[VAC] Re: Skin damage and water heater

[Charlie/Betty Burke]

Jerry Harris wrote: Hi everyone,I am getting our 1971 Tradewind (25 foot) ready and have two problems.  While driving through El Paso last year, I hit a piece of 2x2 square steel pipe about  four feet long.  When I ran over it with my Excursion, it flew up, hit the front leveler, spun around and hit the side of the trailer making a hole about three inches by six inches through the outside skin only.  We finished our trip with a duct-tape patch.  I would like to put a piece of aluminum for a patch.  The only aluminum I can find is VERY thin material for flashing.  I would like something thicker.   The question is how thick and where can I find it? Next, there is a leak by the hot water heater and I cannot see back there to find the leak.  It is a very slow leak.  I am thinking about taking the hot water heater out.  There are about a million screws on the outside of the thing (talk about over kill).  I guess I take all of those out, disconnect the water pipe and the gas pipe and pull the little feller out.  Right?   Is it a major job? I think the leak is coming from some old black hose that I cannot get to without taking out the heater.  Is that black hose difficult to replace?   How? I have more questions, but these will keep me busy for now. Thanks for any help. Jerry2982 Since the other guys jumped on the metal question, I'll tackle the water heater. It's UGLY. Seriously, the folks at Airstream, at least the guy with the Vulkem, took any penetration in the skin very seriously. They wanted to make sure it would never leak. As a result you will find, given that is an original factory installed water heater, that taking the screws out is the easy part. Of course a power screwdriver is a good thing. Once you have the screws out and the plumbing disconnected (sweated loose) you still have to cut the heater out. Pull the flanges that the screws were in toward the middle of the heater. Behind them you should be able to see gray Vulkem. Using a long blade knife, push in and cut around the heater to release it. Once you have worked your way around the heater should pull out. I'm going to bet, however that the leak you are seeing is actually coming front bottom of the heater tank. Electrolysis/dissimilar metal action eventually erodes the bottom of the tanks. Charlie