I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

wrote in message

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.


Sounds like the best way to me. Turn of the supply water first though. Post
pictures.

wrote in message
oups.com...
I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

Don't forget to turn off the gas before lighting the fuse.

Drilling it out probably won't be much fun either.

Put the wrench away, grab a bottle opener, use it to open a beer (or wine
bottle if you please), sit down and wait another 3-5 years till the tank
leaks then scrap the whole bugger and be done with it.

How many years is the warranty on that tank. If it's a 7 year tank, your
too late anyway. ( up to 70% corroded, not much left to remove).

wrote in message
oups.com...
I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

First get a huge pipe wrench and put it on the water heater and make sure
it's up against the wall. Then put a huge crescent wrench on the anode. Use
a pickup truck and tie a cable to the crescent wrench and head to the store
for some beer. By the time you hit the driveway your anode rod will be
loose, you'll have a large hole in the wall and for sure you'll need the
beer......Now call a contractor to fix the drywall (there should be a nice
big hole), finish the beer and you'll have plenty of time to think about a
new water heater!
And please, don't remove the new anode and wrap it with pipe tape so it will
be easy to remove or you will be buying a new water heater in short order!
Signed, Tired, Sarcastic and still laughing....Ross
(Does this sound like a redneck joke?)

You're finished

Once you cooked the rod top cherry red
wrote in message
oups.com...
I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

On 9 Jan 2006 15:54:07 -0800, wrote:

I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile

I don't know about this case, but if it's hard to loosen something,
try tightening it and then loosening it.

Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey


Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
me know if you have posted also.

Any chance it's a left-hand thread? Surprised a pneumatic impact wrench
wouldn't do it. I remember a jammed lug nut on my car. The mechanic at the
station got the mother of all impact wrenches and said either the nut comes
off or the bolt snaps. Snapped the bolt. Turns out early Chrysler minivans
had poorly designed lug nuts/bolts where the threads easily got messed up.
The dealer replaced all the bolts and the new ones were much better. Why do
I know? Thanks to having our roof replaced got several flats over the next
year due to roofing nails. The old shingles were removed so lots of stuff
fell into the yard etc. They were pretty good about using a magnetic rake,
but still I would find roofing nails on the driveway or yard occasionally.
Guess I've digressed enough.

Happy 2006


wrote in message
oups.com...
I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

this is why changing anode rods isnt worth the effort, its very likely
even if you replace the rod the tank will leak from being disturbed....

stop. put the new anode in the hot:

"We generally recommend putting two anodes in a tank, if possible: one
hex-head anode like the one from our tank, and a combo or outlet rod
that combines an anode, hot-water outlet and plastic-lined steel nipple
and screws into the hot port."
read all at:

http://www.waterheaterrescue.com/pag...intenance.html

http://www.waterheaterrescue.com/pag...gh-PayPal.html

this is why changing anode rods isnt worth the effort, its very likely
even if you replace the rod the tank will leak from being disturbed....

Next time I buy one, which sounds like it will be soon, I'm going to
take it to a tractor-trailer pull and pay somebody $50 to hook it up
between two trucks and have them break it loose. I guess I should
start planning that now.

Makes me mad that the factory is so cheap. To save a quarter, they
don't bother putting any tape on the threads.

Pokey

Sometimes heat helps, loosen the lug. Hwoever, sounds like you were better
off with studs replaced. I've had impact wrenches used on my lugs, and
couldn't get em off later. Seems to be a "guy thing". Who can crank em on
tighter.

--

Christopher A. Young
You can't shout down a troll.
You have to starve them.
..

"Jeff" wrote in message
...
Any chance it's a left-hand thread? Surprised a pneumatic impact wrench
wouldn't do it. I remember a jammed lug nut on my car. The mechanic at the
station got the mother of all impact wrenches and said either the nut comes
off or the bolt snaps. Snapped the bolt. Turns out early Chrysler minivans
had poorly designed lug nuts/bolts where the threads easily got messed up.
The dealer replaced all the bolts and the new ones were much better. Why do
I know? Thanks to having our roof replaced got several flats over the next
year due to roofing nails. The old shingles were removed so lots of stuff
fell into the yard etc. They were pretty good about using a magnetic rake,
but still I would find roofing nails on the driveway or yard occasionally.
Guess I've digressed enough.

Happy 2006

On Tue, 10 Jan 2006 03:06:29 GMT, "Jeff" wrote:

Any chance it's a left-hand thread? Surprised a pneumatic impact wrench
wouldn't do it. I remember a jammed lug nut on my car. The mechanic at the
station got the mother of all impact wrenches and said either the nut comes
off or the bolt snaps. Snapped the bolt. Turns out early Chrysler minivans
had poorly designed lug nuts/bolts where the threads easily got messed up.

Were they left-handed or just had bad threads?

