Here's a look at the latest water heater plumbing configuration... notice the nice brass fitting on the tank and the coiled hoses going to the shutoff valves. These were the pieces we installed to stop the flooding of the SS Winnebaigis. Previously we tried to use the standard RV plastic fittings, however those seemed to always leak. The brass fittings allowed us to tighten without breaking the threads, which is what happened on the plastic fittings and caused a leak. We are crossing our fingers that this actually works for the entire trip.

Notice the old gray plastic couplers, the new hoses eliminated about 4 joints on the top and bottom of the water heater.