Recirculating Hot Water

[George Boley]

Sue and I do a lot of dry camping, in doing so our biggest concern is conserving water. Because of that, we cringe whenever we have to run the (hot) water down the drain in order to get it hot enough to use.
That got me to thinking, which alone gets me into trouble because I usually end up building something unorthodox, that wasn't intended for the consuming public. Well, heres my idea-------
Instead of running the water down the drain, lets recirculate it by dumping it back into the fresh water tank until it runs hot. Guys like me will most likely rig up a bypass line by tapping into the hot water line adding a valve and hooking the other end into say, the fill inlet hose so it goes back into the tank. I think we could do the whole job for less than $10, even with new parts (as a last resort). But if one lacks the expertise or the cash, I have an easier, cheaper idea (been thinking again).
Most coaches have an outside shower, right, so lets take the end off the shower head and stick the hose down the fresh water tank fill. Thats the easy part, getting the wife to go out and open the valve until the water runs hot is the hard part !!!!!!! Just thinking. George B

[jobrien]

George I LIKE the way you think

John

[Mel Wilbur]

George, since our coach is a 26RB, both the bathroom sink and the shower are close enought to the hot water heater that we waste hardly any hot water, but washing dishes is another story. We simply heat some water on the stove and just add cold as necessary so as not to waste any of the water supply when on the road or dry camping. Guess i'm just to lazy to go outside to use your shower method, especially in cold weather.

[whemme]

George,

The colder the day, the longer it takes to get hot water from the hot water faucet and the more cold water wasted into the black or gray water tanks. It's on those days that the wife needs to go outside just after getting out of bed to run water from the outside shower hot water faucet into the fresh water tank - don't you think!

[Judy Harris]

Hey, Bill, this is a wife that might do this, I am interested! Please pursue this thought. We run hot water in the morning for dog food and for me to do my gymnastics act in the kitchen sink to wash my hair so this is an idea I would pursue. I hate that cold water running into the holding tank!

Judy Harris

[KTnLen]

A number of Class 'A' rigs use a hydronic heating system which produces hot water on demand, rather than having a storage tank for preheated water. Just think, no more anode to fool with for winterizing!

The hydronic system replaces, and fits into a slightly smaller space than the existing hot water tank. One such system is called Aqua-Hot and can be seen at: http://www.hydro-hot.com/ Note: this brand uses on-board diesel fuel to heat the system, but I know I've seen others on the market that use propane.

Here's an enterprising DIY project I found when I was researching this a while ago: http://www.solarhaven.org/HPArticle.htm This fellow built his own RV hydronic system that is propane powered.

Knowledge is power.

[norijake]

Part of the solution to getting the wife to go outside on a frosty day to operate the external shower valve might rest in learning how to coordinate the need for using hot water with the occurrence of a wife’s hot flash. My experience has shown that a woman who is in the throes of a “flashâ€

[Sab & Ann]

Hi George:
Your idea sounds very reasonalble. We microwave our wet "cold" wash towels as they do on the airlines and at some restaurants for about 20 seconds. They come out nice and hot for your quick morning wash up. Take your showers in the afternoon or early evening while it is still fairly warm. You could even go outside and move the outside shower "cold" hot water line to the potable water storage. You would save Sue that trip outside wouldn't you?
We use the microwave to heat water most of the time because that is the only way to use the generator and keep it in good running order. We add the hot water to the "cold" hot water faucet to temper it.
Your idea is similer to the hot water by-pass valve except you only need one valve. You can get fancy and add a thermometer to the by-pass so that you will know when to turn it off!
Sab & Ann

[Tim and Mia]

It's nice and very interesting to read all of this "out of the envelope" thinking!
Whew!