# Water Heater Bypass



## Albertabound (Jul 24, 2007)

I am curious,
I turned the bypass at the water heater and then hooked up antifreeze through bypass at water pump. Never got anything out of hot water taps but cold taps ran pink??
Shouldn't there be pink coming out of hot taps?
Harry


----------



## Zymurgist (Apr 2, 2007)

Hi Harry,

You should get flow out of the hot as well, was there any air? Or just nothing at all?

Check the water heater bypass, you might have that 180 degrees out so it is blocking flow to both the water heater and hot water lines. Just a thought.

Carl


----------



## NDJollyMon (Aug 22, 2003)

Need to close more than one valve on bypass. Get them right?
Low point drain caps back in place?
Drain plug back in water heater?


----------



## Eagleeyes (Aug 1, 2007)

Albertabound said:


> I am curious,
> I turned the bypass at the water heater and then hooked up antifreeze through bypass at water pump. Never got anything out of hot water taps but cold taps ran pink??
> Shouldn't there be pink coming out of hot taps?
> Harry


Did you have enough pink stuff??
Bob


----------



## Scoutr2 (Aug 21, 2006)

You may have more than one bypass valve. Mine has one valve (on the water heater inlet line) that turns 90 degrees. It directs the flow thru the bypass line to the water heater outlet line, which has a check valve between the tank outlet and the "Tee" where the bypass line connects to the hot water outlet line. The check valve allows water to flow out of the tank, but prevents any flow from entering the tank through the outlet.

My guess is that you have a valve at the inlet (which you probably rotated to the "Bypass" position) and a valve at the outlet (which is still open to the tank outlet and closed to the bypass line - blocking the flow from the bypass line). Look for that second valve at the hot water outlet line, and turn it 90 degrees, also. That should allow the pink stuff to flow through the hot water lines to your faucets.

Hopefully this is your situation and it will solve the problem. If not - then I'm stumped.

Mike


----------



## goneflyfishin (Jan 12, 2007)

Scoutr2 said:


> You may have more than one bypass valve. Mine has one valve (on the water heater inlet line) that turns 90 degrees. It directs the flow thru the bypass line to the water heater outlet line, which has a check valve between the tank outlet and the "Tee" where the bypass line connects to the hot water outlet line. The check valve allows water to flow out of the tank, but prevents any flow from entering the tank through the outlet.
> 
> My guess is that you have a valve at the inlet (which you probably rotated to the "Bypass" position) and a valve at the outlet (which is still open to the tank outlet and closed to the bypass line - blocking the flow from the bypass line). Look for that second valve at the hot water outlet line, and turn it 90 degrees, also. That should allow the pink stuff to flow through the hot water lines to your faucets.
> 
> ...


Mike, how big is the check valve on your heater? My water heater appears to only have one bypass valve and no check valve. This maybe why all my pink stuff ran out the water heater drain.
Sam


----------



## Scoutr2 (Aug 21, 2006)

The check valve is in-line (screwed into the tank's outlet fitting) and looks just like a long plastic fitting. Mine has an arrow on the outside, denoting the correct direction of flow. If you have the bypass valve turned to the correct position, and do not have another bypass valve at the other end of the bypass line, it sounds like Gilligan either left out the check valve or he left out the second bypass valve.

It appears, from your description, that the pink stuff is flowing through the bypass line and then entering the tank through the outlet. If the bypass valve is turned to the bypass position, the only way for fluid to get into your tank is through the outlet (check valve). (That is, unless the bypass valve is not working properly, internally - which is unlikely - or if the check valve is stuck open.)

One silly question - Are you sure that you have the bypass is turned to the correct position? If you've been getting hot water all along, then the bypass position would be the opposite position from where it's been all camping season.

Check with your dealer and see what they recommend as the easiest fix. Perhaps someone here can think of something that I have not.

What say y'all?

Mike


----------



## Albertabound (Jul 24, 2007)

Well I figured out what I was doing wrong.
The by pass was turned properly, I just didn't allow enough time for the antifreeze to get through system(hot)
I checked the bypass last night and I could see pink in the line so I new it was getting there. Hooked up jug of antifreeze to the pump and let her go. I got pink out of hot taps after a minute or so.
Wasted a bit of antifreeze as I had lleft the hot tap on the outside sink turned on and when I went out side I had a large pool of pink running down the side of trailer.
another lesson learned.
Harry


Scoutr2 said:


> The check valve is in-line (screwed into the tank's outlet fitting) and looks just like a long plastic fitting. Mine has an arrow on the outside, denoting the correct direction of flow. If you have the bypass valve turned to the correct position, and do not have another bypass valve at the other end of the bypass line, it sounds like Gilligan either left out the check valve or he left out the second bypass valve.
> 
> It appears, from your description, that the pink stuff is flowing through the bypass line and then entering the tank through the outlet. If the bypass valve is turned to the bypass position, the only way for fluid to get into your tank is through the outlet (check valve). (That is, unless the bypass valve is not working properly, internally - which is unlikely - or if the check valve is stuck open.)
> 
> ...


----------



## Sayonara (Jul 23, 2007)

Whew, Glad you got it figured out!!


----------



## goneflyfishin (Jan 12, 2007)

Scoutr2 said:


> The check valve is in-line (screwed into the tank's outlet fitting) and looks just like a long plastic fitting. Mine has an arrow on the outside, denoting the correct direction of flow. If you have the bypass valve turned to the correct position, and do not have another bypass valve at the other end of the bypass line, it sounds like Gilligan either left out the check valve or he left out the second bypass valve.
> 
> It appears, from your description, that the pink stuff is flowing through the bypass line and then entering the tank through the outlet. If the bypass valve is turned to the bypass position, the only way for fluid to get into your tank is through the outlet (check valve). (That is, unless the bypass valve is not working properly, internally - which is unlikely - or if the check valve is stuck open.)
> 
> ...


Well it looks like Gilligan worked that day, only one bypass valve and no check valve. I'll check with the dealer and see if he will give me another bypass valve under warrenty and I can put it in this weekend and complete winterizing the camper, due to having shoulder surgery next week I will not have time to take it in for such minor work.
Thanks for the info Sam


----------

