# Sydney 290Rls - Where Is The Water Heater Bypass?



## luverofpeanuts (Mar 9, 2010)

Well..I'm starting to get down to the last few things to do to before declaring the new TT ready.

The last thing I need to do is to de-winterize the water system. For the life of me, I can't find anywhere to access the hot water heater bypass from inside the trailer.









Can anyone guide me to where the bypass is and/or how to access it? The water heater is in door side rear corner. I can find no access panel on the entertainment center that would expose the back of the water heater. I'm reluctant to really tear into the entertainment center...only to find it is not the way to access the bypass. I know there are some 29RLS or 290RLS owners out there ;-)


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## maddog (Dec 16, 2009)

Pull the radio to see if you can access it from that hole.


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

The access panel will be directly behind the water heater. Typically just held in place with 2 screws.


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## luverofpeanuts (Mar 9, 2010)

maddog said:


> The access panel will be directly behind the water heater. Typically just held in place with 2 screws.


Thanks....I did find a small access panel on the opposite wall from the water heater...on the wall that the shoreline power is on. I was presuming it might be to access that. I may check that panel out before pulling the radio. I did unscrew it last night...but couldn't get the damn panel out. i think I'll need suction cup...or pry bar.


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## luverofpeanuts (Mar 9, 2010)

luverofpeanuts said:


> The access panel will be directly behind the water heater. Typically just held in place with 2 screws.


Thanks....I did find a small access panel on the opposite wall from the water heater...on the wall that the shoreline power is on. I was presuming it might be to access that. I may check that panel out before pulling the radio. I did unscrew it last night...but couldn't get the damn panel out. i think I'll need suction cup...or pry bar.
[/quote]

Just to follow up.... I did get to the water heater bypass. It is, in fact, inside the 'entertainment console' corner unit. The 'newspaper/magazine' rack had 4 long screws that were the only place I could see that might be it. Kind of awkward to unscrew the bottom two screws...but once I had all 4 removed...this 'panel' popped out to reveal a rather spacious area that housed the water heater. I flipped the one bypass switch and verified the water heater filled and started working. Then put the panel back.

I'm temped to find a better, quicker way to remove/attach the panel. Might make for a nice place to store little used ...or "secret" items ;-)

Thanks for all the input ;-)


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## luverofpeanuts (Mar 9, 2010)

Another followup....and this is as good a place as any to keep this info for future reference.

I finally accessed the water pump in my 290RLS. Having confidence in knowing where it was (from other members) and knowing other members have got in there, I spent some careful time with the step and managed to pry open the lid of the water pump enclosure area. I'm attaching a picture since it would be the most help for someone else needing to do the same.


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## Rob_G (Feb 16, 2006)

Although this is a very helpful topic and I'm glad your situation is resolved, is it me or are dealers becoming more lazy during the PDI? When I got my first TT, I had NO clue about nuthin' except for this thing called a PDI. It was the dealer who took it upon themselves to schedule a 4 hour session with me to go over the PDI as well as show me all systems, including these. I'm just said to hear that you weren't shown this before you took delivery.


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## luverofpeanuts (Mar 9, 2010)

Rob_G said:


> Although this is a very helpful topic and I'm glad your situation is resolved, is it me or are dealers becoming more lazy during the PDI? When I got my first TT, I had NO clue about nuthin' except for this thing called a PDI. It was the dealer who took it upon themselves to schedule a 4 hour session with me to go over the PDI as well as show me all systems, including these. I'm just said to hear that you weren't shown this before you took delivery.


I will take a fair amount of the blame for my situation. I could have asked more forcefully where things were and how to access...but since this is my second trailer...I wasn't too concerned about the specifics. We had an 11 hour trip to go back home, so I was more concerned with taking care of all the other stuff. My walkthru did last a good 90 minutes to 2 hours, and I still found it useful over all. I think our PDI guy got the distinct impression he could wiz through many things.... which is probably what I preferred.	I just never realized that the WH bypass and the water pump were buried so much in some of these trailers. In my old trailer, it was 'lift a cushion, lift a board, there she is....full access.

Now, my very first trailer was bought from a mom & pop dealership in 2001 that did a fair volume of sales, but not outrageous. They were AWESOME.... we went through everything, including hitching, unhitching, and even practicing backing the trailer up, parking, and getting a feel for how the trailer handles.	Up until that point, it was tents for us... so that was invaluable and much appreciated.

It's a good point for new owners.. .to make sure they feel empowered to ask questions and expect some quality time during walk throughs if they need it.


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