How to Diagnose a BAD Water Heater Element
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- Опубликовано: 19 май 2022
- Is your electric water not working? Is your water heater popping or tripping the red reset button? It's most likely does to a failed element. Join us while we dive into how to diagnose witch element is bad. We'll use a digital multimeter to check the voltage and the amperage of each element to learn which on is bad. If you have a better way, let us know I'm the comments below. This method works on all electric water heaters for your home or business. AO Smith, State, GE, Rheem, Bradford White, Richmond, American, and any other electric water heater uses resistance elements. Checking amp draw is on of the best ways to check for a bad element and we'll show you how to do it.
For more great info, check out our other videos on this channel or visit our webpage at www.CallSmedley.com
Most informative video ive seen about diagnosing electric water heaters!
Wow, thanks!
This is a golden video! It doesn't matter what industry you are in, nobody anywhere actually let's us learn things and handle jobs that we can deal with ourselves instead of getting ripped off over and over by people that prey on ignorance, instead of replacing ignorance with knowledge like you just did! Well done, good Sir, well done!!!
Thanks! That's why we made the video!
This gentleman is a true professional. His explanation of
safety, changing out elements and setting thermostats T and B is outstanding.
Plus, the proper use of the meter and what to look for, voltage/amps, etc. Straight forward with an honest approach.
A++++👍🏻😅
Thanks!
Some body give this man a raise! For the first time in a very long time finally i have not a question or left having to watch 10 more videos tryin to figure out something that never got explained one very professional job hands down .Hey there bud1 Hella good tutorial. Great job I wish everyone would do the same and you just did keep up the great work will refer every one to you videos
I appreciate that!
@@SmedleyPlumbingmy water is luke warm- what do you think
This dude should be the face on all Hot water heaters. Great job explaining!!
Wow, thanks!
@@SmedleyPlumbingim 21 years old new home owner don’t know JACK… water heater says Installed 2020
Shower etc has Luke warm water! What ya think!?
@@Davidblaine18could be the dip tube, or the heating elements. Or it may be even poorly adjusted for heat
@@SmedleyPlumbing thanks for nothing
@@jeremiahsfoodsthanks
Brother, I’m relatively handy, and I’m having a water heating issue - aside from you not actually removing elements and showing water shooting out, this was TOP NOTCH.
We're putting together a new video that will do a more detailed job of showing all that!
This is an incredible video tutorial. It is clear, concise, and very step by step. You must be very careful around electricity as you explain. This video will definitely help me diagnose my issue. Keep the awesome content alive.
Thanks!
About 15 years ago in the farmhouse I lived in as a teenager, the bottom element on the 50 gallon water heater grounded out, and the reset button did not trip. We were gone all day hauling a load of cattle to the slaughterhouse, when we got home the pressure relief valve was running boiling water, the basement felt like a sauna. First we went to home depot and got new thermoatats. This time it popped the reset button. By the time we figured out the real problem it was 11pm, so everyone got to enjoy a cold shower before bed, just in time for another day of hard work 😂
Some days will be like that!
😊😊😊😊😊😊😊q
I had a wiring issue with my 1 year old water heater. This video helped to debug the issue by eliminating all the other potential issues. The original installer pinched a hot wire in the junction box against the ground screw. Ultimately, over time with repeated heating cycles the insulation oozed away and the wire shorted to ground and tripped the breaker and cut the wire at the point of contact. It took me two days to figure it out. The top thermostat actually was damaged in the event too. Both phases were stuck active at the same time. Anyway, thanks for the video. The methodical approach really helped me out.
Well done!
This guy knows ! I watched 4-5 before this one THE BEST !
Thanks!
Thankyou so much Mr. Smedley plumbing for getting my hot water back on Christmas day 2023.Today you definitely got your stars in your crown for giving such valuable advice.
Fantastic!
Quick Story:
My aging Dad hardly ever uses hot water. We installed an electric water heater for him 2.5 years ago (A.O Smith). Now when he goes to take his weekly bath and shave he quickly runs out of hot water. The electricity to the elements measured 233 volts which should have around 19 amps. The elements passed the continuity test. Come to find out the lower element was measuring 16.9 amps. We removed and replaced the lower element and he's back in business. The old element was scaled all to heck. It's funny how that amperage difference was reflected in the heaters elements poor performance.
