How often do you flush...

[NuclearNed]

...your water heater tank? I have a perfect record of 52yrs, no flushes. I didn't even know this was a thing I'm supposed to be doing. My water heater's manual says they recommend every 6 months.

 

[nakedfrog]

There might be people who flush them every 6 months, but I've never met such a person (that I'm aware of).
I have thought about doing it before.

 

[ISAslot]

never. I'm always afraid the drain valve will fail and I'd be stuck with a bigger problem

 

[dullard]

It seems like every 5 years on average I have a plumbing project that requires the hot water lines to be drained. I flush the cold water heater at that time. It usually takes 3 to 4 weeks for the drain valve to seal back up fully. I assume draining it every 6 months would prevent those leaks.

I just did that this last winter. The house humidifier wasn't working, so I checked the valve that connected it to the hot water. The valve handle shattered and I wasn't sure if it shattered open or shattered closed. So, I had to drain the hot water to replace it. Replacing that valve somehow fixed the humidifier problem.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Nope, never have. I was just thinking about this because the water is always a little cool in the morning, like the thermostat doesn't trip overnight to reheat the water. I was wondering if flushing would fix it. It's a 22 year old heater.

 

[deadlyapp]

Nope, never have. I was just thinking about this because the water is always a little cool in the morning, like the thermostat doesn't trip overnight to reheat the water. I was wondering if flushing would fix it. It's a 22 year old heater.

Might want to check your dip tube. Pushes the cold water to the bottom and allows the hot to come out the top - you can short circuit that if the dip tube has eroded away.

 

[MtnMan]

...your water heater tank? I have a perfect record of 52yrs, no flushes. I didn't even know this was a thing I'm supposed to be doing. My water heater's manual says they recommend every 6 months.

Ha, I win! 57 years and no flushes.

Had a plumber doing some work a couple of years ago, and I noticed he was looking at the water heater and taking a pic with his phone. He told me they guys at the show wouldn't believe him without a pic that a water heater build in 1965 was still in service. He said life expectancy of water heaters today is 8 - 10 years.

He did add an expansion tank to it, and said never to flush it, the valve will likely fail.

It's a Rheem electric water heater.

 

[Muse]

The mineral content of your water plays into this considerably, I believe.

 

[MtnMan]

The mineral content of your water plays into this considerably, I believe.

True, we have soft water here, and never have any scale or mineral buildup in anything.

Guess we have virgin water, it all comes from a watershed in the mountains, with rainfall the only source. Also, probably contributes to why we have so many breweries here, most breweries per capita in the country.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I never do it as mentioned, worried the valve may fail. If I had a brand new one I would maybe consider doing it yearly and staying on top of it. If you do it from the get go I think you're ok, it's if you never do it, then suddenly decide to, that's asking for trouble. Good idea to check anode rod too.

My tank is a rental and is about 14 years old so I really need to start thinking about a new one, and I want to own it outright so I can stop having to pay per month. I don't know why rentals are so popular here but it's very hard to get out of those contracts. Came with the house.

Given the age of the tank I might have a bit of leverage to break out of contract though. I'm eyeing either a tankless condensing unit, or a hybrid tank. They both have their pros/cons. Reality is I don't really want to spend the money on that right now so been putting it off. Cheapest option is to just buy another conventional tank though but they are super inefficient, I feel if I'm going new I may as well do it right and go with something efficient.

 

[nakedfrog]

TIL that some Canadians rent their water heaters... what a weird idea.

 

[JM Aggie08]

I flush my tankless annually with vinegar. We have quite hard water here, and even with a water softener, I'd rather err on the side of caution.

 

[snoopy7548]

TIL that some Canadians rent their water heaters... what a weird idea.

They also buy bags of milk!


I flush mine every year in November. I've never changed or even checked the anode rod since the blower motor is right on top of it, so I can't even get to it without removing the motor. It'll be 10 years old in 2 days, so I'll be 10 for 10 this year!

I've been thinking about replacing it sooner rather than later and going with a heat pump model, but mine is gas and is fairly cheap to run already.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

They also buy bags of milk!

Milk as least makes sense, it doesn't crack when it freezes in an hour outside (I assume it's a carry over from milk deliveries)... But appliance rental? C'mon...

