Quick Take Review - Costway Tabletop Water Heater

Updated: As of May 2020, this product is no longer available on Amazon. The closest comparable model would be from Mr. Heater:  Mr. Heater Basecamp Battery Powered Shower Heater

We were looking for a portable water heater that could be used with our trailer or with vehicle only camping. The simple design and price point of the Costway heater motivated us to give it a try. So here are our first thoughts. We will update this article after some trail use.

Made by Costway

Purchased on Amazon - $139 Similar to the Mr Heater Boss Heater which costs more.

A simple design without fancy electronics. You can adjust the flow of the water at the faucet base. This can be used with a green bottle or larger propane tank with a “20lb” to 1lb hose with built in adapter.

There is a temperature control on top. If your source water is too cold run the heater and pour the warm/hot water back into your container.During testing we did this a couple of times and the shower water got very hot.

Pros:

• Affordable price
• Everything is included except the 2 D Cell batteries and propane.
• Nice carrying bag
• It can be used with our trailer or on trailerless adventures

Cons:

• Click on hoses are a bit cumbersome to connect and need careful force
• The power plug should have an inline on/off switch. When you are done using the water you have to disconnect the plug. This is a cheap fix though. Part link below.
• Your container must have an opening large enough for the pump.

Things to Consider:

You will need an always hot/on 12v plug in your vehicle or trailer.

Source hose and propane connection

Faucet

Shower hose

With shower head hose. Plugged into our FJ Cruiser rear 12 volt plug.

This is where we would add a switch. Link to part provided below

Pump won’t fit into a standard jerrycan opening. It does fit into our waterbricks.

Future Modifications:

We are going to make a DC to SAE plug cable for this so it can connect to a power port on our trailer.

We are also going to research to see if water can be source from our future 16 gallon tank on our VRV Flyer trailer using its internal pump and a quick connect on the side of the trailer. (This is a soon to come modification to our trailer)

Parts:

(Amazon links for reference but if you don’t like Amazon most of these products can be sourced elsewhere)

Costway Propane Gas Portable Instant Hot Water Heater Battery Powered Camper Traveler Shower

WaterBrick 1833-0003 Stackable Water and Food Storage Container, 3.5 gal, Tan

UST 20-02735 FlexWare Sink, 2.25-Gallon, Orange

2 Pack 5.5x2.1mm DC Jack Male to Female Power Adapter Connector Inline On/off Switch for 12V 5050 3528 Led Strip Light - Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LN6PTWI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ZaRQAbWQCZ7RB

DC Female 5.5mmx2.1mm Power Jack Adapter Plug Pigtail Cable, 20inch DC Power Pigtail Female Jack Wire for CCTV Security Camera, DVR, HDVD, LED Strip Light, Low Voltage Application, Pack of 10 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GPQZ4EE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_7bRQAb6Z3V69P

(or similar product)

CES 2 Pin Quick Disconnect Wire Harness SAE Connector Bullet Lead Cable (14 AWG) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MYDR15I/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_7dRQAbR0Q7V4H

Plug for side of trailer -

Zamp Solar RVROOFSIDE Sidewall Port