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I just moved into my moms house for a few months till my house is done, and I have a bit of a problem there. The hot water is HOT [img]/forums/images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Comes out boiling. I went down to turn it a bit lower, and did not see any way to do it. I am used to gas hot water heaters, and you just need to turn a diel, but this is electric, and there is no dial. How do I turn it down?Thanks
Chances are there is opening somwhere and if you open up the insulation you will find someting to regulate temperature.
Egon
There is a rectangle panel on the side, that says to kill power before opening. Could it be under there?
That would be where I would look. Most electric water heaters that I have seen have two metal panels on the side. One high and one low. These are each held on with 2 screws. First turn off the power. (This is important since these things usually work off 220, and I get a might squeemish at that voltage). Then, remove the screws and panels and pull back the insulation underneath. There should be 1 or 2 thermostats, mine are black with red and a white knob. Just turn the knob toward the cooler range, put the whole thing back together and turn on the power. One or both thermostats will have the adjustment knob.
It's possible that one or both thermostats is defective. They eventually wear out and start sticking. (The last one I cut apart had points in it.) If it sticks in the "on" position, you will definitely get real hot water, and it might get hot enough to pop the pressure valve. Try turning down the dial first.
It's been awhile since I opened up a water heater, and the innards might have changed since then, but I bet its still pretty close.
SHF
That's it Paul, and as has been said, there might be two. One high, one at the bottom. Set the temp around 120 - 140 degrees on both. The top is for rapid recovery, (heats the top third), the lower one heats the rest of the tank. They will not work at the same time, as the bottom will only work when the top reaches the set temp.
The most common problem with the termostats, is their either fusing open or shut. But, running a close second, is when they pull away from the tank, or get a good size layer of rust between them and the tank. Only way to tell if they are regulating is with a voltmeter. If you're not comfortable working with 220, then call someone who is. It's a relatively tight space to be sticking two probes and your fingers in.
Personally, I'm betting that the temp is just set too high.
Cool! Thanks guys. I am going to check when I get home. I would hate to have her burn herself with the water. The tank is the one that came with the house in '78 when it was built. It is BIG[150gal I think] It was setup to have solor hot water when new, but that system stopped working after a few years. Hope the tank is still good. Looks like a big job to replace it.
Hmmm, hadn't thought about scale and rust, never had that problem. I've had to change a couple of times, once due to a lightening strike. (Boy, did we have HOT water, almost steaming.) And once due to simple sticking.
SHF
Um, I would consider replacing with something smaller. Say around 50 gallons. [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img] You would find a great deal of difference. The insulation level on the new units is considerably higher than the old units. The water heater here is a new GE from Depot and it is so much better than the old one at the cabin. Night and day difference. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
SHF
<font color="red"> Um, I would consider replacing with something smaller. Say around 50 gallons </font color>
Ya, we have been thinking about that, but it has to wait a bit.
BTW, I did crack it open, and found the dial. Cranked it down a bit, and it seemed to make a difference. Still WAY to hot though, so I will do it agean tonight. Thanks for all your help. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
No problem. If you do decide you need to replace the thermostats, you might want to do the elements at the same time, especially if you have hard water. Last thermostat I bought was $15.00 to $20.00.
SHF
Paul,
Before you buy a new one, check with your electric company. My rural electric Coop gives free water heaters if you will let them put in a switch that allows them to shut off the water heater remotely during peak demand periods, if necessary. If mine has ever been shut off, I didn't know it.
Chuck
How do they work that remote turn off? (I've heard of the technology but not seen it yet.) Do they just use a switch with a really long knob? [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] Send a surge down the power line? [img]/forums/images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Radio Control? Phone line connection? [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]
SHF
<font color="blue">How do they work that remote turn off? </font color>
Attached is a picture. There's no phone connection and no visible antenna, so I assume they send a signal through the power lines. We've had it installed as long as the co-op has offered them. The one pictured is the second generation model as the co-op has upgraded them once. This is also the second water heater it's been on. The little dot that's above and to the left of the yellow sticker is a red light which comes on if power to your heater has been interrupted. As Chuck mentioned, if ours has been interrupted, I haven't noticed it.
Almost looks like a meter base with a metal cover on it. Is that about the right size?
SHF
<font color="blue"> Almost looks like a meter base with a metal cover on it. Is that about the right size?
</font color>
Yep. The gray part is actually plastic.