Hot Water at altitude

[JimboT]

I am returning my Joolca hot top water heater because it does not work at altitude. I camp regularly at 10,000 ft. plus or minus 500 ft. and am looking for a hot water heater for my rig. I am plumbed with 50 gallons of fresh water and have 3 GPM 55 psi pump. I carry a 2.5 gallon LPG tank as well. Thoughts and recommendations.

 

[Victorian]

12 Volt boiler. Needs ~16A/hour for about 40 minutes to bring it up to HOT. Mix the 6 liters with cold water and you can have a nice shower.

 

[JimboT]

12 Volt boiler. Needs ~16A/hour for about 40 minutes to bring it up to HOT. Mix the 6 liters with cold water and you can have a nice shower.

I will take a look thank you!

 

[Lmg]

I am returning my Joolca hot top water heater because it does not work at altitude. I camp regularly at 10,000 ft. plus or minus 500 ft. and am looking for a hot water heater for my rig. I am plumbed with 50 gallons of fresh water and have 3 GPM 55 psi pump. I carry a 2.5 gallon LPG tank as well. Thoughts and recommendations.

I have a similar water heater which I found did not work at altitude. There is a sail switch which must be activated by the fan before the burner will fire. The switch appeared to be very poor quality, so I got a good one.

Then I got some .007" shim stock and made the sail 20% larger. Now it works fine.

 

[JimboT]

I have a similar water heater which I found did not work at altitude. There is a sail switch which must be activated by the fan before the burner will fire. The switch appeared to be very poor quality, so I got a good one.

Then I got some .007" shim stock and made the sail 20% larger. Now it works fine.

What make of heater and what sail switch did you use?

 

[Lmg]

What make of heater and what sail switch did you use?

The water heater is a Girard Products model GSWH-1M. I am attaching photos of the switch and sail, with the screen removed. I believe the switch is made by Cherry. Number is D41X.

I bought very small screws in a kit from Amazon. Used nuts with the nylon inserts.

Let me know if you cannot find what you need on this. I have extra switches stashed away I can look at for more numbers if needed, they are just not very accessible right now.

 

[JimboT]

The water heater is a Girard Products model GSWH-1M. I am attaching photos of the switch and sail, with the screen removed. I believe the switch is made by Cherry. Number is D41X.

I bought very small screws in a kit from Amazon. Used nuts with the nylon inserts.

Let me know if you cannot find what you need on this. I have extra switches stashed away I can look at for more numbers if needed, they are just not very accessible right now.

 

[JimboT]

So you used a full blown RV water heater. I was thinking about the same but I have not figured how to do a mount on my truck that is why I have been experimenting with portables.

 

[Lmg]

So you used a full blown RV water heater. I was thinking about the same but I have not figured how to do a mount on my truck that is why I have been experimenting with portables.

Yes, mine is in a trailer, so mounting was not an issue.

So I remembered that I had a spreadsheet with all the items which went into my trailer build. The switch I bought is a Suburban 233100 sail switch.

Amazon.com: Suburban 233100 Sail Switch : Automotive

Buy Suburban 233100 Sail Switch: Electronics - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

And to anyone who may not have followed all of this thread, I added a larger sail.

 

[dreadlocks]

Sorry I didnt respond to your IM its been a crazy week here, the problem with portable on demand heaters is the low oxygen shutoff.. If you already got a heater, see if you can remove that thinggy.. If your looking for one w/out such safety features (outdoor only) I found the Triton 5L Portable Water Heater Model HWD5 looks like its just a basic dumb LP burner which should work at any altitude any other burner does.

They don't advertise low oxygen cutoffs so it can be hard to tell, if the marketing material says you can use it indoors (with proper ventilation) then its definitely got a low O2 sensor.

 

[mep1811]

Good thread.

I need to research the Truma heater in my trailer.

My wife and I had a week of cold nights when tent camping when I realized my Mr Heater buddy did not work over 6,00 feet.

Can't have that now with the Truma.

 

[Dr Gil]

I will take a look thank you!

There is also the possibility to change out the air intake for a larger intake to allow more oxygen at higher altitudes.

 

[JimboT]

Sorry I didnt respond to your IM its been a crazy week here, the problem with portable on demand heaters is the low oxygen shutoff.. If you already got a heater, see if you can remove that thinggy.. If your looking for one w/out such safety features (outdoor only) I found the Triton 5L Portable Water Heater Model HWD5 looks like its just a basic dumb LP burner which should work at any altitude any other burner does.

They don't advertise low oxygen cutoffs so it can be hard to tell, if the marketing material says you can use it indoors (with proper ventilation) then its definitely got a low O2 sensor.

I bought the Triton and I will see how it goes.

 

[dstock]

I bought the Triton and I will see how it goes.

Any update on the Triton?

 

[billiebob]

Gas/Oxygen mix changes with elevation. My old Ford had a forestry carb which compensated for elevation changes, guys who snowmobile in the mountains often need to rejet their carbs for higher elevations. Arctic Cat actually had a holder for different jets. Must be a way to tune it for elevation. But at some point propane just will not boil water and you need to switch fuels. White gas is the best in thin air.