Have Sediment in Your Water Heater?

 

Question, does my water heater have sediment in the tank? If the tank is four years old or older than the answer is yes. In Tennessee we have hard water from the limestone we have underground. With water staying in the tank at all times, this sediment will settle to the bottom and causes a few different problems. I will start from worst to least.

Loss in Efficiency

Sediment in the bottom of the tank will result in your water heater being less efficient, causing your electric or gas bill to rise. This is one of the worst problems caused by sediment because your water heater is taking a little more of your money each month.

Heater Element Damage/ Heater Tank Cracks

The next problem would be if the sediment gets too high in the bottom of the tank. This could cause the bottom element in an electric water heater to break or, in a gas water heater, the bottom of the tank to crack. This due to the heater taking so much longer to get the water hot. A water heater is designed to have water at every heating source.

Heater Won’t Drain

If the sediment gets above the boiler drain on the tank it can make it very hard to drain. This makes it just about impossible to drain the water during an emergency. If the tank starts to leak, all most home owners can do is turn off the water, but you still have fifty gallons of water that has to go somewhere.

To get the sediment out of a heater, just give Fix It All-Plumbing a call to get your water heater clean. We will blow the sediment out, not just drain the tank, and change the T and P. This needs to be done about every two years. A different way to beat this problem is to go tank-less water heater. A tank-less does not get sediment build up but will not work in every home.

You can give Fix It All-Plumbing a call any time and we will be happy to help you with any water heater question or problem you might have.