My electric hot water heater is NOT leaking

[Flame On]

...so I can't take it in and swap it out under warrantee. It is not producing enough hot water to get through a ten minute shower. This is a problem with three girls in the house.
It is a "quality" Bradford White that is only 4 and half years old. I will admit, I have done nothing to maintain it, like emptying every once in a while.
Is there anything I could try to do myself? I'm half decent with electrical and I could empty it, but would it be worth it?
Calling a plumber is out of the question since a new heater is only 300 at the big box and at this point I figure if my expensive B-White crapped out in less than five years, why should I buy another? I'll just buy cheap ones from now on. I can easily swap it out myself.

 

[fatjay]

Depending on the model, most electrics have two heating elements, one at the top and one at the bottom. Check to see that they are both functional. If one goes out, you could experience the symptoms that you are describing.

 

[BrotherBart]

Elements are cheap and easy to replace once the water is drained out. I get'em at Home Depot. Why not replace'em and see what happens. BW heater come in one and two element models it appears.

 

[ironpony]

if you change the elements, remember to fill the tank with water before turning the power back on. if you don't the elements will explode

 

[heat seeker]

Sounds like the bottom element is bad, or the contacts on the upper thermostat are bad. The upper element is on until the upper thermostat is satisfied. This gives you some hot water fairly quickly. Once the upper t-stat is satisfied, one set of its contacts energize the lower element/t-stat to heat the rest of the water. That way, both elements aren't on at the same time, overloading your supply circuit.

Check for voltage at the lower element/stat when the upper t-stat is satisfied. Also check the wiring and terminals that feed the lower element. The lower t-stat could be bad also, which you can check with a meter.

Not much to it. There is a vid on YouTube that shows changing the lower element without draining the tank. If you shut off the electricity and water feeds, and the outlet valve of the tank, you can remove the old element and put a new one in without losing much water at all. If air or water can't get into the tank (valves are shut off), water can't get out very fast.

+1 on filling the tank BEFORE energizing the elements.

 

[semipro]

Its worth fixing a well insulated electrical resistance water heater that is not leaking.
I recommend you check out this site: http://waterheaterrescue.com/
There is some really good info there.
If you have hard water your heater can fill with minerals to the point where the bottom element is broken. It happens to ours regularly. I have to clean out all the minerals and then replace the element. There are more robust elements built for better operation and reliability in hard water.

 

[Dix]

How long is the warranty on this unit???

If under warranty, you might have more options

I remember my dad shutting the hot water heater off if he thought I was taking to long of a shower, back in the day when he was paying for it

 

[heat seeker]

Its worth fixing a well insulated electrical resistance water heater that is not leaking.
I recommend you check out this site: http://waterheaterrescue.com/
There is some really good info there.

Excellent site! I bookmarked it.

 

[Flame On]

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to check the lower thermostat and element this weekend. I should be able to get new parts under warranty.
I dug up this site with some pretty specific directions on how to do the testing.
http://www.home-repair-central.com/testing-water-heater-thermostats.html

 

[heat seeker]

Good site, I bookmarked it, too.
Note that they also state to check the upper 'stat to see if it passes voltage to the lower one.

 

[bholler]

And while you have it drained down make sure you change both elements if one went the other is probably not far behind and its a pain to drain them. Also why does everyone call them hot water heaters. Hot water doesn't need heated cold water does they are just water heaters damn it. Sorry i have no idea why it bothers me it just does.

 

[Swedishchef]

And while you have it drained down make sure you change both elements if one went the other is probably not far behind and its a pain to drain them

This is just my opinion but I don't agree with that. On my tank I have one element that works more than the other. So one will likely burn out before the other. It's like some people I know who, when changing the timing belt on their car, they change water pumps, etc while they are at it. I agree it is preventative but I also believe that you change when it broken when it is broken (that plus I don't have money coming out of my ears to randomly replace things that are not broken).

Andrew

 

[bholler]

(that plus I don't have money coming out of my ears to randomly replace things that are not broken

I don't disagree with you at all but to me it is worth the little bit of extra money to not have to deal with it again any time soon

 

[Retired Guy]

This is just my opinion but I don't agree with that. On my tank I have one element that works more than the other. So one will likely burn out before the other. It's like some people I know who, when changing the timing belt on their car, they change water pumps, etc while they are at it. I agree it is preventative but I also believe that you change when it broken when it is broken (that plus I don't have money coming out of my ears to randomly replace things that are not broken).

Andrew

If you DIY then all you are spending is time. Hiring a plumber (or an mechanic) is a way different story.

 

[Swedishchef]

Agreed. I have done it both ways. Payed someone (when I was out of town and wife was alone) and did it myself when I was in town once. With a compressor, emptying the tank and changing an element takes me about 20 minutes. I won't be replacing $75 elements randomly for a 20-30 minute job

 

[SidecarFlip]

You need to set a specific regimen and drain the heater regularly. I drain off mine (electric, dual element) monthly when I change the furnace filter. Filter equals drain. Real simple and effecvtive.

BTW, you can buy specialized elements for mineral rich water that have an outer jacket that repels buildup. I use them with our well water.

 

[thinkxingu]

One other suggestion I haven't seen: check your breakers. An electric water heater uses two breakers or one double breaker and if one of those poles isn't working you'll get lukewarm water since only half the heater is on. Happened to us a couple years ago after a storm. Replaced the breaker and back to good.

 

[ironpony]

A little off topic but not much. I just found out my MIL has been renting a HW tank from the electric company, for $18 a month. Not to bad, just that she has been renting it since 1998. . she could of bought several new ones by now. well my project this weekend is to replace it and have them p/u the old one.

 

[seige101]

A little off topic but not much. I just found out my MIL has been renting a HW tank from the electric company, for $18 a month. Not to bad, just that she has been renting it since 1998. . she could of bought several new ones by now. well my project this weekend is to replace it and have them p/u the old one.

Give them a call they will probably stop billing you and tell you to keep the old one. Happened with my buddy when he bought his house the gas co was renting it to the house

 

[CaptSpiff]

Give them a call they will probably stop billing you and tell you to keep the old one. Happened with my buddy when he bought his house the gas co was renting it to the house

Ahhh,... the good old days when appliances cost a fortune and the Gas Company had to incentivise new customers to "take the risk" of putting those dangerous gas appliances in one's own home.
No,... I didn't live it, but I heard my grandpa talk about it.

 

[ironpony]

Give them a call they will probably stop billing you and tell you to keep the old one. Happened with my buddy when he bought his house the gas co was renting it to the house

unfortunately they want it back, I figured they would say keep it and laugh. I think she has paid about 4500 dollars in rent

 

[blades]

Yep like the gas and electric meters - likley paid for both of these a a couple dozen times now.