Low hot water pressure

[pdavila]

First off, I apologize if this has been covered already, but I didn't see it.

I have a Suburban water heater, model SW6-DE. The tank is full, I get plenty of cold water pressure, but my hot water pressure starts okay and then rapidly reduces down to a dribble. Looking at some things on the internet, people have been saying that the hot water tank's outlet has a check valve on it that can go bad and need replacing. I called Suburban and they said that all that is in the tank is a plastic diffuser tube for the cold and the hot water ports, and that there is no check valve.

Some checks I already did: Bypass valve is set correctly (bypass is "off"), tank is full of water and is hot. Pump is on and working properly. Winterizing tube valve is set to correct position.

Any suggestions on how to fix my low hot water pressure??

[shadow]

drain tank and make sure you don't have mineral build up, it can get pretty chunky and should be cleaned out every season, similar to household water heater

[Eagle]

It is possible the water line from the water heater to the faucet is kinked or crimped someplace preventing the hot water from flowing.

[jerkar]

There is a brass check valves located at the cold water intake and one located at the hot water outlet. Inside there is a plastic stem with a spring and a small plastic retaining clip. If the clip comes off the valve will not open. Jerry

[pdavila]

All the lines seem to be okay. When the system is in bypass, all the faucets have full pressure in the hot and cold lines.

I took the outlet check valve off and the little plastic valve seems to move back and forth okay, but after examining it and re-installing, I still have low pressure. What a mystery!

I'm thinking of picking up a new check valve, if I can find one.

[jerkar]

On the older water heaters, they did not have these check valves, So the question is why are they needed? I removed mine last summer. Everything works as it should. One less thing to go wrong. Jerry

[pdavila]

Problem solved! I took the inlet check valve off and the plastic valve was broken. Took the components out and re-installed just the brass body. Now, it fills quickly, and I have good pressure.

I spoke with several RV service shops and they all wondered why there were check valves on it. I found this interesting, considering one of the service centers I called was at the dealer that I bought it from; seems like they would have seen that before.

Thanks for the help, everyone.