Water heater replacement and controller.

CougarMtn

I'm following the lead of several of you that have replaced the 6 gallon waterheater with a 2-1/2 gallon GE unit. The six gallon unit, besides being large, was mounted right behind the cabinet door, making access to the rest of the storage space nearly impossible. So it needed to be moved, or removed. The 2-1/2 gallon unit will mount nicely on an interior bulkhead, leaving a large usable storage space.

Some of you mentioned about replacing the 110 volt heater element with a 220 volt element, so it could be run on a 1000 watt generator, or inverter. Problem is, one is then limited when hooked up to shore power. I've been thinking of using a SolidState, 15 amp Dayton speed controller in conjuction with an amp meter (via current transformer) to regulate the input power to the water heater when needed. Should have the same effect, by lowering the input voltage in relation to the element rating. Cost isn't much of an issue here, as I already have most of what is needed, curtesy of past Ham radio swap meets.

Any thoughts?

Aurelia · Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:55 am Post subject:

We did the tank and element swap and it worked well enough for us although we ended up with tank leaks on tanks not suited to the vibration of a boat. We ended up with a marine 4 gallon unit which still allowed cabinet use and a 110 v element again. We honestly didn't use the genny to make hot water more than a couple of times and found it was just not needed for our use up to a few days between services in a cool climate. It would be interesting to have both voltage options if you can pull it off but i would not think you could live without both. The 2gal model is great for non-shower use but i think a 4 gallon is ideal for overall use and the added time it takes to heat water with a 220 element is a non-issue when at the dock because you are plugged in so long. So if you have a 1000watt genny, try the 220 option and see if you really use it that way.

thataway · Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:06 pm Post subject:

The 6 and 11 gallon marine tanks use 110 volt elements--1200 watts. The 1000 watts should heat the water fast enough--both on mains power and the generator. Why worry about time on mains power? It will be plugged in for hours.

CougarMtn · Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:39 pm Post subject:

Aurelia · Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:45 pm Post subject:

That could work but the draw will be significant. I hope you have some serious battery bankage and a good alternator to to minimize losses. I will say once hot, the tanks hold heat for many hours so if you are heated up at a dock or while anchored, the warm water will last the day long for non-shower use. We were always sure to heat the tank up in the AM at a dock so we would have warm water while under way for the day. Pulling about 60amps at 12v through your inverter for an hour will certainly exercise your batteries....