Expert Advice on Home Improvement TV Host of Emmy®-Nominated Today's Homeowner® and home expert for The Weather ChannelVideo, Plumbing, Repairs and Installation, Ask Danny Published 03/25/2007 by Danny Lipford
A poorly maintained water heater costs more to operate and can even cause damage to your home. To make sure this doesn’t happen to you, once a month check the pipe connections, the valves and underneath the unit for any signs of a leak. Even a small, slow leak can cause water damage and decay. If the heater is a gas model, be sure the vent pipe is in place and unobstructed. About once a year check the pressure relief valve by pulling up or pushing down on the valve handle to be sure that hot water comes out of the overflow pipe. If it does, then the valve is working properly. Finally, you should periodically drain a bucket of water from the faucet at the bottom of the tank to remove any sediment at the bottom of the heater which could corrode the unit and reduce its heating efficiency.
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April 15th, 2007 at 10:40 am
THe gas company installed a new gas water heater.The installers dropped tank on the cement bringing it in. [bottom dented on edge showing a 6″hg x 4″ wd x 1″ dp.]
tank does not leak but i have noticed since instalaition of this tank,when turning on hot water it comes out of tap a milky whitish color for a minute or so tnen it sometimes clears up sooner.what could be causing this?Gas company says it is normal,fill glass and it will clear, which it does.still skepticle as i have never encountered this in 40 years.thank you in advance for any info you can give me on this matter. Frank
May 9th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
well I try to empty out my tank but nothing comes out the water only come outs when I open up the water what am I doing wrong thanks luis
May 29th, 2007 at 9:32 pm
I recently had the T&P relief valve on my water heater replaced as well as the Pressure Reducing Valve on the main water supply. The factory setting on the PRV is 50psi. I have been monitoring the pressure to check for thermal expansion and the overnight readings range from 90psi - 130 psi. At what point should I install an expansion tank? If the high pressure does not get above 90 psi, do I still need an expansion tank? Thank you.
July 4th, 2007 at 11:52 pm
Check your pressures on the inlet side of the tank and outlet side to see the difference in actual pressure…
October 21st, 2007 at 7:46 am
My hot water heater makes noises from time to time that seem rather odd. It will just start making a popping/sizzling noise for ~30 sec’s and then quiet right down - does this on random frequency?? Could it be ‘airbound’ and this is the cold water hitting hot element?
October 23rd, 2007 at 5:18 pm
With LP or Nat gas combustion you have several things produced -water is one of them, as the gas is heated the water vapor is in a transiant state from just below steam temperature.Until the flue gasses heat up enough to cause the combustables up the flue-some of the water vapor drips back down on the burner. If you notice when you first star a car the exhaust drips water for a bit until the engine heats up–same thing.Most new heaters and furnaces are called condensing type,which means exactly that.the furnace is so efficient that the exhaust is cool enough to produce condensation and actually needs a drain and can use PVC flue pipe.
You may have a blocked flue or may not be pitched up enough.
October 28th, 2007 at 9:18 am
After watching the segment on tv i followed the steps to drain the sedement from my electric water heater. Now the heater does not want to come back on. The power is on, what am i doing wrong?
November 11th, 2007 at 12:47 am
I have a fairly new 40 Gal. electric water heater that has been working great since April. This is a vacation home that I only get to on weekends. Last week I turned on the water to take a shower and the sulphur smell was terrible. Rotten Eggs. What could have caused this? Only the hot water. What can I do to remedy the situation shy of draining the tank?
been working great
January 15th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
Water is coming out of the pressure relief valve on my water heater. It will leak almost nothing for days, and then will push out multiple gallons of water on a given day. Could this be a defective T&P relief valve, knowing that the amount of water coming out is inconsistent? Also, is it possible that a water heater can be fine for 6 years, and then all of a sudden need a thermal expansion tank?
January 16th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
You can try to change the sacrificial anode its the metal rod in all electric HWH’s sometimes the magnesium cna be changed to aluminum and may be the cause.
February 4th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Dave,
I am having the same problem with a small amount of water leaking out my T&P valve. I replaced what I thought was a defective valve only to have the new one do the same thing. I have a 40 gallon gas water heater with an expanion tank. The water heater is 2 years old.
What gives?
February 20th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Why doesnt water go inside the water heater?
March 16th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Hello
i am plumber i find meny problems concerning water heaters but i don’t know how do i repair them?
i hope you to send me couses and sulochns