Water Heater Questions

[TexasBob]

My wife and I moved into our house in October. It was previously rented to a large family, so a number of things were used beyond their intended capacity. Natural gas hot water heater, I turned it up when we moved in. Has the ABCD settings- we are on the last one before "very hot." Last few weeks it doesn't seem like we have as much hot water as before. Got the latest gas bill in and it is almost double what it has been- we hardly run the heater and the range is the only other gas appliance. Seems the water heater is the main culprit. I would rather go tankless, but I know I can replace the standard one myself. If I go tankless, do I need a 3/4" gas line - have one in the attic for the furnace, but the line to the water heater is 1/2"? Does it need a second roof vent for fresh air intake? I am comfortable with doing anything needed, I just want to make sure I cover everything. Any Magnolia area plumbers want to give me a quote or line me out for a 12 pack?

[bwssr]

Turn it off, drain the tank, the flush it..a lot of sediment builds up inside, and you have to heat that first, before the water...folks should do this at least 1 time a year

[TexasBob]

Thanks for the suggestion. I will try that at least to get us through a month or two. I want a tankless anyway- hate idea of 50 gallons of water above my head and my wife hates running out of hot water

[Kdc]

Also check for water leaks, this happened to us a few years ago. We had a leak in the line and didn't know it, the water heater was running 2/7 and couldn't keep up.

[Todd-ty729]

There are several possible factors with the most common being a broken dip tube inside the tank.

If the unit is 10 years old or more it is not worth spending the money to repair this.

Regarding the tankless the gas supply is very critical.

[SCORPION KING]

2nd the idea of a water leak on the hot water side,if your water heater is running constantly that's your problem.Dripping faucets can also hurt your hot water consumption,possibly even a gas leak somewhere inside.

[Todd-ty729]

The possibilities are numerous.

[jchayes]

Close friend of mine is a plumber and he talked me out of tankless. Bulk of the cost is the prep to install a tankless, rather than a regular, thicker gas line is part of that cost. Whether you need a thicker line has a lot more to do with your gas pressure, length of line, and exactly which tankless you might be going with.

In short it saved me about $1500 to go with a higher end, regular gas water heater & my gas bill has been noticeably better.

Oh yeah, after crunching the math of what a tankless can potentially save you, it was in the 15-20 year range for a return on the investment. Another thing was that tankless can take a little longer to get hot water to the faucet.

Just my 2 cents, and a quick plug for S&S Plumbing in Irving!

[cj7zrcool]

Turn it off, drain the tank, the flush it..a lot of sediment builds up inside, and you have to heat that first, before the water...folks should do this at least 1 time a year

This is a good idea and definitely worth trying before replacing. You'd be surprised how much crap can build up in the tank.

....hate idea of 50 gallons of water above my head and my wife hates running out of hot water

I agree with the first part of this statement, but if your wife is running out of hot water with a 50gal water heater, she's using too much!

[DapperDan]

Just hope this doesnt happen!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bU-I2ZiML0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[TexasBob]

I agree with the first part of this statement, but if your wife is running out of hot water with a 50gal water heater, she's using too much!

glad she isn't on here, that does sound pretty bad. She has to keep adjusting the temp. At our previous house and when we first moved in it wasn't an issue. Any suggestions on the best standard type? Maybe tankless isn't worth the headache and $$$.

[bwssr]

and, you can call the gas company, they will send a crew to check for gas leaks for free!

[Todd-ty729]

and, you can call the gas company, they will send a crew to check for gas leaks for free!

Best to call a plumber.

Gas company will not repair any leaks but they are quick to turn off the meter and tell you to call a plumber.

[froghunter]

like usual im with ty729 on this one. tons of possibilities...............

i would start with the dip tube followed by a good tank flushing then go from there. IF its under 10 years old.

if older, your on borrowed time till a leak.

[BrianL]

We had a tankless installed when we built.

3/4" gas line - yes
Exhaust vent with water vapor drain - yes
Seems to take a little longer to get hot
Need electric plug or place to wire direct, close
Problem with tankless, no power no hot water.