"I thought my water heater was a just a big round thing that sits in the basement, and gives me hot water when I turn on the tap... NOW YOU TELL ME IT NEEDS MAINTENANCE?"
Sorry to be the one who has to break it to you, but... yes, there are certain things that you should do to maintain your water heater. Fortunately, it's not all that often that it requires your attention.
The biggest thing that needs done, about every 2-3 months generally, is simply to drain about 5-10 gallons of water out from the bottom of the tank (the faucet valve near the bottom of the tank). What this does, is help flush out the sediment from the bottom of the tank, where it accumulates. (There is sediment in most all water supplies.) Draining out this sediment helps the tank by not allowing it to accumulate, which would form "hot spots" on the bottom of the tank, which can eventually be the cause of tank failure.
The easiest way to do this, is to cut off a short section of garden hose (2-3 ft. preferably from one you can't use for anything else) and attach it to the bottom tank valve. Then you can just put the hose in a bucket, and drain off a bucket or two. You may want to dump this water somewhere outside, since you really don't want that sediment in your drains either.
While you're at it, you might as well check the top of the tank, and fittings to make sure there are no drips or small leaks. These can ruin a tank from the inside out over a long period, because the leaks usually follow the supply line pipes, and end up in the water tank's insulation jacket.
Well, there you have it, a simple water heater maintenance plan, that may help add years of life to your faithful water heater!
This posting, and the words written within it are the intellectual property of H.I.S. Home Inspections LLC. All opinions, advice, information or comments contained here are for the express purpose of social interaction among the membership of Active Rain. No other use of this material is authorized, without express wriiten consent of the author(s). Reproduction without written consent is prohibited.
Comments(16)