water heater

[BGG]

I took my 303 rls on its maiden voyage and did not check the main board to make sure all the switches were off. So when I hooked up the batteries and power to the coach I did not realize the electric button was on and there was no water in the water heater, so I figure the element burned out. So I thought easy fix, but then realized the electric heater element is in the back of the heater---what a great design. so now a 5 min fix is way longer. So does anyone know how to get to the back of the water heater on a 2020 reflexion 303 rls ??????? The propane provided enough to heat the water for our needs but want to get it fixed. I think it is a bad design. there was a switch at the heater on our Cougar so it would not accidentally be turned on, and all the heater elements were in front so if you messed up it was not difficult to fix.

[TucsonJim]

BGG - I'm going to tag Rob who is our local 303 expert. He may be able to answer some of your questions. Cate&Rob

Are you sure that the water heater is not working on electric? Quite often, they will not burn out the element if accidentally left on.
Now I'm guessing, but I think there were modifications in the later years to allow access to the back of the water heater through the back panel in the pass through storage. The panel is held on by about 1 dozen screws and is pretty simple to remove.

Jim

[ThePowells]

The AC power switch for the heater is powered either from shore power or generator so it would have not been on going down the road. If your water heater isn't working on shore power, check for a second power switch under the main cover on the outside. Ours was in a hard place to see ( I don't recall exactly other than the upper left side) and both have to be on for it to work on AC. If you haven't, also check the breaker panel and make sure that it isn't off or tripped.

[Cate&Rob]

BGG

I would be interested to learn about what you had on your Cougar that could protect from turning on the electric water heat without water in the tank.

For your 303 . . . do you have a Dometic/Atwood heater (plastic drain plug) or a Suburban heater (metal drain plug). Most likely the Dometic/Atwood which will survive a dry power up, but will likely pop the 120V breaker.

If you need to access the electric element, this is on the back of the water heater and will require a combination of opening the left door on the hutch and pulling out the drawers.

Something to check . . . if your unit was winterized by a dealer . . . they often unplug the 120V connection to the water heater to prevent accidentally turning this on without water. You can check this plug by pulling the bottom drawer of the hutch.

Rob

[BGG]

Thanks for the help, and thank you C and R, you were right, the dealer turned off the circuit breaker to the heater. There was a switch in the water heater on my TT so both needed to be turned on so as to prevent heating up a dry water heater. This is a poor design on the GD. heater elements go out and on most heaters it is an easy fix. I cannot find the panel to access the back of the heater on my 303. I wonder if it is a German engineer. They build excellent products but impossible to work on--lol I am also going to call the dealer to let them know that this should have been pointed out but I am glad they did it. so just got a new tow truck--3500 diesel and am looking forward to the next trip.

[Country Campers]

BGG

To access the back side of the water heater simply remove the false wall on the rearward part of the pass thru storage area. There are about 4 screws on each end of the panel. Behind this panel you will find the water pump , the converter , as well as access to the back of the Nautilus panel, hot water heater as well as the furnace. There will also be a lot of plumbing lines and electrical as well as coax cable back there so be prepared to do some looking around. I believe this panel was mentioned here previously by Jim.

Brian

[Cate&Rob]

BGG

Attached is an illustration of the heater element access on a Dometic/Atwood water heater from the inboard side. I believe the other major water heater supplier, Suburban, does have the electric element accessible through the outside panel as you describe. Turning off the circuit breaker before draining either type of water heater is a wise service procedure.

Rob

[Cate&Rob]

BGG

To access the back side of the water heater simply remove the false wall on the rearward part of the pass thru storage area.

Oddly enough . . . the water heater in a Reflection 303RLS is not in the "plumbing basement" where it could be argued that it should be. It is behind the left hand lower buffet door (which is screwed shut). See the attached picture . . . you can the drawer slides in the foreground. You have to pull the drawers to get access. The water droplets on the side of the furnace in the background have to do with a certain midnight burst hose event . . . which is why that hose has a "temporary" hose clamp on it in the picture.

Rob