How Hot Water Heaters Work

[Lewis]

This is the best one that I have ever seen, you see mine has went on me so I said let me find a good break down on what the insides really do. I know how to install them already so I just wanted to get into the visual breakdown of what really goes on in there.

Deconstructed - Hot Water Heater - How It Works

 

[Brother Mike]

Everyone gets hot water while getting ready for church

 

[Edward]

This is the best one that I have ever seen, you see mine has went on me so I said let me find a good break down on what the insides really do. I know how to install them already so I just wanted to get into the visual breakdown of what really goes on in there.

Deconstructed - Hot Water Heater - How It Works

You have a tankless WH Lewis? I like them and have installed quite a few of them. They offer a pretty serious savings over the storage tank type heaters that we're all familiar with.

Like the video said, don't oversize your tankless unit. This is not one of those bigger is better situations at all. Over sizing the unit may actually raise your bill through increased gas usage. Part of the tankless design is having a bigger than normal burner in it so that it will have the time it needs to heat the water as it passes through it.

Conversely, having an under-sized unit will make you pull your hair out in frustration because of the lower flow rate which will be noticed in the shower. The design of tankless "on-demand" units choke the water down inside of it running through a coil back and forth giving the water enough time over the heat source to be heated. So...sizing is the most important aspect of a tankless system.

If anyone is contemplating the installation of a tankless system, before you buy it, check with your local building department on flow rate requirements. I've had a couple situations where the building department would not pass the inspection of the new unit due to flow rate requirements. Here in Colorado they will test the flow rate of the unit with every single faucet in the home running at full blast, and then expect the unit to deliver the stated flow rate with them on. To me, that's the stupidest thing in the world. No one will shower with everything in the house on! But the building department thinks they're god and could give you red tape about it...be warned.

My fav units and most recommended would be Rinnai as a first choice, and Rheem as a 2nd.

 

[jasonc]

Common on the beach. I wondered what thoses were.

 

[reba]

sheesh they are cold water heaters...

 

[jasonc]

sheesh they are cold water heaters...

Well if you live in a desert you will get this.you take a shower with the hot water on.even though the above ground tank for cold water isn't cold

 

[Lewis]

No I have a tank Edward, I should have drained it 2 times a year to get that rust out of there, I wish it was just the pressure release valve, that would have been great. But that anode rod attracts minerals that fall to the bottom of the tank and leave little pits and because the tank is under pressure it will give at a certain point. And yes I have thought about the tankless ones too.

 

[Michael74]

My fav units and most recommended would be Rinnai as a first choice, and Rheem as a 2nd.

Do you recommend Rheem for tank heaters too?

 

[Edward]

Do you recommend Rinnai and Rheem for tank heaters too?

For a tank type WH, Rheem all the way.

 

[Michael74]

Thanks Edward.

 

[JLB]

This is the best one that I have ever seen, you see mine has went on me so I said let me find a good break down on what the insides really do. I know how to install them already so I just wanted to get into the visual breakdown of what really goes on in there.

Deconstructed - Hot Water Heater - How It Works

There is no such thing as a hot water heater.

There are of course water heaters, as hot water does not need heating.


JLB

 

[Lewis]

There is no such thing as a hot water heater.

There are of course water heaters, as hot water does not need heating.


JLB

That is correct, but I and countless others call it that and everybody knows what you are talking about.

 

[reba]

There is no such thing as a hot water heater.

There are of course water heaters, as hot water does not need heating.


JLB

I said it first

 

[Edward]

No I have a tank Edward, I should have drained it 2 times a year to get that rust out of there, I wish it was just the pressure release valve, that would have been great. But that anode rod attracts minerals that fall to the bottom of the tank and leave little pits and because the tank is under pressure it will give at a certain point

I'd save my time and energy there Lewis on draining it twice a year to get the sediment out. You see the drain valve is a threaded fitting into the tank and so it has to be up off the bottom of the tank to screw in. You never do get it all out, but do usually get enough through the drain valve to make it not want to 100% shut off later. If you really want to do that, have a full port ball valve installed on it so it will have a greater size opening on it to flush out sediment, and the ball valves are 100% shut off.

The best thing a homeowner can do to extend the life of a water heater is to replace the magnesium anode rod that's in them every 3-5 years depending on how bad the water is in your area. The minerals in the water have a greater attraction to the anode than the steel tank, so it will deteriorate the anode rod over time instead of attack the tank. When you change the anode, it wont be as big as the new one because of deterioration.
(NOTE: the only difference between the 5 year and 10 year model WH's is that the 10 year models have a 2nd anode rod installed from the factory!)

 

[Edward]

I said it first

There is a device that is a hot water heater! It's called a steam boiler, lol.

 

[jasonc]

I'd save my time and energy there Lewis on draining it twice a year to get the sediment out. You see the drain valve is a threaded fitting into the tank and so it has to be up off the bottom of the tank to screw in. You never do get it all out, but do usually get enough through the drain valve to make it not want to 100% shut off later. If you really want to do that, have a full port ball valve installed on it so it will have a greater size opening on it to flush out sediment, and the ball valves are 100% shut off.

The best thing a homeowner can do to extend the life of a water heater is to replace the magnesium anode rod that's in them every 3-5 years depending on how bad the water is in your area. The minerals in the water have a greater attraction to the anode than the steel tank, so it will deteriorate the anode rod over time instead of attack the tank. When you change the anode, it wont be as big as the new one because of deterioration.
(NOTE: the only difference between the 5 year and 10 year model WH's is that the 10 year models have a 2nd anode rod installed from the factory!)

I have a reverse osmosis system .minerals save the salts from the water softener is what I have

 

[jasonc]

There is a device that is a hot water heater! It's called a steam boiler, lol.

Often used in power grids.

 

[Lewis]

Good stuff Edward

 

[Edward]

Good stuff Edward

Thanks Lewis. I had to learn about anode rods from Paul Harvey on the radio some years back. No one ever taught me that in a shop or class...

 

[jasonc]

Often used in power grids.

lewis may or may not remember this, but I do. most army installations that had the old quasenhut barrack style and or also block/wood style barracks of the same design used boilers to heat water and to heat the building during the cold and hot water.