Great Video
(Next heater will be tankless because we think his very low usage is causing premature element failure)
That's why I love the amperage test. It finds partially failed elements.
You could add a water heater timer so it only heats a certain part of the day. You are wasting a lot of heating energy of it just sitting there
This is the best video on this topic that I've seen on RUclips. Keep up the good work and thanks
Thanks!
Might have to show my plumber this video so he can do more than press the reset button and go home
Yep!
But than he won't be able to get those monthly $75 service call charges.
Sounds like you need a new plumber 😂
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
😂
Great job explaining all possible causes for not getting hot water.
Thanks!
Excellent video! Thanks for taking the time to explain this process so thoroughly.
You're very welcome!
Excellent video. Learned a lot about water heater problems and causes.
Thanks
Thanks you!
I’m so grateful for this video today! I’m so grateful for people like you and internet to this extent. I appreciate this video, more then you’ll ever know! Thank you! ❤
You are so welcome!
@@SmedleyPlumbing I can’t thank you enough. As a single lady, I went a whole week with my water heater only working for a few minutes. Couldn’t get anyone out here. And they wanted an arm and a leg and would be on their time. Your video was the first video that showed up. Now I have hot water without buying or paying for service. Just needed to turn sensor up. I seriously can’t thank you enough. I just wish I would have found it sooner. I subscribed to you for sure! Thank you so much, again. ❤️
@@fallonyunker you're very welcome
Thank you very much you just saved me from spending unnecessary money I just fixed my water heater by watching your video.
You are awesome and you are welcome!
Outstanding presentation and explanation. Thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
Best explanation I've seen. Thanks !
Thanks!
Thanks for the thorough detail. Great video .
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you for taking your free time to explain how to do this
You are very welcome
Thank you for the in depth process to do this. You just saved me from setting a bomb.
I wired my thermostat and replaced the elements but there was a gap between the thermostat and the tank and I've been troubleshooting why my tank has been constantly pressure releasing, and had no idea that's how the thermostat works. Could've blown up my house so thank you for explaining everything!
You should also check out this video if you're tank is always releasing water from the relief valve.
ruclips.net/video/S2HVSogYELM/видео.html
Great video!!! Best one I’ve found by far!! Thanks for the great info!
Glad it was helpful!
Great video in layman's terms... Thanks to you I have diagnosed my bad top heating element, and have ordered a new one... I LOVE YOUBOOB!!!
Great to hear!
Thank you, you saved me a lot of time.
Glad we could help!
Great job. Well explained.
Thanks!
Excellent video, and very well presented. The t-stats and elements are truly the most common heater issue that can be handled by Diy'ers. Just want to mention a seldom talked about and trickier issue is a cracked or leaking "dip" tube. That's the tube that brings incoming water into the bottom of the heater tank to be heated. When damaged or worn out, it can leak cold water into the upper tank and dilute the hot water that's being called for throughout the house. When the stats and elements check out OK, that can possibly be an issue causing cool water.
Dip tube issues used to be common but I haven't seen a dip tube issue in many years. They used to break off completely but manufacturing has figured that out now.
Very well explained thanks
Thanks!
Wish I had this video back in the day when I managed a True Value. So many customers with these issues. No need to replace the whole heater when it's just an element or t-stat. Thank you for this video.
Glad it helped!
It's probably worth mentioning the importance of installing the stats tight to the tank wall. & maybe demonstrating the stat & element R&R technique. You're a good teacher.
Thanks!
Thank you so much. I woke up to cold water and was able to find out that my reset button popped out. Your video was extremely helpful in diagnosing the problem.
Glad it helped!
@@SmedleyPlumbing No doubt 🤙
Good job,, your a good teacher 💯😊
Thank you! 😃
Thank you. That was helpful. I think I'm going for the rebuild .
You got this!
I’m a maintenance guy for an apartment complex and all my experience has been gas water heaters, just started at a new property with all electric and I can’t thank you enough for this video.
Checking with amps is the all time win!
