Most people see a water heater as an expensive, but necessary, investment. New tanks do cost a lot, so does the plumber. And there we go wasting a lot of money on fixing the water heater with the excuse that it’s necessary. While a water heater is necessary, spending a lot of money to keep it alive is not.
You can solve most of it’s problems, as well as that creepy rumbling sound, by retrofitting. This means checking and changing the anodes, controlling sediment buildup and also using fittings to make your water heater maintenance possible without a plumber.
It’s possible to make your water heater last decades with simple maintenance and retrofitting. One key aspect is replacing the tank’s sacrificial anode. Sometimes you can add a second anode. However if you’re having odor problems a second aluminum/zinc anode may make them worse, so keep that in mind.
Another key aspect of water heater maintenance is checking the T&P every year. Normally people don’t like this because it’s a part that’s prone to failure so you have to buy another. Yet it’s a $6 part that can literally save your house.
Sacrificial Anode Rods
The anode rod’s job is to corrode slowly and thus protect the steel that is exposed inside the water heater. As you know water heaters[water heater talk] are warrantied for 6 years. This is how long producers expect anodes to last. However this varies wildly because it’s dependent on water quality so you can’t know for sure.
Thus you need to check the anodes and replace them. An anode that is functioning normally should have a good degree of corrosion from one end to the other. Even when bare wire starts to show you’re still fine for a while. You should change it when there’s around 6 inches of bare wire anywhere on the rod.
It’s advisable to put two anodes in the tank. One hex-head anode like standard and another outlet rod, for example, between the hot water outlet and the steel nipple. There are aluminum/zinc anodes and magnesium anodes. Of those magnesium anodes work better however are prone to smell problems. Also, if you soften your water it’s necessary to check quite frequently since salt can greatly speed things up. There’s also a powered anode that can last indefinitely but it costs quite a bit more.
Sediment control
Sediment is formed whenever you heat hard water. Minerals settle onto the bottom of the water heater and there they do all sorts of nasty things. If you’re in a hard water area you’re going to have sediment. But if you follow the manufacturer instructions about water heater maintenance and regularly drain the tank guess what, you’ll still have sediment.
This happens because when you drain your tank you only get the sediment between the bottom of the cold water inlet and the drain valve. Everything else stays put because of design deficiencies of water heaters. Some remarkable claims include a self flushing water heater that supposedly keeps the water stirred up and it never gets the chance to settle down. However sediment is heavier than water so it’s doubtful that it will work.
Another claim is that magnets on the piping supposedly polarize the water and do something about the sediment. Trouble is there isn’t much science that attests to that so again it’s peculiar. One possible solution is a curved dip tube. It’s pretty tricky to make one yourself but it has the ability to swirl the water around the flue and the domes and blow most of the sediment out.
Dip tubes get brittle and break with age. Sometimes after more than ten years but that’s not a thumb rule. When it starts to show fault there are two dead giveaways. You’re either finding little pieces of something in your aerators or you have less hot water because cold water that comes in mixes with hot water that goes out.
Temperature/pressure relief valve
This part is installed in different ways. In some cases all you need is a pipe wrench, other times a full-on plumber is required. The relief valve is easy to remove, you just need to unscrew it from the tank. However the other stuff that’s connected to it can prove complicated.
It’s common to have drain lines plumbed and soldered to a drain or through a wall and outside. This is already more complicated. If right angle turns are involved then you need an expert in soldering to replace the valve.
The relief valve’s drain lines must go down and out. It’s important for the water heater maintenance as well as the safety of the people walking around the thing. Also the bottom of the valve must go in the tank.
To test your relief valve pull the handle, hold it for a few seconds then let go. Water should flow within and stop when you let go. If water doesn’t go through, doesn’t stop running or doesn’t stop dripping within a few minutes it’s time to replace it.
Water heater maintenance primarily includes checking up on it every few months. Any kinds of leaks can totally destroy the tank. Water heater maintenance saves you a lot of money and a lot of trouble re-installing a new tank and other important parts.