Roadtrek 2006 -- ID this wire?

[alwechs]

Can anybody ID this wire? It's coming from my water heater. I'm trying to figure out if it plugs into something, and if so, what? Don't see anything to plug it into ...

[hbn7hj]

Does the water heater work?

[alwechs]

Sorry for delay -- I did test it out and the heater does appear to be working (water out of the hot tap was warmer than the cold tap, but not hot -- assume it has to sit in the water heater for a while to actually heat up that much). The strange thing was the light next to the water heater switch didn't light up, which I expected, but maybe that only lights up when there's a problem (it does say "reset" on it). Sorry for my ignorance, this is my first time using the heater.

Anyway, still wondering about that mystery wire.

[markopolo]

It looks like the wire that plugs into the water heater control board. That board is located inside the RV somewhere near the water heater. It will look something like this:




The water heater shouldn't work without it.

[alwechs]

It's funny you mention that -- there's a slot on the bottom the exact size of the plug, but when I reach around inside I don't feel anything to plug it into ... just a circuit board. I've been trying to get the screws off, but it's very difficult because it was positioned right behind some pipes -- very awkward placement! Plus squarehead screws, of course. Do you think if I pulled the plastic cover off I would find what I'm looking for?

[markopolo]

The control board itself is usually adhered to a wall with thick double sided tape that comes with the board. That tape can let go over time. You have to remove the screws holding the cover to get to the control board. The boards can fail & last time I checked they had a 1 year warranty. You can see where the connector plugs in on this photo:

[alwechs]

OK, so if I'm understanding this photo correctly the plug slips into that tab that is part of the circuitboard? And the actual connectors are hidden underneath the bottom of the board, so you can't see them?

[markopolo]

Yes and the plug can only fit one way as it is thicker on one end to match the wider slot on the board.

[ChicagoTom]

No need to do anything, and yes the reset light is confusing. It comes on as it's firing up, and the first time I saw it, I thought it needed to be reset. When I lived full time, I would turn it on in the morning, let it run for about 15 minutes, shut it off and I was good for the rest of the day.