Residential Water Heater Problem Repair And Reviews

Question: Hot water heater not producing hot water. what is best to do?

(Posted by: mr pickle on 2010-07-25 19:22:46)

About 10 years old. No hot water, period. It had been used constantly. When I reset the temperature to see if I could get the water to heat again there were two thermostat setting. The upper one was set for 130 (?) and the lower was was essentially off. Would this have put more strain on the upper therm? Anyway, can I fix it myself or is it better to go buy a new hot water tank?

Posted by: wayne f on 2010-07-25, 20:25:56

Buy a new unit and put this one to rest because if you try to repair it then it will always be something. Best of luck in Advance !!

Posted by: Mark Klotz on 2010-07-25, 19:33:57

Just replace the worn out heating element, easy fix, get yourself a plumbing book

Posted by: Dunbar Pappy ÏŸÏŸ on 2010-07-25, 19:53:11

Electrodes should be matched for Wattage (or reasonably close); they run in the $20-30 range each. While your @ it, a unit that old likely has consumed it's "sacrificial anode ". these are rods of either aluminum or manganese that get "used up " which prevents tank interior corrosion. Those are about $30. Also, there could be a buildup of calcium carbonate in the bottom...that leads to early burn out of the lower element. It can be cleaned, but it's a bit of work. See here for more tips and maintenance ideas: waterheaterrescue.com/ pages/ WHRpages/ English/ Longevity/ water-heater-basics.html

Posted by: Jim W. on 2010-07-25, 20:04:15

Hi Mr. Pickle, Your hot water heater just needs some attention once in a while. You can easily maintain it yourself. First thing you need to do is turn off your power at the source (breaker or fuse). Then, get your garden hose out, hook it up to the faucet-looking flush valve on the bottom of your unit, and flush all the years of sediment out and into your yard, NOT THE DRAIN. Once all that sediment is gone, it's time to take the elements out and replace them with new ones. If you have a pretty good hardware store around, they just may have them. If not, head to a home center and pick them up. The reason your lower element was "off " was because it's more than likely dead, and the top was forced to handle the entire load of heating the tank. Once your done, set both temp controls to the same setting and turn the power back on. Congradulate yourself on a job well-done. If you REALLY want to save some $$$, put an insulating jacket on it, and cover BOTH your hot and cold water lines at least 10 feet from the water heater to help minimize the "heat-sink " effect (heat being conducted away from your tank via the pipes).

Posted by: raisinblooooo on 2010-07-26, 09:35:13

Just replace it.....the warranty is for sure up. Love, "raisin "