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View Full Version : Folks, DRAIN your water heater!!!



Troy Turner
01-27-2011, 11:49 AM
So the water heater was only putting out about 5 mins worth of shower time. Went to test to the elements, and the bottom one was bad.

Ok, drain, replace, good to go...yeah right. Not when you have sediment in the bottom and the drain hole is plugged. After 4 hrs of working on it and draining and cleaning (I hope)this is what I found.

When the plumber installed it about 3 yrs ago, he said that at least once a year, I should drain. Guess he was right!

Pic is taken with my phone, but you get the idea...

179972

Stephen Tashiro
01-27-2011, 11:59 AM
Perhaps "flush" would be a better word than "drain". My Kenmore electric water heaters haven't wanted to be "drained". If you close the input line, open a hot water tap and open the "drain" valve, water doesn't come out. Perhaps holding the pressure relief valve open might "drain" it, but it works better to "flush" the water heater once a year by leaving the input line open and opening the "drain".

I too learned my lesson the hard way. ( Naturally, you must actually "drain" the water heater if you are going to take the heating elements out.) My heating elements were as coated as yours. Plus there were big white rocks of minerals on the bottom of the tank that were too big to go out the drain and smaller pebbles that clogged up the drain when it was opened.

Lee Schierer
01-27-2011, 12:03 PM
Unfortunately periodic draining won't solve your problem with hard water calcium deposits from the heater element. The hot element boils the water next to it and the calcium builds up on the element layer after layer until it forms a hard crust. Eventually this hard crust will crack and fall off to the bottom of the tank. It will not drain out through the hose bib because it is too heavy and the water flow isn't strong enough to move it. It will continue to build up until it covers the lower element. Then once covered at some point the element overheats and fails. Only a water softener can prolong the time it takes for this build up to occur. I've had the same problem in my house with our hot water heater.

Dan Hintz
01-27-2011, 12:26 PM
In addition to what Lee said... you could actually drain once a year, remove the element and submerse it into some vinegar to get rid of the deposits, then put everything back into service.

Dave Wagner
01-27-2011, 12:32 PM
There is a sacrificial anode in the tanks too, that should be checked/replaced. Usually a big hex nut on the top of the tank.

Darius Ferlas
01-27-2011, 1:19 PM
How about a particle/sediment filter?

I use some at a few points around the house. I have zero buildup in small and large appliances that normally shows within a year or two.

Dan Hintz
01-27-2011, 2:03 PM
Darius,

It's an issue with the sediment being created directly within the heater tank itself (see Lee's post)... a sediment filter won't solve the issue.

Darius Ferlas
01-27-2011, 3:16 PM
That's just great!
Thankfully, wifey doesn't read these forums.

Troy Turner
01-27-2011, 4:43 PM
See, now that makes...sounds like when I give it a good flushing, draining or whatever, I'm going to take the elements out and clean them too. Seein how I now own a 1 1/2" socket and 3/4 - 1/2 reducer :)

Bill Cunningham
01-27-2011, 9:44 PM
We don't have this problem in my area. We're on a lake based water supply, and the water is incredibly soft. Never get film on the shower doors, and I don't think I have descaled the the coffee maker in 2 or 3 years.
However those in my town on a well system have exactly the opposite problem.. They tell me that Electronic water treatment works well to stop the scale build up..

Electronic treatment is based on the principal of creating an oscillating field of energy with the use of low frequency radio waves. As water passes through a pipe delivering variable frequencies and energy levels, a physical change in the preferred crystal structure of calcium and magnesium occurs, tending to form the crystalline structure of aragonite rather than the random crystalline structure of calcite. Aragonite is a form of calcite crystallizing in the orthorhombic system and prefers remaining in solution and not adhering to surfaces. Through this physical mechanism, electronic conditioning alters the effects of calcium and magnesium carbonates with regard to scale formation and reaction with soap to form curd. Precipitated aragonite has a fine powder-like consistency that is not hard and does not intrinsically adhere to surfaces.

We have a local company that has this:
http://www.hydroflowcanada.com/residential/hydroflow_products.php

Curt Harms
01-28-2011, 7:51 AM
Good advice and I'll add to it. I replaced a leaking 15 year old gas water heater a few months ago. I would drain it when I thought about it --not often enough--but 15 years seems pretty good. I went to drain it so opened the bottom cock and went to open the safety valve to let air into the tank. That thing was frozen solid! :eek:. Thank goodness the burner part didn't malfunction or we may have made the papers. So in addition to draining the bottom, I now cycle the pressure relief valve.

Mike Wilkins
01-28-2011, 10:06 AM
Good advice to drain and clean the tank once a year. I used to live in Albany, Georgia where the term 'hard water' is an understatement. I had to replace elements 2-3 times a year due to this type of problem.

Ken Fitzgerald
01-28-2011, 10:16 AM
We have hard water here and if you don't wipe the tile and the shower doors down after each shower, they will soon be a classic "white"....not matching but a classic white, none the less.

Dan Hintz
01-28-2011, 10:52 AM
Ken,

I believe they call that style "stucco" ;)

Bryan Morgan
01-28-2011, 12:45 PM
My friend just drained his water heater a couple months ago because someone told him it was a good idea... well apparently all the scaling is what was plugging all the holes so it started leaking bad after he flushed it out. Cost him $400 for a new one to be installed...

Dan Hintz
01-28-2011, 1:00 PM
Best he learn that way instead of waking up in the morning to 6" of water covering everything...

Stephen Tashiro
01-28-2011, 11:07 PM
Darius,

It's an issue with the sediment being created directly within the heater tank itself (see Lee's post)... a sediment filter won't solve the issue.

It should be mentioned that a sediment filter may be a good idea anyway. In my location, the insides of water heaters and commode tanks turn brown. When the city does maintenance on water lines, you get brown colored water for a brief period of time. This has no permanent effect on the parts of your plumbing where the water is always running, but it has a long lasting effect on water drawn from tanks. Water heaters in my area frequently give water a sulfurous smell due to iron fixing bacteria that live in them. I find that a sediment filter helps with this problem although It doesn't completely solve it.

Rick Moyer
01-29-2011, 8:36 AM
Stephen I had a similar sulfur problem after we installed a water softener system. Apparently the extra salt acts like a catalyst to speed up the sacrificying of the anode, which increases the iron bacteria. The answer is three possibilities: 1. replace the anode rod 2. install a power anode rod 3. purchase a Marathon water heater.

1. is only temporary,maybe only a few months
2. will resolve the problem but cost about $240 for the part
3. will resolve the problem but costs about $1000, however you have a new water heater with a lifetime warranty

Since we recently moved into this home, I opted for #3, as I could install it myself and now I know what I have. It immediately resolved our smell issue.

No affiliation with the mfg, just a happy customer