Cant seem to get a good Carver Cascade Rapide hot water heater from anywhere, dont make them anymore, the one i got is gas and electric, but only realy want to use electrc, mine as seen better days.
When you say you can't get one from anywhere, where exactly have you tried?
It will give members of the forum to get a general idea of your search before posting links that you may have already contacted.
What has happened to the existing hot water tank so it needs replacing?
Depending on the problem, there are still spares available for this model.
That's the plastic non-return valve that has snapped and is replaceable for under a tenner. The thread is a 16mm. x 1mm. pitch which you will need to clean out before inserting the new one with fresh waterproof seal. You can identify the offending part in the link below but it's a common problem on this specific water heater as the non return valve hardens over time making it brittle therefore breaks quite easily.
What you need is a mechanically minded friend who can remove it for you with a chisel or screw driver, and he or she will probably save you quite a few quid... me thinks
Quote: Originally posted by comtracdriver on 12/1/2018
The hot water outlet connection as broke away from the tank,
Mine broke while I was on holiday in south Wales last year. I found a local caravan spares dealer and bought one for a few pounds. Took it back to the site and fixed the problem in about 30 minutes. Would have been much quicker but the broken bit left in the heater was a bit tricky to remove.
Copied from another site, and the instructions I used to replace mine some years ago:
Snapped Non Return Valves.
Tools: Junior hacksaw blade, small ended screwdriver. 1) This job can be done without removing the heater but it is sometimes easier to do so.
2) Remove the heater as per above.
3) Upright heater on the bench with the cast end down.
4) Cut a groove into the snapped off part of the valve.Be careful not to cut down into the cast threads.
5) cut a second groove around 3mm away from the first groove.
6) Leaver the middle section out using a small screwdriver.
7) The rest of the valve should then collapse into the centre.If it doesn't then another groove may have too be cut.
8) If you have such a tool then the threads can be cleaned out with an M16 tap.
9) Fit new valve by slowly screwing it in, be careful not to dethread the valve.
10) Refit heater.Attach the water pipes outside of the van if you can a test for leaks.
I have done this job twice which both times have turned out successfully. What you need is a junior hacksaw blade with a cloth wrapped around and you have to saw through the old plastic non return valve thread at opposite sides in order to split the thread in half. At the exterior, (opposite end) you have to undo and remove the cold water drain plug then with a long screwdriver and hammer, knock the old valve through into the caravan interior. Inside the aluminium thread will be the old rock hard sealant which has to be removed with a 16mm. diameter x 1mm. pitch hand tap otherwise it will chew the thread up on the new non return valve when screwing in. The only possible way of turning the thread tap on the square drive is by using a small open ended spanner which you have to turn gently, 1 full turn then half a turn back to release the chewed up bits and so not to damage the thread in the shroud. Once this is done you need to remove the all the debris and clear out the thread with a vacuum cleaner so any remaining bits don't enter the fresh water system. The flats on the new non return valve are 20mm. (which is not a standard size) so you need either a ring spanner, long socket or tube spanner of that size that will fit over the spigot of the new non return valve. An open ended spanner will just slip off causing further damage so you need the right tools for the job for this application. Before screwing in the new non return valve you have to ensure the new rubber seal is in tact first then wrap some PTFE tape around the thread or an appropriate pipe sealing compound (or both) and tighten up. Don't over tighten the non return valve though as it has a tapered thread to assist in sealing the water pressure in the tank so once it's locked that's it. Once this is done, you can then reconnect the corresponding water pipe and jubilee clip and screw back in the exterior drain plug and fill up the water system. Finally, do the inspection to ensure there are no leaks at the new non return valve.
Even if you have to buy the tools (like I did), it's cheaper than buying a replacement hot water tank (if you can obtain one) as the cheapest second hand one I could find at that time was £140 plus the VAT. Most of the tools I already had except for the tube spanner set, 20mm. ring spanner and the 16mm. tap which set me back about 35 quid but at least I have the tools so next time it's just the labour time involved. I took me about 2 hours to complete the job but I was still over a hundred quid better off than buying a replacement tank.
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Topic: Water Heater
