Article on water heater dating charts was very helpful some heaters I have looked at made determining the age of the unit difficult. Check it out.
getting started with How to Inspect Water Heater Tanks
Property is equipped with a 50 gallon electric water heater tank, located in the garage. Tank is equipped with a TPR valve and correct discharge piping. Approximate operating age of tank is 8 years. No issues were visible. The power disconnect for this appliance is located at the main panel, located in the garage.
Just read the Hot Water Re-circulation Systems article.
A Watts expansion tank is correctly installed on an electric water heater. The tank is installed on the cold pipe and securely strapped.
Starting water heater module
I replaced electric heat with FHW/G boiler,it had a very small 1.5 gal tankless with large family, i used old electric tank as an aqua bank with tee off tankless and tied into old elec tank, never ran out again, and shut off xtra tank in summer when boiler was set lower as there was no heat demand
Students may pose questions, share thoughts, discuss topics, and post images related to this course. The thread is monitored by the course instructor.
Need assistance? Ben Gromicko ben@internachi.org
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Below is an image of a propane tank sitting on top of a water heater tank. From this it is evident that the tank is gas-fueled. The propane tank is not being lifted or held by any support such as the ceiling, which is causing the pipe and propane tank to tilt slightly. Correction may be necessary.
Report:
The water heater tank did not have proper clearance (24") infront of it, however is technically accessible, just covered by a bunch of things such as fishing rods, ladders and plastic boxes. The tank is located in the garage and does not have the required 18" clearance from the ground (it is placed directly ontop of the ground), however it does have an FVIR mechanism. It does have a drain pan however the drain pan is cracked, which sort of defeats its purpose. As stated earlier there is no support for the propane tank besides the pipe it is rested upon, which puts unnecessary pressure on everything and is causing both the pipe and the propane tank to tilt. The TPR relief valve, aswell as all other components, appear to be working properly.
Article: Water Heater Dating Chart
This article is mostly a table showing how to decode the age of a water heater. The information is not very useful at the moment however is important to have saved and printed for future knowledge in case it becomes necessary. I could see this being helpful if I was trying to determine whether the water heater is suffering immediate defects or is reaching the end of its useful service life, which could be the difference between replacing one part of the water heater and replacing the whole thing.
Starting course. Is the video the same? Just finished the Residential plumbing course and saw that video.
Here goes!
Inspecting a water Heater Images:
-Viewed was a 50 gallon electric water heater installed 2003.
-The unit was installed in the garage in 2003 and manufacturered by A.O.Smith
- full report to follow
This is a photo of the top of my hot water tank. Two things of interest in this photo to me. The Anode or “sacrificial rod” location is clearly marked and access to the rod is hidden under the plastic cover. The other item of interest in this photo is the disconnected and capped drain which at one time connected the TPR valve with the outside of the house. When this hot water tank was replaced the TPR was not reconnected. Most likely, the old heater had the TPR on or near the top of the tank judging by the location of the old drain.
I read the article on Hot Water Recirculation Systems. Basically it is like having a traditional hot water heater with a recirculating pump added into the mix. Hot water from the the tank is circulated through a closed circuit and connected to each item that demands hot water. The advantage to this type of system is that when you request hot water from a lavatory for example, the water only needs to travel a few feet from the recirculation circuit thus reducing the amount of time needed for hot water to be dispensed. This can save water especially when a fixture is far away from the tank and the homeowner must dispense gallon after gallon waiting for the hot water to travel all the way from the tank to the fixture. I have not seen any of these systems in homes here in Florida. Are these more popular up north?
240 volt 54 amp
Instant hot water heater. Appears to have relief valve installed properly. Also appears to have clean out valves installed to do annual maintenance. Settings appear to be high/hot which could be hazard for small children.
I performed inspection on previous post/image of Rheem instant home hot water heater. I was unable to locate manufacture date on product. I notice burn marks to plastic electrical conduit that appeared to be from installation. Proximity of conduit and water pipes does not appear to be ideal although unsure if it is a hazard. It is 240 volt 54 amp heater. Proper wire and breaker have been used.
I read about water heater dating chart. Very informative and I was able to determine that instant hot Rheem water heater from my previous was manufactured in March of 2014.
The image is of a hot water heater and the pressure relief valve which has a pvc extension that goes into a wall.
The water heater I inspected was electric. I did not notice any sign of water leakage around the PRV. It did have an attached pvc pipe attached which led into a back wall. I saw no signs water leakage around the hot or cold water taps. There was no signs of water leakage around the base of the tank or on the floor. I did not remove any covers. I found no visible defects
The expansion tank attached to some water heaters is to control the volumn of water as it heats and cools. The inside of the tank has a rubber bladder that is air filled and is similar to the tanks used on irrigation systems. It does not eliminate the need for a pressure relief valve.
Starting the course.