Changing water heater from elec. to gas

[bmerri]

Has anyone ever did this. How big of a job would it be to do this. Our water is so hard that they would have to dillute it to get it to show on the test kit. We have to replace our heating element once to twice a year. It has so much lime that you can't hardly get the element out and you sure can't get it drained. Our floor will be the next thing that goes. Our old trailer ended up with the water heater sitting on the ground. It fell through the floor. We need to do something!!!

[flcruising]

Are you doing this only because of the hard water issue? You will have issues (though different) by just changing how the water is heated. The efficiency of the gas water heater will degrade quickly if the water is as bad as you describe. Have you looked into a water softener? It did wonders for our well water 15 years ago.

Please clarify how the floor structure failed because of the water issue...

[Jim from Canada]

You will likely have a problem finding a gas water heater that is rated to be used in a MH. If you're water is that hard a water softener would help for sure, but at least some sort of filter system instalation. Even the cheap Rainfresh brand ones. Put in 2 or 3 of them in series. The first uses a coarse sediment filter (20 micron) and they get finer as you go down the line. Do not use an activated charcoal one if you are on well water. The charcoal will trap the bacteria, and it will grow in the filter. You can get filters as fine as 5 microns for the last in line. Or, just call up Culligan or some other water service company and have them install a unit.

One warning on reverse osmosis units. Do not use them if you are on a weeping bed system or pay for your water by volume. For every liter of water that passes through them for your use, they take as much as 7 liters to flush the membrane. This goes directly to your waste water system.

[bmerri]

Thank you, our water is so hard it had to be dilluted to show up on the water tester. we bought a softner but just never installed it because it would take alot to clean it up. As far as switching to gas, his mom has hot water heat and they installed their water heater in the seventies when the house was built and we just replaced it the end of summer this year. There is so much lime that it burns the element out at least once , usually twice a year and thats bad when you can't get it to drain because there is so much lime.

[mjcp]

A gas water heater in a mobile home, requires a major effort and expense.

To avoid carbon monoxide poisoning you MUST have a Unit designed and approved for Mobile home use. This will most likely be the most expensive unit your dealer offers. Where we live an electric water heater, or a gas water heater for houses can still be found for $300, but a Vented Mobile home water heater will be over $700. You can buy a lot of elements for that.

You will also need to install a roofmounted Vent, drill holes in the roof and flooring , run new gas lines - And since this all requires Permits and inspections, there are no corners to cut. If you get it done professionally there is a lot of labor involved which will also add up.

And after all is said and done, you will still have a problem with your water supply and it will take it's toll on your new and very expensive gas water heater also.

I would recommend either A) bite the bullet on the water softener option, or B) budget for and plan on changeing elements every 4 - 5 Months, and drain the tank every 2 - 3 months. I say this because you mentioned that after 6 months you have too much build up, so doing it every few months will hopefuly catch it while it is still an easy maintenance job. Elements aren't cheap but they are cheaper than a complete redesign and rebuild.

[Harry]

Hi

Stay electric ....go water softener. JMHO

Harry

[Brenda OH]

wish I could describe this better....

some water heaters have the filling designed to swirl the water more at the bottom of the water heater than normal, to encourage any sediments that form to stay suspended and move out of the heater, not build up as quickly. Some discussion websites said, "not likely to work" lol flush the tank anyways.....

this is an interesting website I found, the fellow goes into how to make it easier to check/replace anodes, change some parts on a new water heater to make it easier to flush to remove sediment, etc.

you might get some good ideas out of it.
http://www.waterheaterrescue.com

Brenda (OH)
time to quick messing around on the computer and go finish painting the living room ceiling on the current mh project.....

[flcruising]

Alternatively, you may have a water filtration service, like Culligan, who could install and maintain water filtering equipment for a monthly fee. May be something to look into.

[WildIrish]

To avoid carbon monoxide poisoning you MUST have a Unit designed and approved for Mobile home use.

(snip)

You will also need to install a roofmounted Vent, drill holes in the roof and flooring....

Well, that's scary stuff. We have a gas water heater in our MH, but I don't know if it's made for mobile home use. The gas smell was coming into the house, and we had someone put in the roof mounted vent (the heater is in a tiny little room accessible only from the outside). That smell has gone away, but now I'm wondering if we're really safe.

What's involved in switching from a gas to electric water heater? If someone could explain this, and give a "guess-timate" of the money involved, I'd be very grateful.

[WildIrish]

Bumping, in the hopes somebody will answer my question. I may have a dangerous situation on my hands here at home...? Thanks!

[countrymech]

WildIrish, I'm new to the forum but I'll take a stab at it anyway. You said that your water heater was in a tiny room accessible from only the outside. Sounds like your home was designed for a gas water heater and as long as the intake vent and chimney flue are clear you should be able to resolve the issue. Keep in mind that the fresh air intake must be vented outside the home. I have seen people cut a hole in their bathroom wall to vent the closet to the warm air in the home cause this problem. On the other hand If you want to replace the unit with an electric one it is a fairly complicated task. You will need to pull a new circuit from your electrical panel to the water heater closet. I don't know how old your home is or what size service panel it has, but on older homes with 100 amp service panels this might be a problem. It is not a hard job, just a complicated one. I don't know how much you would do yourself, but I would expect a project such as this to run at least $1,000 by the time you bought a new water heater, hired a plumber, and then got a qualified electrician to run the new circuit. You may be able to get it done for less. Hope this helps.

[Greg]

It sounds like you have a few choices to make.
A NEW Electric heater runs $200 +/-, A gas heater (MH approved) will be 2 -3 times that price PLUS the instillation costs.
If you do the math you can buy a NEW electric water heater, & change the elements twice a year and STILL be money ahead after the 6-9 year life expediency of the heater.
We had water here that was so hard that it went clunk before it splashed so I know what you are up against. Did you totally flush the heater before you put the new elements in? I used to totally remove the heater, put it on it's side and flush the crud out, otherwise you are just installing new elements in 3" of lime & sediment.
A water system will also help in other areas as well such as less soap needed and longer faucet & toilet valve life. Greg

[WildIrish]

WildIrish, I'm new to the forum but I'll take a stab at it anyway. You said that your water heater was in a tiny room accessible from only the outside. Sounds like your home was designed for a gas water heater and as long as the intake vent and chimney flue are clear you should be able to resolve the issue. Keep in mind that the fresh air intake must be vented outside the home. I have seen people cut a hole in their bathroom wall to vent the closet to the warm air in the home cause this problem.

Ours vents to the outside, so I guess we're safe, then. Thank you for the advice!

[Yanita]

Your current water tank should/better have a label that says MH approved. If it does then you are fine. To convert from gas to electric you will need to make sure that your electric service panel has room for another breaker. This tank would need/require it's own dedicated circuit.

As for cost, well you have the cost of the tank, disposal of the other tank, breaker, wiring, electrician if you are unsure how to do that part. Permit if you want to be within the law and inspection. Most electrician will give you a free estimate for the work involved. Lowe's sells the tnaks you could google that. It is impossible for us to give anyone a real quote due to labor cost differences etc. although we can tell you when we think the cost is tooo much.

HAGD, Yanita

[Robert]

Hi,

This should help :

http://www.mobilehomerepair.com/article19whconv.html




Take care and best wishes,
Robert