If left-handed, did they have L's stamped or molded into ends of the
studs? They're supposed to, afaik. (My 50 Olds or 52 Hudson had the
studs marked like that.)

The dealer replaced all the bolts and the new ones were much better. Why do
I know? Thanks to having our roof replaced got several flats over the next
year due to roofing nails. The old shingles were removed so lots of stuff
fell into the yard etc. They were pretty good about using a magnetic rake,
but still I would find roofing nails on the driveway or yard occasionally.

Finally, an advantage to not having a driveway.


Guess I've digressed enough.

Happy 2006


Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
me know if you have posted also.

On Tue, 10 Jan 2006 14:36:49 GMT, "Stormin Mormon" wrote:

Sometimes heat helps, loosen the lug. Hwoever, sounds like you were better
off with studs replaced. I've had impact wrenches used on my lugs, and
couldn't get em off later. Seems to be a "guy thing". Who can crank em on
tighter.

Mine were on normally tight, I think, but then I had shoulder surgery,
and my arm in a sling for 6 weeks. It was NYC and I didn't need to
drive anywhere, and it snowed a lot,, or the snowplow pushed the snow
onto my left wheels, and one wheel had no hubcap**

** ( I had left the car in Queens. Missing hubcap on left rear. I
could have put it back on before I parked the car, but didn't realize
it would be important.)

Started using the car 6 or 8 weeks later and everything was fine,
until I had a flat in the summer, dropping off my brother at Newark
Airport., Sunday 7 PM.

Couldn't get the lug nuts off so I stood on the wrench (the standard
issue GM wrench, one heavy rod bent at oblique angle. This might have
been the time I bent the wrench, but I got all the lugnuts off
anyhow.)

Broke 4 of the 5 studs. Choice between calling a gas station (didn't
know of one, would have had to walk back to the terminal and try to
find someone who knew of one nearby) and probably having it towed in,
then taking public transportation to NYC and then to Brooklyn, then
coming back via public transportation the next day.

OR

Driving home on one lug nut.

Of course I chose the latter. Car worked fine when going straight or
turning left. Went bang, bang, bang when turning right, even a little
bit. Drove about 15 miles to the Holland Tunnel, through the tunnel,
and another half mile towards Brooklyn.

Almost at Broadway, as I was slowing for the stop sign, I heard a
thump. Checked and the last lug nut had broken. Hub resting on
ground (or ?tire). No Parking on practically any street south of
Canal. Scoped out the area. Found a little parking lot about 100
feet north on Broadway. (Which goes one-way south, but there was no
traffic when the light at Canal was red, and only a little when it was
green..)

Jacked up the car, put on the tire, lowered the jack, headed out. Got
less than an inch before the tire fell off the hub.

Did it again, jacked up the car, put on the tire, lowered the jack,
headed out. Got about 3 feet.

Did it again, jacked up the car, put on the tire, lowered the jack,
headed out. Got 15 feet, turned left, got 100 feet, turned left again
(going over the curb instead of through the entrance), past the
sidewalk and into the parking lot. Then the wheel fell off.

I couldn't believe it myself. 120 feet with nothing holding on the
wheel. Lesson: Three tries, sometimes more. Don't give up.

Took the subway home, read the shop manual, first thing in the morning
went to Atlantic Wheel and Rim. Good thing I like to talk.
Mentioned how the shop manual said to press the broken studs out with
a hydraulic press and to press the new ones in the same way. The
counterman said, "No one does it that way. Use a hammer and a drift
to knock them out, and then put each new one in and tighten the lug
nut on it to draw the stud in, until it's in all the way. Back home
to get a couple tools, Easy subway ride to the car. Got there by
9:30, car finished by 10 or a little later.

Lot attendant pointed out i was parked across three spaces (because I
entered from the side), said no one would take my space now that rush
hour was over, wanted to charge for 3 days of parking, but easily
settled for a day and a half. I think as he thought about it, he
decided he would be able to rent at least one space


Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
me know if you have posted also.

Good point, mm. Some Chrysler products, up until the '80s, I think,
had left handed threads on the left side of the car, and right-handed
on the right. They usually did have an "L" on the end of the stud.

wrote in message
oups.com...
I can't break the 1 1/16" anode rod bolt loose on my 4-5 year old water
heater. Here's what I've tried:

Socket wrench - futile
Socket wrench & hammer - equally futile
Breaker bar - started moving the tank and bending the plumbing
Impact driver - the kind you hammer on - tinker toy
pnuematic impact driver - the kind the mechanics use to get tires off,
worthless
WD-40 - sprayed it on the bolt
welding torch - map gas to be exact, got it red hot and still wouldn't
budge

Better clear the block, unless you guys can post something soon, I'm
down to my last option which is dynamite.

Pokey

I didn't even try to get mine out. Just ordered one of those that insert
into the hot water outlet and installed it to extend the life of my water
heater.

http://www.waterheaterrescue.com/pag...ium-Anode.html

SJF