Joolca HOTTAP Questions & Answers

Hey Colin, well, that doesn't sound great. Might be that your switch is upside down - make sure that the on/off is closer to the shower head, not the hose inlet. If that doesn't do the trick, reach out to support@joolca.com.au and the team will look after you :) Cheers, Emre

Hey Brad, sounds like your HOTTAP is reaching the 50c cut-off point. Your HOTTAP gets hot, up to 50c, then automatically cuts off. This is a safety feature to prevent scalding. You'd need to regulate the temp to make sure it doesn't reach that hot. The two main differences would be: 1. Increase the water flow (on the blue dial) 2. Decrease the gas flow (on the red dial)

Once you find a sweet spot, you should be good to go! If you are finding that you're still having trouble, shoot a message over to our helpful support team on support@joolca.com.au and they'll give you a hand.

Cheers, Emre

Hey Mike, I'm sorry to hear about your HOTTAP not igniting! Confirming that when you mean not igniting, your HOTTAP's LED monitor turns on, and you hear fast clicking? If so, it looks like you've tried the correct steps. If your LED monitor isnt turning on, the troubleshooting steps would be different. Either way, if you reach out to support@joolca.com.au and send over the video, they'll help get you back on track!

Hey Montanna! It really depends on the incoming water temp. In general, the HOTTAP can heat incoming water from 15C-35C (depending on settings), so whatever the ambient water temp is + 10C should be the lowest, and +35C from ambient should be the highest.

For example, if your ambient temp is 10C: On the coldest setting, you should see around ~25C On the hottest setting, you should see ~45C

Hope this helps :)

did you get a response to your question? I have the same problem.

Hey Darren & Lynette, sorry for missing this! The HOTTAP can heat water around 30-35°C above the incoming water temp. If you have cold water coming in, your output won't be as hot. In winter or on very cold days, incoming water temperatures are much cooler, and subsequently, the output is not as hot as it would be on a warm/hot day.

There are three things that control temperature output: Incoming water temp, how much gas you can output, and water flow. - For gas output, Australia does have a regulation on how much gas we can output, and we're right on that limit. - For incoming water, as mentioned, cold days have much cooler water coming into the HOTTAP. Having said that, you can recirculate the water and get much hotter temperatures. - For water flow, you can lower the water flow a little bit more, and this will increase the temperature. If you reach out to our support team at support@joolca.com.au, we have a quick guide on how to do this!

I hope this helps!

Thanks, Emre

Hey Geoff, I'm sorry to hear that you're having to purge your HOTTAP each time you use it. This definitely shouldn't be happening as your HOTTAP should fire up each time with no issues. It sounds like changing the 2x D cell batteries to a fresh set might fix this. When batteries start getting flat, the gas solenoid (that lets the gas in) is usually the first indicator, as it requires the most power to open. If you're still having trouble after changing the batteries, shoot our support team an email to support@joolca.com.au and they'll look into this for you and have you up and running in no time. Warm regards, Marleen

Hi James, mine has done the exact same thing and it’s our second time using it. First time we used it, it was amazing but not this trip, cold shower for us! Just waiting for a reply from joolca too for our issues.

yep they are pretty much useless down south, if your water temp is like mine around 9c, at best you will get 38c from your hot tap, and it will deliver that at approx 3.5l a minute, i am pretty sure u can urinate faster than that. they certainly don't perform to spec.

Hi James, Thank you for the questions and I'm sorry to hear that your HOTTAP isn't giving you hot enough water. There are definitely a few things we can try to get your water temp warmer: 1. Set the water dial to "low" 2. Set the gas dial to "high" 3. Recirculating water - this is done by running the water through the HOTTAP and into a container, then using that same water (which will be warmer now) through the HOTTAP again.

I hope these suggestions help!

Kind regards, Emre

The water dial was set to low and the gas set to high and was barley warm and i shouldn't have to run it all in to something else thru the hot tap again makes it a hour excercise just to have a shower I know of other friend with different brand and dont have these problems theirs runs really hot

Hi James, Thanks for getting back to me, and I can understand that you would like hotter showers. I want to share information on how the HOTTAP (and similar hot water systems) heat water, and potential solutions for you so you can get those hot showers in cooler climates.

