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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Coincidence. The GE sold by Home Depot is a Rheem. I bought one a few
years back, and it was the single worst (most trouble-prone) appliance
purchase I've ever made.

Very early in its life -- 6 weeks, maybe -- it ate its first heating
element. I replaced the first, and the other element died about six
months later. I replaced both with stainless.

I've also had unending problems with the sacrificial anode on it, but
that's another (really long, boring) story.

So, start from scratch. Google, and he

http://www.bobvila.com/HowTo_Library...ers-F2171.html

These things are really simple, and the troubleshooting procedure is
straightforward.
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

What was coincidence? Your story or my troubles with two water
heaters? :-)
Thanks for the help!

How long of a shower do you get now with the heating element changed?



On Jan 6, 7:54 pm, Robert Barr wrote:
After a couple

of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Coincidence. The GE sold by Home Depot is a Rheem. I bought one a few
years back, and it was the single worst (most trouble-prone) appliance
purchase I've ever made.

Very early in its life -- 6 weeks, maybe -- it ate its first heating
element. I replaced the first, and the other element died about six
months later. I replaced both with stainless.

I've also had unending problems with the sacrificial anode on it, but
that's another (really long, boring) story.

So, start from scratch. Google, and he

http://www.bobvila.com/HowTo_Library...ter_Heaters-Wa...

These things are really simple, and the troubleshooting procedure is
straightforward.


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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Jay wrote:
Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Do the tests on the elements/thermostats.
If all checks OK, there might be a "bypass"
occurring between cold supply and hot lines.

This can occur inside a single-handle faucet
cartridge (even when OFF) or in a washing machine
solenoid valve. Less likely, there might be a
temperature compensating valve in the system.

Also, check that the heater was plumbed correctly;
Cold supply to the nipple marked "COLD". It's an
easy mistake to make and produces exactly your symptoms
when done backwards.

Jim
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:

Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Speedy Jim wrote:
Jay wrote:

Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay



Do the tests on the elements/thermostats.
If all checks OK, there might be a "bypass"
occurring between cold supply and hot lines.

This can occur inside a single-handle faucet
cartridge (even when OFF) or in a washing machine
solenoid valve. Less likely, there might be a
temperature compensating valve in the system.

Also, check that the heater was plumbed correctly;
Cold supply to the nipple marked "COLD". It's an
easy mistake to make and produces exactly your symptoms
when done backwards.

Jim


The latter is my thought as well, running out of hot water quickly is a
classic symptom of a lack of dip tube, which would explain the failure
of the first water heater ('cause it was old and the dip tube fell
apart) and also the continuing symptoms from the second ('cause it got
inadvertantly hooked up backwards.)

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 6, 8:32 pm, Speedy Jim wrote:
Jay wrote:
Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Do the tests on the elements/thermostats.
If all checks OK, there might be a "bypass"
occurring between cold supply and hot lines.

This can occur inside a single-handle faucet
cartridge (even when OFF) or in a washing machine
solenoid valve. Less likely, there might be a
temperature compensating valve in the system.

Also, check that the heater was plumbed correctly;
Cold supply to the nipple marked "COLD". It's an
easy mistake to make and produces exactly your symptoms
when done backwards.

Jim


The heater was definitely plumped correctly. Could the bypass be in a
shower
water control? Not sure about the element tests. It appeared
ok, but the instructions were a little unclear on the bobvila site.
I'm
gonna call rheem tomorrow and have them walk me thru it..
Thanks
j
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:

Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Jay wrote:
On Jan 6, 8:32 pm, Speedy Jim wrote:

Jay wrote:

Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Do the tests on the elements/thermostats.
If all checks OK, there might be a "bypass"
occurring between cold supply and hot lines.

This can occur inside a single-handle faucet
cartridge (even when OFF) or in a washing machine
solenoid valve. Less likely, there might be a
temperature compensating valve in the system.

Also, check that the heater was plumbed correctly;
Cold supply to the nipple marked "COLD". It's an
easy mistake to make and produces exactly your symptoms
when done backwards.

