Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [water-heater]

For questions generally relating to the hot-water supply system of a typical residential or commercial building, primarily regarding the heating mechanism itself (a traditional hot water heater tank, tankless heaters including "point-of-use", boilers and heat exchangers, etc).

1070 questions
45
votes
7 answers

How can I speed up my slow hot water?

Our water heater (gas) is located in the garage. It is 25 to 30 feet away from the closest faucet, which I'm guessing is the main reason it takes so long -- a minute or longer -- to get hot water flowing into my house. What can I do to reduce the…
arathorn
  • 551
  • 1
  • 4
  • 7
37
votes
3 answers

Why do gas water heater exhausts have an air gap before the chimney?

Every conventional (i.e., non-direct-vent) gas water heater I have seen has a roughly 1" vertical gap between its exhaust port and the exhaust vent (or "chimney"). See photo below. What function does that gap serve? How does the gap not pose a…
feetwet
  • 2,557
  • 6
  • 24
  • 49
34
votes
2 answers

How can we dry out a soaked water heater (and restore a novice plumber's dignity)?

Suppose a novice plumber -- a completely hypothetical novice plumber -- removed the top heating element in their electric water heater before the tank had sufficiently drained, resulting in about a gallon of water spurting out not only into the…
universalhandle
  • 401
  • 1
  • 4
  • 5
32
votes
5 answers

Why does this pipe feeding a hot water heater dip down like this?

This is a cold water pipe just in front of the hot water heater it is feeding. Why is it shaped that way? What is its function?
Rob
  • 1,228
  • 5
  • 19
  • 32
31
votes
4 answers

What temperature should I set my water heater to?

When adjusting my water heater, what temperature should I set it to? Is the answer different if you have: Concerns about diseases A dishwasher Young children or elderly that can be easily burned Electric vs Gas heat Type of plumbing (e.g. PEX or…
BMitch
  • 42,463
  • 14
  • 91
  • 196
27
votes
7 answers

Are water boilers dangerous when showering?

Where I'm from (Serbia) everybody says to turn off the water boiler (the container that heats up water and stores it for use in the bathroom and shower) when you take a shower or use the bathtub. They say that if the boiler becomes faulty, the…
NeoXx
  • 373
  • 1
  • 3
  • 6
22
votes
6 answers

Should a gas water heater be shut down if the water main has to be turned off?

I have a brand new AO Smith 50gal gas water heater. Today there was a burst pipe from the cold spell we're having currently, so I had to turn off the water main to the house until the plumbers get here tomorrow. With that, nobody had used any hot…
Chris W.
  • 616
  • 4
  • 8
  • 18
20
votes
1 answer

Is flushing a waterheater a good idea?

I've been told that water-heaters build up sediment at the bottom over time, and should be flushed out (ie. drained, then allowed to refill). Is there value in this exercise? Does that value exceed the cost of the hot water lost in the process?
retracile
  • 679
  • 2
  • 6
  • 13
17
votes
4 answers

Which water heater types do you recommend?

I would like to upgrade my current water heater with one that Is able to produce/store more heated water so I won't run out Energy efficient Inexpensive What are the advantages/disadvantages to each different kind? What would you recommend and…
Joe Phillips
  • 2,145
  • 11
  • 39
  • 57
17
votes
3 answers

Turn off hot water without hot water valve

I have a leaky pipe on the hot water side that I'd like to fix. Following the pipes back to the water heater, I don't think there's a shutoff valve installed anywhere in the line, not even at the water heater outlet. At least, not one that is…
Sittin Hawk
  • 305
  • 1
  • 2
  • 5
16
votes
5 answers

How do electric hot water heaters explode and what can be done to prevent that from happening?

My neighbor and good friend is a union steamfitter, and general handyman. He had to replace his electric hot water heater last year and he did it himself. My wife and I have to replace ours now, and he says its a super simple job and he has offered…
hotmeatballsoup
  • 240
  • 2
  • 11
  • 25
15
votes
7 answers

Why is my hot water running out quickly regardless of other household water usage?

I've noticed that my shower, which used to run hot water for what seemed like forever, now can only produce about 15 minutes of hot water. This doesn't appear to be related to other water usage in the house. What are the possible causes of this?…
Madey Jay
  • 151
  • 1
  • 1
  • 3
15
votes
3 answers

How to drill through wall without hitting boiler on the other side

I need to drill a hole through from my living room to my garage to put an ethernet run between them. I can only drill through from the living room in one spot due to the positioning of the electrical box that I want the ethernet cable to emerge at.…
lriley
  • 153
  • 1
  • 8
14
votes
3 answers

Are tankless water heaters worth it in cold climates?

I was thinking of switching over to a tankless water heater. A friend of mine said they are not good in colder climates since the water coming in is colder and takes longer to heat. Is this a valid concern, or are these things designed to deal with…
Tester101
  • 130,386
  • 77
  • 314
  • 605
14
votes
4 answers

Can tankless & conventional water heaters join forces?

Although I have properly maintained my nearly 20-year-old 40-gallon (150-L) Kenmore natural gas-fired water heater, I have been considering replacing it with a natural gas-fired tankless water heater unit, a Rinnai 180,000BTU (190 MJ), which I…
H1991
  • 707
  • 1
  • 5
  • 12
1
2 3
…
71 72