 

[Scarpozzi]

My primary residence doesn't have a tank and is supposed to be descaled at least annually. I threw a filter on it and need to backflush it with vinegar eventually....but who has time to do such chores?

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Never. Didn't even realize anyone ever thought about their water heater until it springs a leak.

 

[waffleironhead]

I flush my tankless annually with vinegar. We have quite hard water here, and even with a water softener, I'd rather err on the side of caution.

My one place with a tankless used to be every 6 months (now longer as its used less). New place, I havnt done it since i installed it 4 years ago. Crazy the change in water quality just 5 miles apart.

 

[waffleironhead]

I never do it as mentioned, worried the valve may fail. If I had a brand new one I would maybe consider doing it yearly and staying on top of it. If you do it from the get go I think you're ok, it's if you never do it, then suddenly decide to, that's asking for trouble. Good idea to check anode rod too.

My tank is a rental and is about 14 years old so I really need to start thinking about a new one, and I want to own it outright so I can stop having to pay per month. I don't know why rentals are so popular here but it's very hard to get out of those contracts. Came with the house.

Given the age of the tank I might have a bit of leverage to break out of contract though. I'm eyeing either a tankless condensing unit, or a hybrid tank. They both have their pros/cons. Reality is I don't really want to spend the money on that right now so been putting it off. Cheapest option is to just buy another conventional tank though but they are super inefficient, I feel if I'm going new I may as well do it right and go with something efficient.

Sweet jesus, how much do you pay to rent a water heater?
Also, you can cap the drain with a cheap fitting if it leaks.

 

[stargazr]

About once a year. My plumber told me make sure to leave the water on, simply open the drain for 15-20 minutes so it flushes deposits out.

 

[dank69]

Every few years when a water main inevitably breaks and my whole system fills with dirt. Or when they flush the street pipes and forget to give us a heads up.

 

[lxskllr]

Ha, I win! 57 years and no flushes.

Had a plumber doing some work a couple of years ago, and I noticed he was looking at the water heater and taking a pic with his phone. He told me they guys at the show wouldn't believe him without a pic that a water heater build in 1965 was still in service. He said life expectancy of water heaters today is 8 - 10 years.

He did add an expansion tank to it, and said never to flush it, the valve will likely fail.

It's a Rheem electric water heater.

That beats mine. I had a heater replaced a few years ago, and the guy was marveling over my heater that was last serviced in 1977. It was older than he was :^D I've never flushed mine, but I have municipal water that's pretty "clean". I hope I get as much time out of the new heater, but I doubt I will.

 

[Muse]

I thought this was about flushing your toilet. Big deal here where we have entered the realm of perpetual drought.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Sweet jesus, how much do you pay to rent a water heater?
Also, you can cap the drain with a cheap fitting if it leaks.

It's like $30/mo or something I'd have to check. It's a really dumb thing and I want to get out of it, but practically every house here is a rental so if you buy a house it comes with it so you just automatically start making the payments once everything is transferred to your name. Going to look deeper into cancelling the contract once I put in my own tank. Buying out the existing tank is an option too but they want more money than what a new one is worth, it's crazy. They really have you by the balls.

They're even pushing furnace rentals now which is crazy, those can cost over $100/mo.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

It's like $30/mo or something I'd have to check. It's a really dumb thing and I want to get out of it, but practically every house here is a rental so if you buy a house it comes with it so you just automatically start making the payments once everything is transferred to your name. Going to look deeper into cancelling the contract once I put in my own tank. Buying out the existing tank is an option too but they want more money than what a new one is worth, it's crazy. They really have you by the balls.

They're even pushing furnace rentals now which is crazy, those can cost over $100/mo.

So buy a new one, give them that one back? Or just stop paying and tell them to come take it back? Then take the new one with you when you move? lol.

 

[deadlyapp]

So buy a new one, give them that one back? Or just stop paying and tell them to come take it back? Then take the new one with you when you move? lol.

I'm sure it's all tied to the cost of a plumber, permits to install, etc. A water heater itself only costs a few hundred dollars but installation can easily cost $1000+ when they have to bring it up to code, modify all the piping, and whatever other bullshit they want.

I used to sell water heaters and installs many years ago at Sears. The amount of times that I had to deal with a pissed off customer because the contracted plumbers told them how much more needed to be done over and above the standard $130 install charge.