Official Gramps' Memorial Eternal OT Thread

[NorthDallas40]

What a damn day. So we’ve been in the new house 5.5 yrs. Time for hot water heater maintenance and I knew it was gonna be a PITA but I had no idea. Yearly the tanks get flushed but now it’s time for the major maintenance.

1. New anode rods
2. Clear and reset the thermal expansion tank
3. Install a spring check valve
4. Install full port ball cock drain valves to ease yearly flushing.

First up is the thermal expansion tank. I knew the thermal tank was jacked based on prior maintenance and now that I was installing the check valve it would be a closed system and that needs to be set properly. Turns out the idiot plumber didn’t set the precharge and my stupid ass never verified it. The pressure differential was big enough that water pushed past the diaphragm I drained it and it still holds pressure so I set it back up. I’ll check it in a couple of months need to keep an eye on it now with the check valve. If it leaks down I’ll replace it.

No big deal on draining and installing the full port valves. No issues.

Now it’s time for the anode rods. They were due. Had to drag my air compressor over and impact wrench out the factory ones. And I find that the dumbass that installed the factory rod galled up the threads on one! couldn’t get the replacement rod to start and buggered up the threads on it. Had to chase down a 3/4 NPT tap and clean the threads. Dremel off the first thread on the new rod. Installed. Leaks on power flushing the tank... chased the threads BETTER this time and retaped the new rod, swapped the rod from the other heater to see if it seated better. Works.

Power flush both tanks, refire the burners, success.

with chasing parts and more expansion tank work than planned what should have taken a couple of hours took seven damn hours a plumber would have dry humped me though with all the work I did. Saved serious coin and greatly extended the life of the tanks.

I’ll take it. But .... DAMMIT!

 

[DancingOutlaw]

To settle my mind down, I like to watch videos of items being restored. No talking, just watching a rusted old mess be reborn into something new and beautiful.

I also like guns. So when I ran into someone who did both a pistol and a shotgun, I was in hog heaven.

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did. And if someone could identify the make/model of the pistol, my dad and I would be glad to hear it. Neither of us can figure it out.

Looks like an old Webley.
Correct me if I’m wrong but did he simply polish bare metal and leave it unfinished? Seems like that pistol would rust in short order.

 

[AirVol]

What a damn day. So we’ve been in the new house 5.5 yrs. Time for hot water heater maintenance and I knew it was gonna be a PITA but I had no idea. Yearly the tanks get flushed but now it’s time for the major maintenance.

1. New anode rods
2. Clear and reset the thermal expansion tank
3. Install a spring check valve
4. Install full port ball cock drain valves to ease yearly flushing.

First up is the thermal expansion tank. I knew the thermal tank was jacked based on prior maintenance and now that I was installing the check valve it would be a closed system and that needs to be set properly. Turns out the idiot plumber didn’t set the precharge and my stupid ass never verified it. The pressure differential was big enough that water pushed past the diaphragm I drained it and it still holds pressure so I set it back up. I’ll check it in a couple of months need to keep an eye on it now with the check valve. If it leaks down I’ll replace it.

No big deal on draining and installing the full port valves. No issues.

Now it’s time for the anode rods. They were due. Had to drag my air compressor over and impact wrench out the factory ones. And I find that the dumbass that installed the factory rod galled up the threads on one! couldn’t get the replacement rod to start and buggered up the threads on it. Had to chase down a 3/4 NPT tap and clean the threads. Dremel off the first thread on the new rod. Installed. Leaks on power flushing the tank... chased the threads BETTER this time and retaped the new rod, swapped the rod from the other heater to see if it seated better. Works.

Power flush both tanks, refire the burners, success.

with chasing parts and more expansion tank work than planned what should have taken a couple of hours took seven damn hours a plumber would have dry humped me though with all the work I did. Saved serious coin and greatly extended the life of the tanks.

I’ll take it. But .... DAMMIT!