Jim



The heater was definitely plumped correctly. Could the bypass be in a
shower
water control? Not sure about the element tests. It appeared
ok, but the instructions were a little unclear on the bobvila site.
I'm
gonna call rheem tomorrow and have them walk me thru it..
Thanks
j


you could try shutting off the valves to all single handle faucets in
the house then take a shower. if the problem goes away then it's a
bypass in one of those faucets. if it persists, then try shutting off
the stop valves to the shower then run hot water somewhere else in the
house. if you have good hot water there then your shower valve is the
problem.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 6, 9:16 pm, Nate Nagel wrote:
Jay wrote:
On Jan 6, 8:32 pm, Speedy Jim wrote:


Jay wrote:


Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Do the tests on the elements/thermostats.
If all checks OK, there might be a "bypass"
occurring between cold supply and hot lines.


This can occur inside a single-handle faucet
cartridge (even when OFF) or in a washing machine
solenoid valve. Less likely, there might be a
temperature compensating valve in the system.


Also, check that the heater was plumbed correctly;
Cold supply to the nipple marked "COLD". It's an
easy mistake to make and produces exactly your symptoms
when done backwards.


Jim


The heater was definitely plumped correctly. Could the bypass be in a
shower
water control? Not sure about the element tests. It appeared
ok, but the instructions were a little unclear on the bobvila site.
I'm
gonna call rheem tomorrow and have them walk me thru it..
Thanks
j


you could try shutting off the valves to all single handle faucets in
the house then take a shower. if the problem goes away then it's a
bypass in one of those faucets. if it persists, then try shutting off
the stop valves to the shower then run hot water somewhere else in the
house. if you have good hot water there then your shower valve is the
problem.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.http://members.cox.net/njnagel


Ok, It's tough to do though because the problem doesn't happen every
time...
My guess is it may be the shower valve, the molding is kind of loose
as well as the
lever controlling if the shower or tub gets the water...


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Default Hot water heater running out of water

When you run out of hot water at the shower, is the water also cold at
the bathroom and kitchen sinks?

On Sun, 6 Jan 2008 16:18:37 -0800 (PST), Jay
wrote:

Hi,
We've been in our house for about six months and recently we started
losing hot water.
It would last for only about 10 mins or so then run out. We figured
that since the water heater
was somewhat old (2000) that we should just replace it. We bought
pretty much
the same one, a 50 gallon GE electric water heater. After a couple
of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay

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"Jay" wrote in message
...
On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:

Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)

It seems fairly likely that the new heater does not have a functional dip
tube. It might not have been installed, might be in the hot side, or might
be broken. I would check for it in the inlet pipe and pull it up as far as
possible to see if it is okay. If you can not pull it out very far, it
should be possible to remove the lower element and see it with a flashlight
and mirror.

Another possibility is that you have a leaking hot water line somewhere,
particularly under a concrete slab. That will prevent the heater from ever
heating the water hot enough, especially at the bottom of the tank. This can
be detected by the outlet pipe staying hot for a long distance from the
heater when no hot water is being used.

Don Young


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"Jay" wrote in message
...
On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:

Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)




No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. A dip tube costs $10 or
so.

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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 7, 12:48 am, "Bob M." wrote:
"Jay" wrote in message

...

On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. A dip tube costs $10 or
so.


The Dip tube isn't installed by default?? You gotta be kidding me...
That would do it....
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On Jan 7, 12:48 am, "Bob M." wrote:
"Jay" wrote in message

...

On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. A dip tube costs $10 or
so.


The Dip tube isn't installed by default?? You gotta be kidding me...
That would do it....


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On Jan 6, 9:09 pm, Jay wrote:
On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:

On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


Missed that, only read this far: "We figured that since the water
heater
was somewhat old (2000)..."

(giving head a shake)
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On Jan 7, 7:59*am, Jay wrote:
On Jan 7, 12:48 am, "Bob M." wrote:





"Jay" wrote in message


...


On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? *I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? *The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? *It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. *If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. *A dip tube costs $10 or
so.


