Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

Did you ever watch the TV show Mythbusters? They contested a myth that a
hot water tank could explode with so much force that it would launch like
a rocket through several floors and out the roof. They disabled the
thermostat and safety relief pressure valve and at about 320 degrees F
inside, the tank launched as expected. And this was using only the
heating elements in the heater, no external heat source.

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

"Herb Eneva" wrote in message
...
Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?


It could, it may also be a loose thermostat or rust between one of the
thermostats and the heater. You can kill the power to the heater, verify
that it's dead, then open the two thermostat covers and inspect them, then
decide how to proceed

In article ,
Jeff The Drunk wrote:

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

Did you ever watch the TV show Mythbusters? They contested a myth that a
hot water tank could explode with so much force that it would launch like
a rocket through several floors and out the roof. They disabled the
thermostat and safety relief pressure valve and at about 320 degrees F
inside, the tank launched as expected. And this was using only the
heating elements in the heater, no external heat source.

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

I heard you can put your eye out with a screwdriver, or kill your whole
family by using a candle without proper training. But since I'm one of
the lunatics, I don't rely on professionals to operate those things for
me.

"Jeff The Drunk" wrote in message
news
On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

Did you ever watch the TV show Mythbusters? They contested a myth that a
hot water tank could explode with so much force that it would launch like
a rocket through several floors and out the roof. They disabled the
thermostat and safety relief pressure valve and at about 320 degrees F
inside, the tank launched as expected. And this was using only the
heating elements in the heater, no external heat source.

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmJoyuUJj2Q

I'd really like to have their job.

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 05:17:31 -0700, Smitty Two wrote:

In article ,
Jeff The Drunk wrote:

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling.
I have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck
thermostat and how do I change it?

Did you ever watch the TV show Mythbusters? They contested a myth that
a hot water tank could explode with so much force that it would launch
like a rocket through several floors and out the roof. They disabled
the thermostat and safety relief pressure valve and at about 320
degrees F inside, the tank launched as expected. And this was using
only the heating elements in the heater, no external heat source.

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

I heard you can put your eye out with a screwdriver, or kill your whole
family by using a candle without proper training. But since I'm one of
the lunatics, I don't rely on professionals to operate those things for
me.

Good boi! pats you on head

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 07:26:11 -0500, JimT wrote:

"Jeff The Drunk" wrote in message
news
On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck
thermostat and how do I change it?

Did you ever watch the TV show Mythbusters? They contested a myth that
a hot water tank could explode with so much force that it would launch
like a rocket through several floors and out the roof. They disabled
the thermostat and safety relief pressure valve and at about 320
degrees F inside, the tank launched as expected. And this was using
only the heating elements in the heater, no external heat source.

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmJoyuUJj2Q

I'd really like to have their job.

So it was 350 PSI not degrees. So much for my memory. I never saw that
video. They redid the myth bust by building a two story structure with a
roof. And not some small shack, this was a fairly good sized structure to
better represent a real house. This is what was complained about by their
fans prompting them to redo the stunt. The heater blew around the same PSI
and went through the first floor and through the roof. It would have gone
through more floors than that considering the heater rose to a few
hundred feet after it left the roof. And yes I would give up drinking to
have their jobs.

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:45:27 -0400, Herb Eneva wrote:

Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

Possibly... as someone else said, it might just be loose and not pressing
up against the tank (but seems strange that it suddenly happened all on
its own without outside influence).

My tank has two thermostats, upper and lower. You unscrew the cover
plates, unscrew the terminals, unclip the thermostat modules. Replacement
is the reverse operation; it's trivial to do. The upper thermostat also
has an emergency cut-off for the entire heater, the lower one is just the
'stat, but they're standard modules (Home Depot etc. sell them).

If you have a multimeter, you can work out which one is bad and avoid
replacing both (but I think my local farm supply place has replacements
in pairs for about $20 - and if one's gone bad due to burnt contacts then
chances are the other's getting a little long in the tooth, too)

cheers

Jules

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:27:07 +0000 (UTC), Jeff The Drunk
wrote Re very hot water:

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

That wasn't a nice thing to write.
--
Work is the curse of the drinking class.

