Hot Water Heater

3Kings Plumbing

I'm not real knowlegeable on the service end of plumbing. My brother has a 50 gal richmond W/H that he can't get more than 30min of hot water out of it. Not being a service tech I say replace it. ( I never rebuild an W/H, I have rebuilt plenty of faucets though) . He told me it's been like this for years. (He lives in another state on a well water) I told him to call his local plumber and have him install an A.O. Smith Vertex Water Heater. I've put in 2 of these I think they are great!!

I'm just curious what to replace on it. If I ever ran into the same situation.

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mdshunk

There's only a couple things that will make the amount of hot water go down that quickly, and replacing the water heater is a silly option unless it's otherwise at the end of its typical life.
1) bad element
2) bad thermostat
3) bottom element buried in sediment
4) dip tube broken or rotted off.

How hot of water is he using for that 30 minutes, anyhow? If he's got the tap to full hot, that can suck out 50 gallons quicker than 30 minutes, for sure.

Ron The Plumber

With power off, feel the bottom of the tank, if cold, replace bottom element, if hot to touch, check dip tube. I doubt it's the stats.

mahlere

hey plumbers...it's a water heater..you don't need to heat up hot water...outside of that, i think the problems in the piping...repipe the house, that'll fix the problem...

Ron The Plumber

I'm so glad there are very knowledgeable non plumbers on here, for I don't have a clue on what this problem could be.

smellslike$tome

You never said specifically whether it was gas or electric. Since it is on well water it is a virtual certainty that the mineral content is very high. Assuming that it goes through a softener prior to the wh, it is still likely to have a higher degree of hardness which means it probably is full of scale. How old is the wh? Scale will not only settle in the bottom of the tank but collect on electric elements as well as the thermostat probe on a gas control valve. It is my opinion that scale will absorb more heat and hold onto it longer than water will. If that is the case, the result will be that the thermostat probe will tell the gas control valve to shut off before it actually should. If it is electric and the elements are scaled up then replacing the elements should take care of it. If it is gas then you were correct to begin with, replace it, and flush it at least annually.

I'm ready for the disagreement on this one.

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Ron The Plumber

Ok after reading your post again, 30 min, wow thats great for a 50 gal tank. Install a larger tank if he wants more.

3Kings Plumbing

It's an gas Water Heater.

In my house I have an 40 Gal gas that all 4 of my house hold can take shower with each shower lasting 10-15 min.

My W/H is an Wagoner never heard of this brand but looks like a rocket waiting to launch off into space. I'm going to replace it this spring.

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smellslike$tome

Still didn't get how old it is but if it's on a well and more than 8 yrs old I would say that trying to do anything other than replacement is not worth it. Get a Rheem/Ruud or Bradford White and make sure it has a brass drain so that it can be flushed at least annually without fear of breaking that wimpy plastic drain that comes on everything else.

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