Jazz wrote:
Hi all, if you do a search in this group for my email address, youll
find a post I posted a few months ago. Basically, my water heater was
not staying hot enough. I replaced both heating elements and all
seemed to go back to normal. We had hot water enough to last both our
showeres without any cold water entering the scene.

However, it has been a few onths since then and the hot water is
getting weak again. We cant even get the tub filled half way without
the hot water going bye bye. The replacing of the heating elements
helped for a few months, but now blah!

Then, my wife JUST NOW calls me telling me a horror story about a girl
she works with having to go home today becasue her hot water heater
busted and water was every where.

A friend of mine who works on them suggested i turn the thermostat up,
and it that doesnt work, replace the thermostat. And if THAT doesnt
work, get a new water heater (it is about 12 or 13 years old as it
is.)

My question; Do i need to worry about my water heater blowing up
anytime soon? Are there signs that the sucker is gonna blow? And if
so, am I experiencing some of these sings? (gulp).

Thanks for everyones help in my former post, and thanks in advance to
this one!
Jazz Mann

It doesn't sound like you'd have any worry over the tank rupturing. Too hot
water, boiling sounds, or the tank on but emptied of water, things like that
might cause it to rupture but if it's "just" not heating you're probably
fine. So, no, I don't see where anything you have would cause a worry about
it exploding.

It is possible that it could spring a leak though, but you're onto the task
now so ... still should be fine.

From what you describe, I'll bet the anode (not the heating elements) has
never been replaced? That's gunk up a tank pretty bad in ten years or so
and cause what you describe. You could try lettint water run out the
faucet near the bottom of it for a bit and see if that helps, but it's
probably too late to save it.

From http://howthingswork.virginia.edu/page1.php?QNum=1286
A hot water heater is built so that hot water is drawn out of its top and
cold water enters it at its bottom. Since hot water is less dense than cold
water, the hot water floats on the cold water and they don't mix
significantly. As you take your shower, you slowly deplete the hot water at
the top of the tank and the level of cold water rises upward. But the shower
doesn't turn cold until almost all the hot water has left the tank and the
cold water level has risen to its top.

HTH
Pop`