Excellent video 👍👍
Thank you 👍 Please feel free to subscribe for more!
Excellent knowledge for a beginner.
Glad it was helpful!
Great tutorial!
Thank you!
Thanks man I now understand how this works
Keep this saved. If you don't use it, you lose it.
Yes! He does explain very good and make me understand in everything he is talking about!!
I deside to watch his video because i Just finish it taking a shower and the water it was not too hot like shoud be hot!
And make sence every word like he explain already. Tomorrow i Will go down to take a look the water heater.
Thank you my friend for your good explain about the water heater.
You're welcome!
Great video! Thank you!
Thanks for stopping by! Make sure to subscribe!
Great video! 👍
Thank you! 👍
Brilliant, just brilliant!! 👏 👏👏
Thanks!
Great video!!
Thanks!
This is well done - particularly adding that removing the insulation cover over the thermostats will lead to constant thermal tripping if left uncovered. This happened to me, and I though that leaving the upper thermostat uncovered would allow excess heat to leak away, but didn't realize that (i) being in a small basement room that was ~45F at the time, and (ii) the upper thermostat being susceptible to the low air temperature of the room was (n fact) causing the thermal switch to trip every day. Restoring the insulation remediated that problem.
Also, to reiterate a point made in the video, the upper thermostat acts as an "EXCLUSIVE OR" switch for just one leg of 120V -While one leg of 120V power is always attached to both upper and lower heater elements - when the upper thermostat is off, the other 120V "leg" power is directed to the lower element & lower thermostat (breaking contact with the top element), otherwise when upper thermostat is on, the other 120V "leg" power is diverted to the upper element (and that same 120V leg of circuit broken from the lower element/lower thermostat).
Correct!
Yes too
Thanks. You’re right, the parts are inexpensive, mine as well replace all of them while in there. Thx again
Yep!
Great video
Thanks for the visit
Got er done ✔️.. thanks
Excellent!
You, Sir, are a great teacher. Thank you.
You are very welcome
Great video and instructions i was debating changing both of the elements since the bottom one failed. Only 3 year old water heater in a new construction home. In the first 3 month of us moving in the anode rod was creating the rotton egg smell. Replaced it with a different metal ( dont remember what i changed to) . Could this change or my well water be the reason for the element to fail?
Thank you for making this video! Cheers from Wisconsin!
Well water is probably why the element failed. Hard water can make them fail faster.
Thank you....
You're welcome!
Thanks!
You bet!
At the 7:38 mark, you stated Volt X amps = watts. Should have said divided... great video
Volts x amps = watts
Watts / Volts = Amps
Great Video. Going to do AMP test today. Yesterday. Had power to both elements with heater set to 120 but had no hot water being produced. I noticed that my elderly parents also have a breaker that is double pole 20amp breaker. I'm thinking the breaker and 12/2 wire is not enough for a water heater but that is what is there on their 1995 Double Wide. So..left there last night, hoping that it is making hot water or I find an AMP issue pointing to an element. Power is going through the elements but didn't have my multimeter with me so could not tell if getting 220v. Tks
You'll always get 120 volts from each element screw to ground. Check for 220-240 volts from screw to screw to see if that element is being energized. If so, then check your amperage. If you only get 120v from screw to screw, then you'll get virtually no amps because that element is not being energized.
Great video although I have a couple of questions. When checking both element wires with the multimeter, what is a tolerable range difference? I have 235v input voltage, so my current through those wires were 18.95A and 18.3A. Is that enough of a difference to cause an overheat problem? Also, why is my input voltage 235v and not 240v, and would that make a difference? BTW, both elements past the ohm test, so I am puzzled!
It's possible. Check the other element for similarities. I typically get concerned when I see a difference over half an amp.
Great video! Thank you. One question though,my Rheem electric 50 gallon is giving me an error code that says the upper element is the issue however I replaced it and I’m still getting the same code, does this mean it’s a thermostat?
Possibly. I would still run the tests mentioned in the video. Depending how how the signalling is set up to deliver that code, it's possible a bad stat could result in that code.
Well done! Thanks. Is it possible to ck Amps with a basic multimeter that doesn't have the amp clamp? Thx
Unfortunately not.