The Dip tube isn't installed by default?? *You gotta be kidding me...
That would do it....- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


Can anyone tell me if a GAS hot water heater has (or is supposed to
have) this drip tube as welll!???
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On Jan 7, 8:41 am, " wrote:
On Jan 7, 7:59 am, Jay wrote:



On Jan 7, 12:48 am, "Bob M." wrote:


"Jay" wrote in message


...


On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. A dip tube costs $10 or
so.


The Dip tube isn't installed by default?? You gotta be kidding me...
That would do it....- Hide quoted text -


- Show quoted text -


Can anyone tell me if a GAS hot water heater has (or is supposed to
have) this drip tube as welll!???


My gas heater heater had a dip tube that decomposed.
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

On Jan 7, 7:59�am, Jay wrote:
On Jan 7, 12:48 am, "Bob M." wrote:





"Jay" wrote in message


...


On Jan 6, 9:04 pm, cavedweller wrote:
On Jan 6, 7:18 pm, Jay wrote:


Any ideas what else this could be? �I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Dip tube?


Would that fail right away? �The heater is only 2 weeks old...
Definitely hooked
up right! :-)


No, not right away. HOwever, was it even installed? �It should be in the
cold water side; it carries incoming cold water all the way to the bottom.
It is not usually something that is installed at the factory. �If it is
gone, the hot water at the top (heat rises) mixes with the incoming cold
water, providing exactly the problem you describe. �A dip tube costs $10 or
so.


The Dip tube isn't installed by default?? �You gotta be kidding me....
That would do it....- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


normally its installed at the factory HOWEVER a buddy of mine had a
similar trouble............
one likely cause of this problem
you should NEVER sweat a pipe installed in a tank! or the dip tube
will melt and fall to the bottom. OP may have soldered pipe on tank,
stressed it bad, a few days later it broke off..........

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Jay,

Yes the dip tube is installed by default. But brand new products are
sometimes not put together correctly so it might be the dip tube.
Your local library will have books on home repair and maintenance. You
need to buy a voltmeter and learn to use it if you don't have one. Your
problem predates the new water heater so I suspect you have a leak, either
in a pipe or in a single handle faucet. I suspect that you bought a new
water heater when there was nothing wrong with the old one. Welcome to the
DIY Homeowners Club, we all make stupid mistakes. It's how we learn.

Dave M.




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On Jan 7, 8:46*am, "David L. Martel" wrote:
Jay,

* *Yes the dip tube is installed by default. But brand new products are
sometimes not put together correctly so it might be the dip tube.
* *Your local library will have books on home repair and maintenance. You
need to buy a voltmeter and learn to use it if you don't have one. Your
problem predates the new water heater so I suspect you have a leak, either
in a pipe or in a single handle faucet. I suspect that you bought a new
water heater when there was nothing wrong with the old one. Welcome to the
DIY Homeowners Club, we all make stupid mistakes. It's how we learn.

Dave M.


The GF has a similar problem on a gas water tank. Now - I looked on
the web, but did not see (or could not find) any picture of what this
dip tube looks like or how to replace it if it is broken.

Would anyone have a link to this type of information by any chance?

thanks.
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In article
,
" wrote:
[...]
The GF has a similar problem on a gas water tank. Now - I looked on
the web, but did not see (or could not find) any picture of what this
dip tube looks like or how to replace it if it is broken.

Would anyone have a link to this type of information by any chance?

thanks.


Your Google-fu is weak:
www.waterheaterrescue.com

--
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Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project:
http://improve-usenet.org/

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

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wrote:

On Jan 7, 8:46 am, "David L. Martel" wrote:

Jay,

Yes the dip tube is installed by default. But brand new products are
sometimes not put together correctly so it might be the dip tube.
Your local library will have books on home repair and maintenance. You
need to buy a voltmeter and learn to use it if you don't have one. Your
problem predates the new water heater so I suspect you have a leak, either
in a pipe or in a single handle faucet. I suspect that you bought a new
water heater when there was nothing wrong with the old one. Welcome to the
DIY Homeowners Club, we all make stupid mistakes. It's how we learn.

