On Sat, 18 Mar 2006 15:16:37 -0600, (m Ransley)
wrote:

Do you open a HW faucet when you drain it. is it full of scale.


Yes. I opened the upstairs faucet. The value was still very slow.

But here's an update. I drained the entire tank and completely
removed the drain stem and replaced that with one that has a more
conventional shut-off valve. I used pipe dope before installing the
new stem. So, here's a tip: Save your old stem and socket from your
old water tank--it may be useful on your new tank. Also, I connected
my old washer rubber hose to the faucet to make it easier to drain
into a 5-gallon bucket twice a year.