@@SmedleyPlumbing thank you
Can you tell me how to check for amperage on my red multi-meter? You did a great job explaining this. Although the upper element heats the unit 75% and the bottom does a lot less work but the sediment is what causes it to go out first.
Does your red Multi-meter have an amp clamp? Make sure to tag me when you reply so I'll get the notification.
@@SmedleyPlumbing Not that I know of. It is your basic, probably older meter. Has the Red and Black regular plug ins rod/readers
@@bluev3nom might need to get one with an amp clamp.
Thanks. I have a multimeter but no amp clamp.
Might need to buy one with an Amp clamp
My water heater doesn’t have a reset button what should I do? Your help is appreciated
It's your water heater electric or gas powered?
@@SmedleyPlumbing hello sir, it’s electric one
@@Lokz99 all electric water heater have a reset button unless they are an on demand (tankless) electric water heater.
This is the first water heater video I've seen that mentions a partial heating element failure. My 80 gal. electric water heater just started to severely over heat. I bought new thermostats for it and it made no difference so I bought another set of thermostats thinking the first ones I got from Home Depot might have been the wrong ones but the second set I got from an appliance store didn't make any difference.
The elements check okay with the ohm meter and I couldn't figure out what else could be the problem until watching this video. Guess I'll have to go get a clamp on amp meter to see if I have a partial element failure. The water heater is about 30 yrs old so the elements are probably worn out.
Yep! I just tested one out yesterday using the amp method. It makes so much more sense than just testing ohms of continuity.
Was wondering about the green wire, mine rusted off and was wondering if it needs to be good back up like the ground wire? .....
Yes. You'll want to replace that wire.
if the thermostats are left without the foam in room temperature.. how does it know it overheats? I am confused by this. I did not put my foam back and it tripped after a couple days... But how would it even know to trip if it thinks it is at room temperature still?
Great question! The thermostats need the foam on the back to insulate them from the room temp air. Without it, the room temp air will cool the stat and trick it into thinking the water is cold. This makes the stat come on and heat the water even through the water might already be warm.
It's like a Sink Disposal. When your Water Disposal stops. You have too much garbage, it will stop. There's a red button under the disposal. Push it in, wait for a couple of minutes, then use your disposal again. If no go, you need a New One.
Well....kinda. Garbage disposals pop the reset due to the motor being locked up causing a circuit overload. Water heaters pop the reset when the tank temp gets too high.
How do you order the parts and where do we get them from for the heating elements and thermostat kit?
Amazon or your local plumbing parts supplier
I have water leaking from upper heating element area. (only one there is.) Do you think all will be well once I replace the element, or does the whole heater need replacing?
Depends on where the leak is originating from.
So what level of Multimeter do I need to be able to test a water heater Amperage? Mine has a 10 Amp probe jack and a 300 mA probe jack. I am thinking this is not adequate to test something with 18.75 Amps, right? This is an old Fluke 77 multimeter that my late husband had and I use it when I need to but I use a video each time pretty much. Thanks.
We mention the multi meter we use in the video. But you aren't looking for probe jacks. You're looking for one with an amp clamp.
@@SmedleyPlumbing I have those, but how do I know which jack to plug each one into etc? Thanks!
@@raynebutler1564 the amp clamp is built into the meter. You shouldn't be having to plug it into anything. It sounds like you might need to get a new meter.
@@SmedleyPlumbing yes it does indeed. Thanks.
any reason this new home only has the bottom element wired in? the upper has no thermostat nor wiring connected.
That's really odd. I would ask the builder for a new water heater.
Great information. I just had a new hot water tank installed and the reset button keeps tripping.
Now i know what questions to ask.
Thank you.
Most likely a failed element.
Thanks for the video. If the heater element amp draw is correct and the reset button keeps popping, is it the thermostat?
What amperage are you getting?
@SmedleyPlumbing 18.5 on both wires to the element. Red button pops about once a month.
@@joecraigslist9467 what about the other element?
@@SmedleyPlumbing Same on the bottom element. 18.5 on both wires.
