ColoradoCamperman well I'm going back out this morning and hopefully just hopefully it'll break loose
@@mondahudson2327 Good luck! Ours was very difficult to get off, you may need to hit it multiple times with the PB blaster and just let it soak into those threads.
Damn, all this money you are putting in your old camper you could have got that #Outdoors #RV
But if I got a new camper, I wouldn't be able to make videos like these, lol! I know! Believe me, I would love to get an Outdoors RV! It may still be in the cards in the future. We're doing a ton of repairs to the camper this year to hopefully give us another few years in the camper. Unless I can work out a brand deal with Outdoors RV before that.....we'll see!
Try to clean as much as you can.all that black stuff
Definitely! Thanks for watching!
Instead of waiting a week you could have gone to the hardware store and bought one. Just a normal water heater element wrench.
I called our local hardware store and they didn't have the wrench. The big box stores may have had them, but the video was shot during covid and we were trying to limit our exposure because we have family members who are at risk. Thanks for watching Russell!
@@ColoradoCamperman Understood
Shame on you....3 years. And I do have that wrench. Is there a pull and pay type junk yard down there? I'm looking for door parts for an 86 Dodge 150
Lol, I know right?!? Pretty bad. I know there are some junk yards here, but haven't been to any or know of any to recommend. There's also that big junk yard driving out to Canon City on Highway 50.
@@ColoradoCamperman ok, thanks.