G'day! Bart here from Joolca - Portable LPG Water heaters.

[Bart@Joolca]

Hey guys,
Bart here from Joolca. We are a small company in Melbourne that sells portable hot water units. You're welcome to have a look at our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/joolcaco or website http://www.joolca.com.au/ to have a look at some images and customer testimonials. You can also have a look at our YouTube page https://www.youtube.com/user/JoolcaPtyLimited for some video demonstrations. In saying that, I'm not here to advertise. I hope to not only learn from everyone here, but to also give my two cents about portable hot water and to answer any questions or concerns anyone may have.
Thanks!

[muzza01]

I like the idea but after scooting around your website  I couldn't find out how much it cost.

[wilson79]

Hi Bart and welcome..

I am currently looking at a country comfort system and are interested in some more info on your system.

why should I purchase yours over the Country Comfort unit? Oh and as Muzz said how much?

[MattNQ]

Price is on there now - $299 for the "Hottap"
Neat little unit.
However "Flotap" product page won't load

[Bart@Joolca]

@muzza01: Thats strage, did you check the product page? (not trying to be funny ha ha). The price should be up there but we've been having some trouble lately so that might explain why you couldn't see it. Anyhow the unit is $299 including delivery.

@wilson79: The country comfort works in a similar way to our system. We do believe that we have the best portable water heater on the market, from the quality of the components, the general finish, down to the details like accessories, instruction manual design etc. For us the HOTTAP is our business, we don't sell other unrelated products. Because we have this focus we're constantly improving our product - improved digital display with battery indicator, snap connectors for water inlet / outlet (to save you screwing them on and losing rubber gaskets while out camping) / improved shower hose (higher pressure and UV resistant) etc.

We're releasing a range of accessories very soon which we don't want to reveal but are things that people in the myswag community and others have mentioned there is a need for.

Finally, we have a proper two year warranty that actually means something. We have parts in stock and we actually repair faulty units rather than throw them out, because we know how to.

Cheers

[Bart@Joolca]

Price is on there now - $299 for the "Hottap"
Neat little unit.
However "Flotap" product page won't load

Sorry, the webpage is still not 100% complete which is why that page isn't working yet (as well as a few others).

The Flotap is our pump range. We have two diaphragm pumps, 6L/min and 12L/min.

[wilson79]

Thanks Bart

I am seriously considering your unit..

[Bart@Joolca]

Thanks Bart,

I am seriously considering your unit..

No problems at all! Cheers

[BUNDY]

Hi Bart
 just a couple of questions for you on your product as i am also doing reserch on these items for my build....
First can you confirm its weight as site has two wieghts listed
Second can you provide data on flow rate above the 6lpm at 25deg indicated upto the 52deg max temp
Third i take it the max temp increse of 35deg is in relation to above waters ambient temp to start with
Fourth how long have you been selling this product or similer for
Fifth and last one can you allso privide any long or short term testing of this product  to its construction and performance.........
Thanks again Bart for sharing your product with us and look forward to your information

Oops new there was one more dimentions it states 165mm thick but no height or width

Cheers

BUNDY

[jetcrew]

Hey bart,

is the internal battery a 6 or 12v and can you have it wired for a 12v input instead of a battery ?

Also does the internal pump have a pick up ability ( will it suck water up from a bucket ect) or are you required to force the water through the unit, i guess my question is what size pump is required to replicate the pressure of the mains hose you had attached in the video.

looks really good neat and clean.

Jet

[bazt]

Hi, you mention in the ad that the flexible gas anw water lines are included. How long are they and what fitting is on the end of the gas pipe.
bazt

[Bart@Joolca]

@Bundy:

Sorry for the troubles with our website, I should have mentioned in the original post that its still under construction in a few parts.

