Tips to Help You with Water Heater Troubleshooting
There are times when you just have a feeling that things aren’t going right with your water heating – the cold shower being one clue – so it’s always useful to have a few water heater troubleshooting tips, just to confirm your suspicions.
You may find, through the water heater troubleshooting tips, that you can actually put some of the problems right yourself; but you may just as quickly discover that they are things that are going to require some professional help. Let’s have a look at some of the most common problems you’ll come across, and see if you can fix it yourself; shall we?
Before starting your water heater troubleshooting, there are things you need to remember to do. You have to make sure you remove the fuse to the water heater, you need to turn the water heater gas to ‘PILOT’, and you should shut off the water at the valve coming in to the house; or, if you have one, at the shut off valve leading in to the water heater.
Immediate safety precautions out of the way, it’s time to to some water heater troubleshooting
Water heater troubleshooting problem 1: a lack of hot water
This will be the quickest problem to spot, so let’s get it out of the way first.
This could be down to a gas pilot light that has gone out, a fault with the thermostat, a problem with the gas thermocouple, or a problem with the heating element.
We have a very good article on the process of checking and restarting your pilot light, so it would be worth giving it a quick look, and following the instructions.
If the pilot light is not the problem, the next thing that you can do is to re-tighten the gas thermocouple. If you have tried that, too, and it doesn’t work, the chances are you’re going to have to replace the pilot control valve, the heating element, or the thermostat.
While it may be something that you can do yourself, it may also be time to think of getting a company like Magic Plumbing to double check and carry out the water heater troubleshooting.
Water heater troubleshooting problem 2: rusty colored water pours out. This could well be down to corrosion in the lining of the water tank, or the sacrificial anode rod has just about given it’s all. If it is down to the sacrificial anode rod, replace it with a magnesium anode rod; but, if it’s corrosion in the tanks lining, you may have to have the tank replaced. Again, this could well be a job for professional plumbers.
Water heater troubleshooting problem 3: the unmistakable smell of rotten eggs
The good thing about this problem is the fact that you’ll notice it quickly, and want to get rid of it just as quickly.
You’re going to have bacteria in the tank, so you’ll have to get rid of it and flushing the water heater is going to be your best bet.
There are chemicals involved, so once again you may feel more comfortable in getting in contact with Magic Plumbing; but if you just have to do it yourself, here’s what you’ll need to do:
Put 2 pints of 3% peroxide in to 40 gallons of water. Treat the tank. Run some of the hydrogen peroxide solution in to the water lines, and leave everything for about 2 hours. Although these are chemicals, and you’re allowing them to settle in the system, they aren’t toxic; so you don’t have to rinse the tank and pipes later.
Water heater troubleshooting can be a bit involved, can’t it?
Water heater troubleshooting problem 4: strange noises
Over time, sediment can build-up in bottom of your water heater tank; this then causes overheating below the sediment, which tends to lead to the water boiling and causing the noises that you hear. The way to solve this problem is to do a water heater flush in the same way that you would have done for the ‘rotten eggs’ smell.
Water heater troubleshooting problem 5: not enough hot water
Unlike some of the other problems mentioned above, this might not be down to something having gone wrong with your water heater.
Since the installation of your water heater, has your family grown in numbers? If it has then you may have a water heater that’s too small for the job. It may be time to think about having it upgraded to a larger model.
If you had the water heater installed recently, and you’re getting a problem with an inadequate supply of hot water, it could be an indication that the connections are crossed. Start your water heater troubleshooting by checking the pipes.
This is quite easy to check. Turn off the water going to the water heater, and then turn on one of the hot water faucets. If you have water in the system, you may have to leave it for a moment or two, and when the system has drained, the water should stop flowing. If it keeps running then a hot and cold connection have been crossed somewhere.
If your water is constantly only lukewarm, then you may need to start your water heater troubleshooting by checking out the upper heating element, to see if it’s heating up. If the water is starting hot, and then cools off, you may have a lower heating element problem. If both of those appear to be working properly, it could be a thermostat needing replaced.
Those are just a few of the things that you can try when doing your water heater troubleshooting sessions. Of course, other things cause water heater problems, too, but the ones listed are a good place to start.
If you’ve tried the entire list of water heater troubleshooting tips, and you’re still having problems, then you should get in contact with Magic Plumbing. With more than 30-years of experience, Magic Plumbing can fix most things; so take advantage of that, and make sure you don’t miss another shower, just because you didn’t do your water heater troubleshooting.