Go tankless

 

[NorthDallas40]

Go tankless

Way too late for that plus at this point all the major PITA is over. Our house is fairly large and we’ve got two 50 gal tanks. Two master suites, third full bath, two half baths, utility room sink, dual full separate sinks in kitchen. Lot of plumbing and didn’t really want on demand for that. The master bath is probably 100’ of pipe from the water heaters. So we’ve got a recirculation system and it works pretty well. Instant hot water 100’ feet away from the tanks!

Now that it’s over hopefully it’s fairly smooth sailing the rest of the way. And if you change out anodes every 5 years you can get over 20 years out of a tank easily.

 

[SpaceCoastVol]

Won't 12 02 2021 also be a numeric palindrome?

Yes it is, and i was about to edit my post when i saw yours. Thanks for keeping me honest

 

[hog88]

What a damn day. So we’ve been in the new house 5.5 yrs. Time for hot water heater maintenance and I knew it was gonna be a PITA but I had no idea. Yearly the tanks get flushed but now it’s time for the major maintenance.

1. New anode rods
2. Clear and reset the thermal expansion tank
3. Install a spring check valve
4. Install full port ball cock drain valves to ease yearly flushing.

First up is the thermal expansion tank. I knew the thermal tank was jacked based on prior maintenance and now that I was installing the check valve it would be a closed system and that needs to be set properly. Turns out the idiot plumber didn’t set the precharge and my stupid ass never verified it. The pressure differential was big enough that water pushed past the diaphragm I drained it and it still holds pressure so I set it back up. I’ll check it in a couple of months need to keep an eye on it now with the check valve. If it leaks down I’ll replace it.

No big deal on draining and installing the full port valves. No issues.

Now it’s time for the anode rods. They were due. Had to drag my air compressor over and impact wrench out the factory ones. And I find that the dumbass that installed the factory rod galled up the threads on one! couldn’t get the replacement rod to start and buggered up the threads on it. Had to chase down a 3/4 NPT tap and clean the threads. Dremel off the first thread on the new rod. Installed. Leaks on power flushing the tank... chased the threads BETTER this time and retaped the new rod, swapped the rod from the other heater to see if it seated better. Works.

Power flush both tanks, refire the burners, success.

with chasing parts and more expansion tank work than planned what should have taken a couple of hours took seven damn hours a plumber would have dry humped me though with all the work I did. Saved serious coin and greatly extended the life of the tanks.

I’ll take it. But .... DAMMIT!

Holy crap, I never knew water heaters needed so much maintenance. Drain mine once a year and that’s all I’ve ever done.

 

[NurseGoodVol]

Holy crap, I never knew water heaters needed so much maintenance. Drain mine once a year and that’s all I’ve ever done.

Ya and mines not in an ideal spot to do any maintenance. The builders of my daughter's house were just putting things in with no thought of future maintenance.
2 showers with no access? Stupid.

 

[1972 Grad]

Holy crap, I never knew water heaters needed so much maintenance. Drain mine once a year and that’s all I’ve ever done.

I've never done anything to a water heater. Never drained one, nothing. I lived in one house for 17 years, and one for 10, and never touched the water heaters. When they go bad, I will buy a new one.

 

[hog88]

I've never done anything to a water heater. Never drained one, nothing. I lived in one house for 17 years, and one for 10, and never touched the water heaters. When they go bad, I will buy a new one.

Drain the sediment out is all I ever knew a gas water heater needed. I’m now questioning my inner Tim Taylor.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

I've never done anything to a water heater. Never drained one, nothing. I lived in one house for 17 years, and one for 10, and never touched the water heaters. When they go bad, I will buy a new one.

That's me too. The one I have now was installed in 2003 and I've been really lucky so far.
I was told they needed to be replaced every 10 years....mine keeps going good for now....I hope I don't jinx it.

 

[NurseGoodVol]

I've never done anything to a water heater. Never drained one, nothing. I lived in one house for 17 years, and one for 10, and never touched the water heaters. When they go bad, I will buy a new one.

The first house I rented on the beach here in Norfolk the water heater opened up on the bottom and flooded my kitchen. No hot water for 5 days. It became apparent the fix it guy my landlord hired was pretty clueless trying to sweat pipes when switching to pvc would have been ideal. Love renting.