1) 370mm (H) x 270mm (W) x 165mm (D)
2) 4.5KGs dead weight
3) Don't have flow rate data above 6LPM. The water regulator at the unit won't allow any more that just over 6L to flow through the unit (even when connected to garden hose mains).
4) Yes, the 35C increase is with water flow adjusted downwards and in relation to the incoming water temperature.
5) We've been selling for just over two years with another year prior to that taken up modifying and preparing it for compliance to local gas standards.
6) Well as part of the Australian Standards testing for any gas appliance, all of the critical gas & safety components go through lots of endurance testing to confirm their quality. Standards in this country are probably higher than anywhere else in the world. Otherwise we don't have any other 3rd party testing. Though we have sold thousands over the years and none have come back with issues relating to construction. Performance yes  - (the odd faulty unit) but we get those sorted quickly.


@Jetcrew:

The HOTTAP doesn't have any pumps built in.

The unit itself operates off 2 x D batteries to provide ignition (last 6-12 months depending on brand and how often you use it).

If you don't have mains water then you'll need a pump to push water through the system.

Minimum pump specs are 4L/min and 45kPa which equates to a fairly small pump.

We sell a 12V Diaphragm pump with pressure switch for $30 additional which is 5.1L/min flow and 70psi. This can be connected to your car battery / cigarette fitting etc while in the bush. The beauty of these kind of pumps is that they kick on automatically once you turn the water flow on with the shower head and correspondingly turn off when you switch water flow off.

So if you imagine being inside a shower tent, you flick the water on and 1) The pump kicks in and 2) the unit automatically ignites without you having to turn anything on manually. Flick water off and both shut off.

@Bazt:

Yup, 2m shower hose and shower rose is included. This includes quick connect fittings for easy set up. Gas hose and regulator also included, 1.2m. The gas pipe has standard POL male fitting connection to the bottle.

Cheers

[BUNDY]

Hi Bart
Thanks for your quik reply so if i understand it to achieve a higher than 25deg temp the flow rate would reduce below 6lpm to allow water in the system to heat for longer..?
The 370mm height does that include the handle or just the unit

Cheers

BUNDY

[Bart@Joolca]

Hey Bundy,

Yes, you are completely correct.

The 370mm height includes just the unit itself. The handle folds down to the back of the unit or it can also be removed.

Thanks

[Cousinlarry]

G'day Bart

I bought one of your gas water heaters in January this year off Ebay and although it appears to be a tidy unit I have yet to get it to work reliably. I'm not having a rant but, just letting you know the history in case others come across the same issue.
When it was connected up and I ran water through it I could hear the clicker/starter going but, it never lit the gas. I thought I had too low water pressure as it states it requires 40psi min. so I bought a new 80psi 12v pump. Still no luck but, I persisted as it seemed to work intermittently at home but, never when away. On our last camping trip about 6 weeks ago I completely stripped it and discovered there was loose wiring going into the control box - if I wiggled things it would fire up no problems. Put it back together and not working again so I was staring to loose my cool. I managed to poke a stick through the air vents and prod the wires a bit and hey presto it worked again.

Thats why it seemed to work sometimes but, never on a trip away. Maybe the bouncing within the trailer loosened things up.

So a good dab of silicone and some strategically placed zip ties to hold things still seems to have fixed it as it fires up each and every time now. We're going away this long weekend to Kenilworth Homestead and fingers cross we'll get to have our first hot shower.

So only a suggestion but, might be worth double checking all wires and the control box etc. are pretty secure to prevent this happening to others.

Regards,
Mark

[Bart@Joolca]

Hi Mark,

That sounds quite strange. I doubt its an issue with wiring, especially if you're saying that you kept hearing the ignitor clicking to try to ignite the gas.

If this is occurring with no actual ignition, it's a gas supply issue. Before it fires up you will hear a loud click which will be the gas solenoid valve open up.