@@joecraigslist9467 is there insulation between the control cover panel and the thermostat? If not, then that is most likely why. If there is then I would first look to replace the upper and lower thermostats. If the problem still persists then it is possible you have an element where the casing has opened up to the water. In other words it's partially failed but not enough to reflect that on an amp draw or an ohms test. So start with the thermostats and then if it persists replace the elements.
He mentioned the reset button at the beginning and if it keeps popping. He never explained how or what is the issue with that reset button. That is what I wanted to know.
The reset button pops due to excessive temperature. Excessive temperature happens when an element partially fails and continuously heats the water. So the purpose of the video is to identify where the failed element is and when you resolve the failed element you resolve the reason for the reset button popping.
Do you know what’s wrong with the breaker keep turning off? My friend said it might be the elements.
Breaker flip because of shorts to ground. That will take an electrician to resolve.
Hi Mitch, any suggestion? I replaced both elements, the top relay (not the bottom yet) but we are still running out of hot water. Temp is set to 120ish. The only thing I can think of is the pressure tank hasn't been replaced yet and has a broken bladder. Maybe it is dumping too much cold water in to the hot water tank?
How fast are you running out of hot water?
@@SmedleyPlumbing Barely able to have a 10 minute shower. It starts out okay and after ai installed the upper control it was good for a while. Then it went back to fading fast. Maybe the reset is going like you suggested?
I am looking at buying a clamp meter and going through your steps, thanks, great video!
@@terrybarrett5522 yeah definitely check the amps before going further.
@@SmedleyPlumbing thank you , will do!
Mr Smedley what does it mean when my water heater has tripped the breaker box. This is the 2nd time this has happened?
Bad breaker, wiring, water heater controls, and/or bad elements. I would test in that order too.
@@SmedleyPlumbing yes sir. Thank you for your help 🙏
Both elements & top and bottom thermostats have been replaced. Still poping rest occasionally... can the temp sensor that pops the reset malfunction?
It's possible you have a bad upper thermostat. Does the housing still have the insulation?
I just installed a brand new AOS 50 gal electric and it is only providing warm water no matter what I do to the temperature adjustment dial. Tried resetting the red button but it didn't budge.
Sounds like you might have a cross connection somewhere in the system.
My electric water heaters sequence is bottom goes first at set point set to 120F, is that normal or backwards? I replaced thermostat with same model WH10A..the top element turns on when i crank up the thermostat to 140ish..then at that 140 setting, the bottom element shuts down, no power coming in to the bottom element ..
You might have some wires crossed. The top of the tank heats first and then once it's satisfied it will send power down to the bottom thermostat if the bottom thermostat is unsatisfied it will send power to the bottom element. Once the bottom thermostat becomes satisfied it no longer sends power to the bottom element. Power stays being delivered to the bottom thermostat because that is the first part of the tank to get cold during a draw of hot water.
I just replaced my hotwater heater today with an ao smith waterheater. I followed instructions filled take with water and ran hotwater faucet to get the air out. Wired the waterheater then cut the power on. No hot water after 2 hours. Press the reset button still no hot water. Then turned the temperature up to 150 still no hot water. Any suggestions
Could be a lot of things. Probably wired wrong or a bad breaker. You need to use a multimeter to check for proper voltage and amperage.
Still a little confused, how would you diagnose if the thermostat is not functioning?
Thermostats don't fail all that often. They oftentimes get replaced during an element replacement just because you're already there. But for the most part, thermostats are pretty reliable.
Hot water is working for a couple weeks then blows the fuse in my electric panel? Would a faulty element do that? Already replaced both upper and lower thermostats
Blows a fuse or trips a breaker?
So de-enrgize when replacing parts....and when testing keep power on....is that right?
Yes
My water heater gets so hot and water leaks from the relief valve and it trips the button every other day.
Sounds like you have a failed element or two. Also sounds like you might need to add or replace your thermal expansion tank.
@@SmedleyPlumbing Thanks but after doing a closer inspection. I found the purple wire going from the thermostat to the element was broken.
@@infinity3jif there you go! Great find!
@@SmedleyPlumbing Sadly after 2 days of working it died. I'm guessing that the wire being broken may have damaged the element or something. So I took your advice and rebuilt the entire tank. Luckily A.O. Smith warranted all the parts. It's good as new now literally. 'lol' Thanks again for your help.