When it comes to heating water, the HOTTAP will heat incoming water by 35°C on minimum water flow and maximum gas. The variables that influence how hot the water gets are: - Incoming water temperature - Water flow through the HOTTAP - Gas flow

The government sets a limit on how much gas can flow through portable water heaters like the HOTTAP and other similar systems, and we can't change this to make it higher. Your best bet is to leave your gas dial on "high," which is what you've been doing. One thing we can check for is if there is debris inside your HOTTAPs gas fitting. This could restrict gas flow into your HOTTAP's burners, so be sure to check and clean out any debris you may find.

The final two variables are the incoming water temperature and water flow. If warmer water enters the HOTTAP, it will produce hotter water. Recirculation is a common method to achieve warmer temperatures with cooler water, which is why I mentioned this.

Regarding water flow, if you have set it to "low" flow and still want warmer temperatures, we can adjust the water flow on your HOTTAP internally. We've got an article on this, scroll down to the section "Further adjusting the water flow rate:" external link .

You mentioned that your friend has a different portable hot water system that gets warmer. The reasons they may have been able to get warmer temperatures are that their incoming water temperature was higher, their water flow was lower, or a combination of both.

If you give the flow rate adjustment a try, I'm certain you'll be getting much hotter water from your HOTTAP! That being said, if you feel that your HOTTAP isn't heating to the capacity (35c+) on low water flow and high gas flow, please reach out to our support team and they will definitely get this resolved for you, James. I hope the above helps.

Warm regards, Emre

I am having the same issue…. Gas on high. Water down low. Gas bottle on full. We are in the North island New Zealand.

Hi Dave, thanks for reaching out and I'm sorry to hear about the issue you're having with your HOTTAP. The thermostats do not usually fail over time. The HOTTAP does have a safety cut-off at 50C. It sounds like your HOTTAP may be hitting 50C+, which then turns off the burners automatically. This would explain why your HOTTAP would be very hot, and then very cold. This is most likely due to ambient water temps being warm (as we're approaching the summer months), a water blockage, or if you've set your HOTTAP's dials to low water and high gas.

There are a few things we can do to get this resolved for you: 1. Check the mesh water filter inside HOTTAP. To do this, unscrew the blue water fitting on your HOTTAP and look inside the brass inlet pipe. There should be a mesh filter in there, if there is debris, clear it out. 2. You may need to adjust the dials to get a good temp. If you're finding your HOTTAP reaching past 50C, then you'll need to either adjust the water flow dial higher or the gas dial lower.

Let me know how you go!

Kind regards, Emre

Hey Scott, I'm sorry to hear that your HOTTAP isn't igniting and I'm also sorry that I couldn't get to your question sooner before your trip. I hope you still had a great trip, and we'll get your HOTTAP sorted so that you'll have hot showers for your future camping.

You mentioned a few things here (piezo not working, HOTTAP not igniting) and it would be best to get a video of the issue to give you the most accurate steps forward. Could you please email support@joolca.com.au with a video? Once we've got the video we'll be able to offer you some accurate steps forward.

That being said, I do have a few steps to try in this article: external link  1. Change batteries (you said you did this, would it be possible to change to another new pair? If the batteries are flat, they will turn the LED monitor on, but not trigger the HOTTAP ignition process). 2. Purge your gas line

I hope the above helps. If they don't, please send that video to the email and we'll look after you.

Warm regards, Emre

Hey Stevie, sorry for the late response. This is an interesting one! Internally, there are cogs that move when the blue dial is turned. It could be that a wire or debris may be interfering with the cogs, causing this issue. Could you shoot an email to support@joolca.com.au? We can send you some steps with images to take off the front panel so you can have a look inside. Shoot us some photos too, we'll see how we can help you out and get your blue dial moving again. Cheers, Emre

Hi John, sorry to hear about your HOTTAP leaking. We'll need to have a closer look at this. If you could shoot an email over to support@joolca.com.au with a short video of the leaks, the helpful team will have a look at your HOTTAP for you. Cheers, Emre

this is Ron

Hey Ron, I'm sorry for the late response, this slipped my radar. There could be a couple of reasons for the leak, we've got an article to help with this. Here's the link: external link  If the above doesn't resolve the issue, could you please send an email to support@joolca.com.au,? The team will have a look at your handle and get this replaced for you if it's faulty.