So if your solenoid valve isn't opening up its nearly always an issue with air being caught in the gas inlet assembly. You can purge this out by unscrewing the gas inlet hose a few turns (still sitting on the gas inlet fitting), until you hear gas hissing out from between the gas inlet thread. Leave it for around 5 seconds and tighten the gas hose back up - and try firing her up. She should fire straight up and you should have no more trouble having her fire up straight away.

So that should fix the problem mate, having said that, if it doesn't please let us know and we'll have a look at it for you. You've had the unit for a while now and it should be working reliably for you.

Next time please don't hesitate to get in touch and let us know. We'd prefer to know about any problems (if there is a fault) as it helps us improve the unit.

Cheers

[jetcrew]

Bart,

  responses mate

jet..the man considering a hot shower unit LOL

[edz]

[quote
 Set up  the gas instant hot water heater / camp shower to give it a run for the bosses approval a while back [ not a Joolca, though did look at buying one till we got this one ] ... Thumbs up we have a winner ... 8 liter PM heater unit provided a good [ though not as strong flow as home, but equal to the twine set up we had ] 40 / 42 deg C of steamy hot shower water and empties a 25 ltr drum of cold water in aprox 6 minutes, so about 4 ltr pm out of the shower head on our unit  .. Now to mount the unit & pump set up permanantly on a base board..
 Not sure what the neighbours thought of me having a shower out by the kids swings  though .. 
[/quote]
Hey JC the family will love it, a bit of  feedback on our 8ltr pm unit for you ..

[Cousinlarry]

Thanks for your response Bart I'll try as you say and loosen the gas inlet hose. What you describe is exactly what was happening i.e. no loud click of the solenoid.

I'd have everything connected, turn on the water, starter clicking but, solenoid not opening. Then wiggle the wires without changing anything else and it would click open, so I assumed there was a loose connection telling the solenoid to open.

All good and I'll let you know how I go this weekend.

[Bart@Joolca]

Hey Mark,

How did it work out for you?

[Cousinlarry]

Mate it worked a treat!
I need to fine tune the water flow though, as I'm still learning how much water it uses - a 20l jerry can used lasted for 2 showers. We didn't bother being too frugal with conserving water though, and wasted a small amount each time while waiting for it to heat up. I tried turning it to minimum flow but, then it wouldn't ignite so I need to experiment and find a low enough flow that it still ignites, but I'll do that at home when not far from a tap .I'm also going to get a big enough bucket to stand in that can capture some wasted water and recycle that as I've got a trip coming up in 4 weeks where there'll be no facilities and every drop will count.
Otherwise a bloody good unit and highly recommend it to everyone.

Thanks for your replies on here.

[GGV8Cruza]

Picked up one of these units today, great friendly service. Will report back soon over the xmas break after we give it a run

GG

[Gunsrunner]

Also bought one today, through Ebay. Hope I still get the discount or a bonus. Is there a cover available for them.
Thinking of mounting it permanently in one of the jerry can holders.

[Bart@Joolca]

@ GGV8Cruza

Mac mentioned you came down, hope you enjoy the unit! Let us know how it goes for you

@  Gunsrunner

Normally you need to call up so that we can organise the discount in our back end. Since you have already purchased through eBay, we will give you a partial refund on this occasion. Keep in mind that the discount only apples if you buy direct.

Thanks!

[Rodt]

G'Day Bart,

Have had a look at your site and have some questions before I decide to purchase please.

1. Can you get extra / longer hose if you want it. I am looking to mount on the side of the trailer but could see that I would want the shower a bit further away so that water doesn't run under or near the trailer;
2. Is the hose a special grade that I can get anywhere or must I purchase off you (more in the event of emergency replacement needed);
3. Is the water temp hot enough to washup dishes etc
4. Can I use a garden hose tee piece so that I can run a line to the sink as well;
5. I have seen others advertise a chrome shower head and hose but you don't. Is there a reason you don't have ie: not needed etc?
6. If I ordered one approx how long for delivery?

Thanks in advance for your help

Rod