After this weekend at Butt Valley Reservoir near Lake Almanor in Northern California, I am curious as to what others do for hot water. I am looking at the Coleman Hot Water On Demand [a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009PURE0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=10BD24DF5T81H&coliid=I18N94WY05V9T&psc=1"]link[/a]. I like that it is on demand as i have seen others that water needed to be recirculated until hot enough.
I am looking for something that is adequate for showers first, but also makes dishes easier.
Sometimes I'll build fire boil some water the old fashion way if I really need hot water. Most of the time I can get buy with an electric tea kettle.
I have been heating water over the fire. But I do some trips for 5 days or so. With no power or showers and hardly what would be a bathroom at times. And it's fine most of the time but my 4 year old daughter seems to get dirtier every year. And although at times I'm with others that have more "amenities" I like to be more independent and always have what I need.
We used the Coleman Hot Water on Demand in the past, we went thru two models over one season of camping and after the second one also failed we quite using them. In addition to our camp stove we added a single burner Camp Chef stove rated at 40,000 BTU's. We heat up the water, apx. three gallons in a Camp Chef Hot Pot (five gallon size) when the water is hot enough (about eight minutes) we use the drain valve and transfer the water to another container for use like washing dish's, etc. For taking a shower we use a Trekker shower tent with a Pahque shower pan. The container of hot/warm water is placed on a small aluminum folding table next to the Trekker tent and we use a D cell battery powered shower pump (Zodi) to take a shower (we also use the shower pump for dish washing chores).
I have been looking at these? http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm?skunum=37786&rewrote&affiliateid=5193&gclid=CJ6BmLvf5scCFYVAaQodVCoFTg
Looks cool.
The portable on demand hot water heaters look great but they need a decent water source to even activate. Essentially you'll need a city water hook up to make that happen, or a decent 12v water pump and a good size tank.
I've been thinking about how I can over complicate this and came up with a couple of options that I like :)
I first thought about the on demand systems like the Zodi, or Coleman. Then moved onto the larger units like @larry1981. All of these systems seemed to have draw backs to the point that I'm not sure how if they were worth it. I've now moved on to something that can be used in multiple ways with the existing equipment we all bring.
My first thought was something like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAORPy4J6j8
Its essentially a metal coil that can be placed into a fire, or over a camp stove. Depending on how long the coil is, how hot the heat source is, and the starting temp of the water it becomes an on demand water heater. You could use it without electricity if you wanted by gravity feeding the water through the system into a collection container and then use as desired. You could also use a water pump to use it directly.
Then my second thought was about the efficiency of the coil...I started thinking that it must have a lot of wasted heat. So then I started toying with the same basic idea, but instead of using a coil, why not use a radiator just in the opposite direction. Something small like this (http://www.amazon.com/AGPtek%C2%AE-Aluminum-Exchanger-Radiator-Computer/dp/B00CFDS3JA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1441719563&sr=8-1&keywords=small+radiator&pebp=1441719625510&perid=0TWEXGKMH24YXQFC2V92) placed over a single burner of a camp stove should produce a lot more hot water with less wasted heat and fuel.
Like I said (half jokingly) I may be over complicating the idea, but I think its something that fills a gap in the current market. These options provide hot water with a wide range of options. The problem is that I dont know if they really would provide any less effort vs simply boiling a pot of water and then using as needed.
[font size="3"]I'd be concerned about the survivability of the aluminum radiator if the water flow ever stops. Watch what happens to an aluminum can in a campfire.
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When the idea of the radiator popped up, I was thinking it would be a camp stove only type of application. That way the heat could be controlled. Even still it probably wouldnt last long without water flow.
[font size="3"]I like the idea of the radiator on the camp stove. A small battery powered pump to circulate into a bucket until the desired temp is obtained, then reconfigured to run the shower. A high tech tea kettle. Nice clean campers 8-)
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I have used the Zodi and it works well. And the radiator would probably be the most usable anywhere I might be at. However I was looking for a more on demand type system. And something that once set up is easy for the family to use. At first was leaning toward the Coleman. But after I seen the one larry1981 brought up, that looks like what I'm going for.
So to follow-up on the hot water heater. I went with the Eccotemp l5. It worked amazing. From rinsing a Sandy daughter off. To dishes and showers it was exactly what I wanted. I will be getting a on demand water pump when I need it as last week in Charleston Oregon I had city water. But I'm very happy with it so far. (https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5689/21717591036_251e4a970d_c.jpg)
That's a nice setup.