I hope this helps! Cheers, Emre

Hey Wendy, The HOTTAP has a battery box compartment at the bottom of it (near the water fittings). To change the batteries, push in the battery box and you'll hear a "click" sound. The battery box will come out and you can change out the x2 D Cell batteries. When you're done, push the battery box back into the HOTTAP until you hear a "click" sound and the battery box will stay in place inside the HOTTAP. I hope this helps!

Cheers, Emre

Hi, Sorry, I'm not too sure what you mean here. Would you be able to send an email to support@joolca.com.au and the team will have a look at this for you? We'll let you know the best course of action and get this resolved for you. Sorry I couldn't be more of a help here.

Warm regards, Emre

its a water flow issue......sorted

Hi Jeremy, sorry for the late response, and I'm sorry to hear that your V2 isn't reaching temperatures above 35C. Your HOTTAP will increase water temp by approx ~35C on the hottest settings (low water, high gas). So if your incoming water is 5C, you should reach 40C at the minimum. As you're not reaching those temperatures, I believe your HOTTAP may be calibrated with a higher flow from manufacturing. It's easy to resolve this! At the bottom o your HOTTAP you should see a cutout with two screws. Looking at your HOTTAP front on, tighten the left side screw with one twist, and that should help get you much warmer temps! If you're still having issues, send an email to support@joolca.com.au, and the team there will help get you back on track. I hope this helps!

Warm regards, Emre

Hey Alan, the pumps make a bit of sound when used, and when the HOTTAP is on "low" flow, they make more sound than "high" flow as it restricts the pump's flow. That being said, if you think your pump is really loud, can you send that video to support@joolca.com.au and the helpful support team will have a look at this for you.

Hey Chad, yep, you absolutely can. You'll either need to not attach the gas or take out the batteries, and the HOTTAP won't ignite and you'll just run cold water through.

Hi Bruce, I'm really sorry about this issue! Pushing the battery box up, hearing that "click" sound, and lowering the battery box should get it to come out. If it's not coming out, you may have a faulty battery box, though we'd need to have a closer look. In either case, we can definitely sort this out for you. Could you send an email to support@joolca.com.au with a short video of the fault and the helpful team will have this resolved for you. Warm regards, Emre

Hi Geoff, I'm sorry for the late response here and I'm sorry to hear you're having issues with your HOTTAP. Regarding the HOTTAP going cold, this usually happens when the HOTTAP reaches past 50C, where it automatically flames out as a safety measure to prevent scalding, or the wind may have blown out the flame. With either of these, you'll need to turn the shower handle off and back on to re-ignite the HOTTAP. If you're finding it's 50C, try lowering the red gas dial or increasing the blue water dial (if the below helps resolve the water dial).

With your water dial being stuck, this could be due to a wire that's gotten between the cogs inside, preventing it from adjusting. You can check this by taking off the blue dial as you have and looking inside to see if a wire is lodged between the cogs and moving it.

If you still need more help, please email support@joolca.com.au with a video of the fault/dial. We'll have a closer look for you and get this sorted.

Warm regards, Emre

Hi sorry to randomly jump in here but my blue dial has never worked in the 5 or so years I have owned it. I just thought this was normal. Can you advise how to take it apart?

Hi Jo, I'm really sorry to hear that. Here are the steps for the V1: To remove the front panel, unscrew 1 screw at the bottom and remove both the blue and red dials by pulling them off. Then slowly "jimmy" off the front panel - make sure to take it off slowly as there are 2 connectors connecting the front panel LED monitor to the base unit. Just unclip those two clips, and you're in. From there, check if your cogs have anything obstructing them. I hope this helps!

Cheers, Emre

I have the same issue as Geoff P. It heats up to 49 then drops to 28ish but the flame is still on.

Hi Jonathon, I'm sorry to hear that. It's not possible for the HOTTAP to drop temperature that drastically while the flame is still on, unless the gas has been lowered, or the incoming water temperature has become much cooler, and the water flow has increased. This does sound like your HOTTAP reaches 50C cut off, then flames itself out. That said, we'd love to have a closer look at this; would you be able to send a video to supprot@joolca.com.au, the helpful team will get to the bottom of this and resolve the issue so you can have consistent warm showers! Cheers, Emre