Quick and Cheap Replacement of a Rocker Switch

A rocker switch on our control panel broke during the dewinterizing process this week. I was filling our fresh water tanks and went to the control panel to check the water level. The switch basically just froze and no longer provided electricity to the panel.

 Replacement of these switches is one of the easiest RV fixes. Our local hardware and auto parts stores don't stock the switches. Fortunately, they are available on Amazon and arrived in just over 24 hours for a price of under $6.00.  Actually, five switches arrived for $6.00, since this was the minimum order size, and I now have a couple of backups.

The photo below shows our working control panel after the installation of the switch. It only took a minute or two to finish the task.

 

Leave a comment below if you have any questions or suggestions!

Installation of a Water Heater By-Pass

Spring seems to have arrived in central Missouri and it is time to dewinterize Annie, our 1996 Roadtrek. The process focuses on the fresh water and plumbing systems which were drained in the fall.

I started off the process by installing a Camco Kit 35953 8" Supreme Permanent By-Pass Kit for 6 Gallon Tank. 

The winterizing processes will go much quicker in future years and I'll avoid the risk of pulling antifreeze into the hot water heater at some point.

It is my understanding that Roadtrek began using the water heater bypasses a year or two after ours was built. A bypass is a nice feature since it allows you to isolate the water heater so you can pull RV antifreeze through your fresh water system using your water pump. 

The above photo shows the Roadtrek hot water heater without the bypass.

 

These two photos show the packaging for the bypass and a screenshot from Amazon with a diagram of the installed bypass. You can note the price is just under $31.00.  

The brass fittings all fit together easily and it just took a few minutes to complete installation. The photo below shows the installed bypass. 

I then installed a new aluminum anode rod for the water heater and proceeded to fill Annie's water tanks. The water heater filled and then successfully heated water. Most importantly, so far, there aren't obvious leaks. 

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or comments.