On Jul 29, 5:45*am, (Herb Eneva) wrote:
* Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. *I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

Almost boiling, so you mean steam is spitting out, you used a
thermometer and its near 212f, or is it just hot like maybe 140f. If
near 160-212 turn it off at the breaker now, Is the saftey valve
leaking. There are 2 thermostats by turning them you should be able to
feel which one is cutting off at to high a temp, turn both down. If
you have a gas supply now is the time to consider switching as Ng for
me is 60% cheaper. There have been units that the saftey valve froze,
the unit would not stop heating and it went through a ceiling, roof
and landed far away, that is fact. If its old and in fact near 212 I
would junk it as its had alot of extra stress.

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 08:50:48 -0500, Caesar Romano wrote:

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:27:07 +0000 (UTC), Jeff The Drunk
wrote Re very hot water:

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from the
lunatics in this news group.

That wasn't a nice thing to write.

It isn't when the sarcasm wasn't received by the reader (as in your case).

Besides that, there really are some lunatics in this group including me.
But I'm a lunatic with a lot of work history in HVAC and home repair/
remodeling.

I agree, not all that nice. But, I agree with the general message. If
not the "tone".

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Caesar Romano" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:27:07 +0000 (UTC), Jeff The Drunk
wrote Re very hot water:

My point is; If you don't know how to change a thermostat you should
probably seek local professional help and not trust the advice from
the
lunatics in this news group.

That wasn't a nice thing to write.
--
Work is the curse of the drinking class.

Herb Eneva wrote:
Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?


It's a total waste of energy to store 40 gallons of hot water 24/7/365.
Multiply that by 300 million people. Americans are the most wasteful
pigs on earth.

Get an oil or electric tankless demand water heater. I have 2 small
electric point of use electric tankless and love them. They only run
when you draw water.


--
LSMFT

Those who would give up Essential Liberty
to purchase a little Temporary Safety,
deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.
Benjamin Franklin--

"Herb Eneva" wrote in message
...
Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?


Could be a stuck thermostat, but it may also be a bad element and it needs
to be changed.

On Jul 29, 6:45*am, (Herb Eneva) wrote:
* Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. *I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

In my experience, when that happens, one or more of the elements is
toast, and the unit is about to fail. The heater boils the water, then
shuts off. If restarted, same thing happens after a few hours. It's
happened to me twice, both times at around 16 years (age of
waterheater), so I replaced the water heater. However, it might just
be the termostat. Easy to replace, but how old is the water heater?

On Jul 29, 12:25*pm, LSMFT wrote:
Americans are the most wasteful
pigs on earth.



PLONK! Oh wait. Already did. Back in the bozo bin with you!

tmclone wrote:
On Jul 29, 12:25 pm, wrote:
Americans are the most wasteful
pigs on earth.



PLONK! Oh wait. Already did. Back in the bozo bin with you!

The truth hurts the guilty!

--
LSMFT

Those who would give up Essential Liberty
to purchase a little Temporary Safety,
deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.
Benjamin Franklin--

On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:36:07 -0400, LSMFT wrote:

tmclone wrote:
On Jul 29, 12:25 pm, wrote: Americans are the
most wasteful
pigs on earth.



PLONK! Oh wait. Already did. Back in the bozo bin with you!

The truth hurts the guilty!

Really? How so?

On Jul 29, 11:25*am, LSMFT wrote:
Herb Eneva wrote:
* *Yesterday while running hot water it was very hot --almost boiling. *I
have a 40 gal. electric water heater. Does this mean a stuck thermostat
and how do I change it?

It's a total waste of energy to store 40 gallons of hot water 24/7/365.
Multiply that by 300 million people. Americans are the most wasteful
pigs on earth.

Get an oil or electric tankless demand water heater. I have 2 small
electric point of use electric tankless and love them. They only run
when you draw water.

--
LSMFT

Those who would give up Essential Liberty
to purchase a little Temporary Safety,
deserve neither Liberty *nor Safety.
Benjamin Franklin--

2nd most wastefull , China is the #1 user, so we need to be #1 again.

It's a total waste of energy to store 40 gallons of hot water 24/7/365.
Multiply that by 300 million people. Americans are the most wasteful
pigs on earth.

Speak for yourself, pig. Most of the rest of us real Americans have the
sense or knowledge to set the thermostat, or get hot water on demand.
Anyone who would let their hot water get that hot is absolutely clueless,
and should turn in their keys to the alt.home.repair washroom, immediately.
And then go live somewhere that's better.

Steve