 

[1972 Grad]

Drain the sediment out is all I ever knew a gas water heater needed. I’m now questioning my inner Tim Taylor.

If you really get into it, you might want to add a turbocharger.

 

[Orangeburst]

That's me too. The one I have now was installed in 2003 and I've been really lucky so far.
I was told they needed to be replaced every 10 years....mine keeps going good for now....I hope I don't jinx it.

I guess it depends on water hardness and build up.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

I guess it depends on water hardness and build up.

Mine is out in a small utility room that's part of the house. My mom has her's upstairs in the attic. I've told her you best pray that thing is made to last 100 years w/no problem.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

I guess it depends on water hardness and build up.

The one I've got now (2003) I bought from Lowe's. The next one maybe I'll get a tankless like Airvol said.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

If you really get into it, you might want to add a turbocharger.

and some headers too.

 

[hog88]

The one I've got now (2003) I bought from Lowe's. The next one maybe I'll get a tankless like Airvol said.

I wanted to go tankless when we replaced ours a few years ago, would have had to replace all of the exhaust piping from the basement through the roof or move all of the water lines so it could be mounted outside. Cost wasn’t worth it.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

I wanted to go tankless when we replaced ours a few years ago, would have had to replace all of the exhaust piping from the basement through the roof or move all of the water lines so it could be mounted outside. Cost wasn’t worth it.

I asked about going tankless back along time ago & I've forgotten what the answer was. It must not have suited me very well & that's what I ended up with now.

 

[W.TN.Orange Blood]

All right fellas.....it's time to get ready for the Black History Month campaign coming around again all month.

It will be an extra day too......it's leap year this time.

 

[hog88]

I asked about going tankless back along time ago & I've forgotten what the answer was. It must not have suited me very well & that's what I ended up with what I have now.

I forget all of the details but the exhaust from a tankless heater is a lot hotter than a normal gas WH and the exhaust pipe we have isn’t rated for it.

 

[NorthDallas40]

Holy crap, I never knew water heaters needed so much maintenance. Drain mine once a year and that’s all I’ve ever done.

Most people don’t know about the anode rods. You own a boat. It’s just like the zinc on a boat as water is a weak acid. Change the anode rods every 5 years and drain them once a year (what you and most other people already do) and they will last damn near forever.

On our system the rest is caused by the complexity of the system. Spring check valve and thermal expansion tank added due to the recirculation system. Dual heaters for 100 total gallons due to home size. But with the size of our house no way I wasn’t gonna have it.

The full port valves just ease the yearly maintenance. Not required but for a little simple effort during one yearly maintenance it makes further maintenance easier. And if you change tanks be sure to transfer them to the new one I promise you the new one won’t come with it!

 

[NorthDallas40]

Oh and remember people. I’m an engineer! This is all home owner knowledge porn for me.

I asked another buddy engineer yesterday when he changed his anode rods last when I was looking for a tap. His reply “you can buy replacement anode rods?!” Eh, I’m a nerd. At least he knew they had one!

 

[AshG]

Looks like an old Webley. View attachment 258294
Correct me if I’m wrong but did he simply polish bare metal and leave it unfinished? Seems like that pistol would rust in short order.

He did, but I think the project was about YouTube views and the experience as much as it was about keeping it looking pretty later on.

He does a hand scatter gun in a later video where he actually does black anodize the metal. That was a neat process to watch. I may also be calling that gun by the wrong name; looks like a fat pistol but takes single shotgun rounds?

 

[1972 Grad]

and some headers too.

That should help her breathe a little better, and maybe add 25 horsepower, and 30 ft/lbs torque. That torque will help heat the water faster.

 

[1972 Grad]

I wanted to go tankless when we replaced ours a few years ago, would have had to replace all of the exhaust piping from the basement through the roof or move all of the water lines so it could be mounted outside. Cost wasn’t worth it.

On the new house we are building, I decided tankless wasn't worth it for 2 people, after reading all about it. We put in a 50 and a 40 gallon electric. In N.C., we installed a commercial 80 gallon electric. In Florida, it's a 40 electric. House is really small there.We have a single 50 where we are now, and have never run out of hot water.