2003 420DA Water Heater Replacement

[Blue Chip]

Looking like I need a new water heater on my 03 - there is a leak coming from somewhere.. ideas on brands, and whether or not there is a 1:1 swap?

 

[Henry Boyd]

I would recommend looking at Quick Nautic water heaters. We have one on the Sabre. They have a stainless tank that is encapsulated in foam insulation with a very tough polymer casing. Ours is shaped about like a beer keg. The thermostat and control is a one piece affair with a long probe that goes into the heating element housing. The thermostat assembly simply plugs into the element housing. The heating element housing just screws into one of the tank ends. The whole thing is simplicity personified.

The customer service people are great. I had to replace the thermostat right after we got the boat. They got the parts to me ASAP and explained how fix it over the phone.

Given the materials used and simplicity of the design, the darn thing should last forever. The down side is they are more expensive than the usual run of the mill water heater. I believe the MSRP on our 40l (about 11 gallon) heater is around a boat buck.

 

[Stee6043]

I just put a Kuuma in my 400 recently. Quality seems to be just fine, better than the 24 year old unit I removed. Quite affordable too...less than half a boat buck

 

[Fred]

I just installed a 6 gallon SS Whale unit last week. It appears to be of good quality. Since I live in NJ I installed a bypass kit to make winterization less of a hassle.

 

[bbwhitejr]

So far, mine is good, but is 18 years old. Please keep us informed on removal and reinstall.

Bennett

 

[Irie308]

Just curious if it makes sense to mount these on a piece of starboard to help prevent rust and corrosion? Whenever I drain the hotwater heater I often get left over water or antifreeze that settles underneath. I'm sure mine is just waiting for the opportune time to quit on me so I've been planning my replacement in my head.

 

[Blue Chip]

All of the water heaters have heat exchangers - correct?

 

[dtfeld]

All of the water heaters have heat exchangers - correct?

Most do but not all have a heat exchanger. They also come in different configurations as to where the HE inlet is relative to the hot/cold out.

 

[Henry Boyd]

Just curious if it makes sense to mount these on a piece of starboard to help prevent rust and corrosion? Whenever I drain the hotwater heater I often get left over water or antifreeze that settles underneath. I'm sure mine is just waiting for the opportune time to quit on me so I've been planning my replacement in my head.

The rust & corrosion is from the heater materials and mounting screws. Starboard is no more corrosion resistant than gelcoat and won’t prevent the rust stains. I’m not being snarky when I say to buy a better water heater if you don’t want the heater to rust. Most of the “stainless” sub 1 boat buck heaters have stainless sheet metal mostly for show and aluminum tanks.

All of the water heaters have heat exchangers - correct?

The brand I mentioned above does. Most boat and RV water heaters do as a standard feature when 120/240 VAC service is not continuous.

 

[bbwhitejr]

When I replace, I will lift it up with some 1/2" pieces of starboard to allow air to circulate underneath. I think this will help as much as anything.

Bennett

 

[hughespat57]

I just did the same thing strips of pvc trim from homedepot two in center for weight and one each edge for stability
Leaves a nice gap for air

 

[Ed Bacon]

Replaced a 16 years old 8 gallons Atwood with an 11 gallons Kuuma.