How To Fill In The Gap When Your New Water Heater Is Smaller

Updated 03/21/2023 | Published 03/20/2023

Products Featured in This Question

Dometic RV Water Heater - 10,000 Btu - Propane/Electric - 6 Gallon Tank - 120V - No Door

(139)

$626.99

LaSalle Bristol XTRM Universal Non-Sag Sealant for RVs - White - 10.1 oz - Qty 1

(80)

$31.32

Alpha Systems Butyl Tape for RV Weatherproofing - 20' x 1" x 3/16"

(241)

$25.12

Water Heater Door Conversion Kit for 6 Gallon Electric and Gas Water Heater - Black

(50)

$71.08

Question:

I am replacing a gc6aa-10e with the dmc74r with new door to cover the larger whole. As you can see in the pics the door does not cover the opening,

asked by: Steven S

Expert Reply:

One thing that will help is the Water Heater Door Conversion Kit for 6 Gallon Electric and Gas Water Heater - Black # DMC24FR, which comes with side brackets to cover up some of the gap. Use this you'd still have to layer on some sealant around the top and bottom but the problem is that you'll most likely still have water leaking in since the door is slightly into the hole instead of sitting flush against the wall of the trailer.

Other than building a custom door to completely cover the opening the only other option would be to build in a new frame for the unit to mount to just a bit more out so that you can use some trim pieces around the opening that would sit close enough in to not interfere with the door. Essentially, the new frame would sit flush with the trailer and the water heater would mount to it so that it's out enough for the door to still open. Some trim could be used to cover the gap and new framing. You'd use butyl tape # AL28FJ on the mounting flanges and non-sag sealant # 344270341437-1 around the outside to prevent water from leaking in.

This is quite a bit more than just a simple swap at this point so if you have any other questions please submit another question and let me know.

expert reply by: Kevin C