Dave M.



The GF has a similar problem on a gas water tank. Now - I looked on
the web, but did not see (or could not find) any picture of what this
dip tube looks like or how to replace it if it is broken.

Would anyone have a link to this type of information by any chance?

thanks.


Here you go:

http://home.howstuffworks.com/water-heater1.htm

The dip tube is on the cold water inlet and carries the cold
water to the bottom of the tank. As the water is heated, it
rises to the top of the tank where it is taken out by the hot
out to the fixtures. If the dip tube is broken or missing,
cold water will be drawn out of the supply side before it has
time to be heated.

It is kind of like locating an airconditioning register too
close to a return.

--
Robert Allison
Rimshot, Inc.
Georgetown, TX
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On Jan 6, 7:54 pm, Robert Barr wrote:
After a couple

of weeks we're still seeing
the same problem, even with the 1st shower of the day. I've got the
temp pumped up to
like 135-140 degrees. That seemed to help but it not the solution.
Any ideas what else this could be? I've ordered a low flow shower
head.
Thanks,
Jay


Coincidence. The GE sold by Home Depot is a Rheem. I bought one a few
years back, and it was the single worst (most trouble-prone) appliance
purchase I've ever made.

Very early in its life -- 6 weeks, maybe -- it ate its first heating
element. I replaced the first, and the other element died about six
months later. I replaced both with stainless.

I've also had unending problems with the sacrificial anode on it, but
that's another (really long, boring) story.

So, start from scratch. Google, and he

http://www.bobvila.com/HowTo_Library...ter_Heaters-Wa...

These things are really simple, and the troubleshooting procedure is
straightforward.



Got off the phone with the Rheem tech support, looks like the
thermostat is bad... the
upper/lower element were only showing 1 volt AC... sending a new one
out
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On Jan 7, 8:46 am, "David L. Martel" wrote:
Jay,

Yes the dip tube is installed by default. But brand new products are
sometimes not put together correctly so it might be the dip tube.
Your local library will have books on home repair and maintenance. You
need to buy a voltmeter and learn to use it if you don't have one. Your
problem predates the new water heater so I suspect you have a leak, either
in a pipe or in a single handle faucet. I suspect that you bought a new
water heater when there was nothing wrong with the old one. Welcome to the
DIY Homeowners Club, we all make stupid mistakes. It's how we learn.

Dave M.


Dave,
If I had a leak in a single handle faucet wouldn't I be seeing what
under
sinks, etc? Where can I look for this?
Thanks,
Jay


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Default Hot water heater running out of water

wrote in message news:cf1cebfb-f874-4b84-9efc-

Can anyone tell me if a GAS hot water heater has (or is supposed to
have) this drip tube as welll!???



Gas hot water heaters have dip tubes as well.
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Bob M. wrote:

wrote in message news:cf1cebfb-f874-4b84-9efc-

Can anyone tell me if a GAS hot water heater has (or is supposed to
have) this drip tube as welll!???



Gas hot water heaters have dip tubes as well.



Yes, they do.

Some info he
http://www.thehomeinspector.com/Clients/DipTube2.html

and
http://www.masterplumber.net/Electricwh/dip_tube.htm

http://www.plumbingsupply.com/ho****er.html
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Default Hot water heater running out of water

Jay


If I had a leak in a single handle faucet wouldn't I be seeing what
under
sinks, etc? Where can I look for this?


Sorry, I should have been clearer. The "leak" is actually a shunt between
the hot and the cold pipes. In a single handle faucet when the handle is
off, if the cartridge is worn it is possible for hot water which has higher
water pressure to flow through the faucet and then out the cold water pipe
if you use municipal water. There is no external leak for you to see. turn
off one faucet at the undersink shutoff valves (hot and cold) tonight. Does
that fix the problem for the morning's shower? Do the same for all the
faucets and hopefully you'll find a culpit.

Dave M.


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