Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
Reply |
|
LinkBack | Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Water Heater: Fuse Wire Fuss
I have a Horstmann Electronic 7 Maxistore water heater in my home and I've been having fuse problems as of late. We've been living here for about 7 months and never once had a problem but the other day I went to disconnect a storage heater and had to cut off the main power. When I turned it back on, the 15 amp fuse wire for my water heater blew. It was merely broken but I went out and got some new 15 amp fuse wire and replaced it. A few hours later I hear a loud pop and when I switched off the power and checked the fuse box the wire was completely gone except for the melted bits attached to the screws. Again I replaced it and again it happened. Fuse completely melted and gone. Is too much power flowing through? Is it safe to use a 30 amp wire? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks
|
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Tim W. wrote:
I have a Horstmann Electronic 7 Maxistore water heater in my home and I've been having fuse problems as of late. We've been living here for about 7 months and never once had a problem but the other day I went to disconnect a storage heater and had to cut off the main power. When I turned it back on, the 15 amp fuse wire for my water heater blew. It was merely broken but I went out and got some new 15 amp fuse wire and replaced it. A few hours later I hear a loud pop and when I switched off the power and checked the fuse box the wire was completely gone except for the melted bits attached to the screws. Again I replaced it and again it happened. Fuse completely melted and gone. Is too much power flowing through? Is it safe to use a 30 amp wire? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks Not familiar with your particular water heater, but if you turned off the power, and somehow the water level got low...did someone turn off the water supply as well? In that scenario, the upper element of a normal U.S. style water heater might blow out...causing the exact symptoms you describe. Perhaps the element blew from thermal shock of being powered on while immersed in cold water. It shouldn't, but since it's old.... In any case, something's wrong. You ABSOLUTELY SHOULD NOT replace the fuse with something larger! In fact DO NOT replace the fuse again! You'll have the same result. There's something wrong, and since you obviously do not have the technical knowledge to troubleshoot--much less repair--the fault; I'm afraid that you need professional help. Diagnose and fix the problem before you cause a bigger problem, like a fire. jak |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
"Tim W." wrote in message ... I have a Horstmann Electronic 7 Maxistore water heater in my home and I've been having fuse problems as of late. We've been living here for about 7 months and never once had a problem but the other day I went to disconnect a storage heater and had to cut off the main power. When I turned it back on, the 15 amp fuse wire for my water heater blew. It was merely broken but I went out and got some new 15 amp fuse wire and replaced it. A few hours later I hear a loud pop and when I switched off the power and checked the fuse box the wire was completely gone except for the melted bits attached to the screws. Again I replaced it and again it happened. Fuse completely melted and gone. Is too much power flowing through? Is it safe to use a 30 amp wire? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks NO! Absolutely under no circumstances use a higher than rated amperage fuse! You will very likely set the house on fire and insurance will *not* cover it. Find out what's wrong with your water heater and have it fixed. |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
"James Sweet" writes:
"Tim W." wrote in message ... I have a Horstmann Electronic 7 Maxistore water heater in my home and I've been having fuse problems as of late. We've been living here for about 7 months and never once had a problem but the other day I went to disconnect a storage heater and had to cut off the main power. When I turned it back on, the 15 amp fuse wire for my water heater blew. It was merely broken but I went out and got some new 15 amp fuse wire and replaced it. A few hours later I hear a loud pop and when I switched off the power and checked the fuse box the wire was completely gone except for the melted bits attached to the screws. Again I replaced it and again it happened. Fuse completely melted and gone. Is too much power flowing through? Is it safe to use a 30 amp wire? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks NO! Absolutely under no circumstances use a higher than rated amperage fuse! You will very likely set the house on fire and insurance will *not* cover it. Find out what's wrong with your water heater and have it fixed. The failure sounds like an intermittent short. Could be a heating element or something external. But absolutely agreed you should not run it until the cause is determined. Whatever happened the first time could have just been a tired fuse. But when it happened again, and by the description, rather violently, there is definitely something very wrong. --- sam | Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ Mirror: http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/ Repair | Main Table of Contents: http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/REPAIR/ +Lasers | Sam's Laser FAQ: http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/sam/lasersam.htm | Mirror Sites: http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/REPAIR/F_mirror.html Note: These links are hopefully temporary until we can sort out the excessive traffic on Repairfaq.org. Important: Anything sent to the email address in the message header above is ignored unless my full name is included in the subject line. Or, you can contact me via the Feedback Form in the FAQs. |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
"Tim W." wrote in message ... I have a Horstmann Electronic 7 Maxistore water heater in my home and I've been having fuse problems as of late. We've been living here for about 7 months and never once had a problem but the other day I went to disconnect a storage heater and had to cut off the main power. When I turned it back on, the 15 amp fuse wire for my water heater blew. It was merely broken but I went out and got some new 15 amp fuse wire and replaced it. A few hours later I hear a loud pop and when I switched off the power and checked the fuse box the wire was completely gone except for the melted bits attached to the screws. Again I replaced it and again it happened. Fuse completely melted and gone. Is too much power flowing through? Is it safe to use a 30 amp wire? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks Where are you? Down under? My guess - you have a bad element - may have a crack in it. Don't up the fuse rating. A 1500 W heater on 230 V is 13 Amps. Don't exceed 15. N |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Power cost of idle electric water heater | Home Ownership | |||
Thankless or Tankless hot water heaters | Home Repair | |||
Cost to install gas hot water heater | Home Ownership | |||
hot water recirculator, instant hot water but not a water heating unit, saves water, gas, time, money | Home Repair | |||
Grounding Rod Info | Home Repair |