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#1
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
Hello,
I noticed a leak from the top of our 15 year old Rheem water heater. I touched the water and it was warm. So I looked near the hot water pipe coming out from the top of the heater and that's where it seems to be leaking from. So, I shut off the valve on that pipe, which means NO hot water supply to the house. That stopped the leak from the top. If I turn the valve again, it seem leak under that pipe and then starts flowing down the heater.. So, my questions a 1) Is shutting the valve enough to prevent any further leaking ? i.e. should I shut the gas too to be safe ? 2) I am assuming the sealant near where the pipe is connected to the heater is leaking. Can there be other explainations to what I see ? 3) If it is a leak in the pipe, can I try to open the connection and apply a pipe sealant and re-connect it ? Is that safe ? Any "pressure" thing to be aware off ? 4) Am I better off calling a plumber or installer (who?) ? Is this a complicated thing to fix ? HELP ! Its midnight now and my wife's going to realize in the morning that there's no hot water ! Thanks NeedHelp. |
#2
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
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#3
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
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#6
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
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#7
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
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#8
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
BobK207 wrote:
snipped 2) I am assuming the sealant near where the pipe is connected to the heater is leaking. Can there be other explainations to what I see ? yes there can be others, cannot tell from here based on your description maybe the 15 year old w/h is just worn out & leaking....I've had w/h's last 20 years + and had others gone in less than 10.....depends on the water in your area 3) If it is a leak in the pipe, can I try to open the connection and apply a pipe sealant and re-connect it ? yes...btw pipes rarely leak...pipe joints leak Well sometimes pipes do. Below is a picture of a galvanized nipple connected to the hot outlet of a new electric water heater I installed in our home. It corroded through in less than six months. The other end of the nipple connected to the steel half of a dielectric union and the copper half of that union connected to the copper hot water feed to our home. http://home.comcast.net/~jwisnia18/temp/nipple.jpg Considering that the leak took place at the root of a thread, I suppose you could argue that the "pipe joint" leaked, but that part of the thread wasn't even engaged. G That's when I figured out that dielectric unions and steel nipples are much worse than using copper all the way to the tank, because the insulating gap in the unions is quite effectively shorted out because the tank and the house piping are both connected to ground. I threw out those dielectric unions and replaced them with all copper unions and nipples. I later found out that the Rheem water heater company agrees with me about that: http://home.comcast.net/~jwisnia18/t...eem_unions.pdf Jeff -- Jeffry Wisnia (W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE) "Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength." |
#9
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
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#10
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
The plumber did recommend that I get a new heater. The leak apparently
is from the "buns" , i.e. the welding joints of the pipes to the heater. He declared that is unfixable and officially pronounced the heater as dying. So, I am off to Home Depot to look at a new heater cost. I just need a 40 gallon one.. What should be a reasonable total cost from an installer that includes: 1) The heater (short) 2) Installation cost 3) disposal of the old one 4) Applying for the permits & inspection (that's what the plumber said) Thanks wrote: wrote: Hello, I noticed a leak from the top of our 15 year old Rheem water heater. I touched the water and it was warm. So I looked near the hot water pipe coming out from the top of the heater and that's where it seems to be leaking from. So, I shut off the valve on that pipe, which means NO hot water supply to the house. That stopped the leak from the top. snip At 15 years, w/h is almost certifiably in need of recycling. Because of internal electrolytic activity. Replacement is cheap, and reflects many improvements made over 15 years. I'd round up necessary tubing and fittings to install new heater, and enable future r&r to be by breaking/joining unions. In fact, BTDT year ago. Depends on whether you're comfortable with plumbing- read that "sweating tubing joints." HTH, J |
#11
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
wrote in message oups.com... At 15 years, w/h is almost certifiably in need of recycling. Because of internal electrolytic activity. Replacement is cheap, and reflects many improvements made over 15 years. $300+ for a gas water heater is cheap? Plus another few hundred to have it installed. Not cheap. This is why regular checking of anodes and draining the tank is a good idea. My tank has been around for 27 years largely because the previous owner did that. |
#12
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
time for a new tank, even if leak was from threads old tanks arent
worth messing with. look at it this way tanks are cheap. assume 500 bucks for a tank that lasts 10 years, thats 50 bucks a year roughly a dollar a week. thats really not much. consider a new larger tank say going from 40 to 50 gallon or higher BTU adds little in cost, gives more capacity. new tanks are better insulated and slightly larger in diameter. something to check before purchase |
#13
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
A dollar a week........
Geeezzzzz, I think I am going to start heating water on the charcoal grill from now on...... Big Tits On 12 Sep 2006 20:07:04 -0700, " wrote: time for a new tank, even if leak was from threads old tanks arent worth messing with. look at it this way tanks are cheap. assume 500 bucks for a tank that lasts 10 years, thats 50 bucks a year roughly a dollar a week. thats really not much. consider a new larger tank say going from 40 to 50 gallon or higher BTU adds little in cost, gives more capacity. new tanks are better insulated and slightly larger in diameter. something to check before purchase |
#14
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Help ! Water Heater Leak !
Bob M. wrote: wrote in message oups.com... At 15 years, w/h is almost certifiably in need of recycling. Because of internal electrolytic activity. Replacement is cheap, and reflects many improvements made over 15 years. $300+ for a gas water heater is cheap? Plus another few hundred to have it installed. Not cheap. This is why regular checking of anodes and draining the tank is a good idea. My tank has been around for 27 years largely because the previous owner did that. I'll also bet it's an electric water heater, not gas, like the one here. It's extremely unusual for a gas water heater to last 27 years, no matter what you do. |
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