@@infinity3jif love it!
7:20 "we're being very safe cause the power's back on" 8:05 puts two fingers right on the element screws
how did that not shock the hell outta him
It looks like the fingers touch but they were holding over the element
@@SmedleyPlumbing If this were a football game and I challenged that call, pretty sure the refs would say you touched the element.
My daughter’s hot water keeping failing. The water heater is only a year old and under warranty. But nobody in the warranty department can come out and check the system. But they are willing to reimburse a local plumber $250.00. The problem is sometimes she has hot water. Other times she doesn’t. And at times when the hot water starts working, air comes out of the shower and faucet.
A friend of hers said it’s an electric issue. He replaced the circuit breaker a few months ago and everything was working fine…for 3 months. Now it’s doing again 3-4 times a week. She keeps telling me to hit the reset button, but it’s doesn’t feel it tripped. Calling a plumber tomorrow.
Sounds like it needs a thorough diagnosis checking each element and each thermostat properly. Hopefully your plumber gets it resolved.
13:15 Remember that any upward adjustment of the bottom t-stat setting should be readjusted to your original set point once you’ve completed your testing of the bottom element.
Always. Good point.
Or you trying too say he forgot to turn it back 😂
I edited this comment because spell check is crap on iPhone and I hopefully may pat of my question more clear (does ac on a circuit inherently measure completely open or is there an ohms signature inherently associated with live ac voltage when you throw an ohms meter on it?) hope this makes sense.
Wouldn’t your element read a short with both power and grd wires tied down and the power is hot? Enough to cause the “continuity” test to show a positive continuity result? I am a facility tech for att se, I drive the bucket truck and troubleshoot, isolate and repair copper (turning to mostly fiber soon) feeder cable trunk lines and smaller measuring to the fault for repair which would be measuring distance (foot) to shorts, opens, crosses, grounds etc. with a JDSU meter mostly with tdr. I’m not sure at all about ac but much voltage on a -dc circuit and you’re gonna see your ohms readings go from infinite to service affecting ohms readings which is a false reading if your in ohms setting. Switch to voltage and if you see -48 to -52 votes of DC You know you’re voltage is good therefore, probably not much of a short on the line if any. If you want test the circuit at an ohms setting or distance reading, you would need to remove voltage from the circuit, leaving it open to get an accurate reading. If my theory is correct, and you had voltage on the circuit of the thermostat, you would read a short using the continuity test every time. Does anyone know the answer? If you went across positive and negative terminations with a meter that was in ohms testing mode how much of a short would 240 v? I’m pretty sure a continuity test would read positive at any k ohms and would need to be at least 1 mega ohms or greater to not see continuity.
Therefore, it will be better to test the thermostat with the circuit open at the breaker. If you’re still reading a short, pull the wires off and test both ways. If you see a short on the way back to the breaker with the circuit open at the breaker and voltage would be gone , then you have faulty wiring. and then test looking into the hot water heater at the thermostat binding post and see if you have a short or an open there. Continuity is an ohms reading looking for a short. Don’t forget to measure for grounds also. Earth ground should trip the circuit breaker but shouldn’t a short as well? No tripped breakers at the box would almost rule out a short or ground, right? How about measuring the wire back to the thermostat from the breaker with the circuit open with no voltage, that might save you a trip to the heater at all if you see a clean open, right? Does the thermostat read infinite on a ohms meter or is there an ohms signature there inherently? I would assume the red reset button would also read open if it had been tripped.
And there’s a possibility you could have both faulty wiring and a bad thermostat. Not probable but definitely possible. One could be there all day if they test with the power on testing wires that are energized at the thermostat without removing them from the binding posts. Which to me sounds dangerous. I bet 240 hurts like hell. Wouldn’t wanna find out. I’ve done my job around power facilities because they often times follow the same route, are bonded to the same neutral as power and have a joint trench as power. Therefore, safety is always a concern. Repeat that as many times as you need to.
If I was to see AC voltage on the cable, I don’t go any further. That’s called foreign voltage to a phone man, and something is dangerously wrong and could have miles of phone cable energized with AC voltage causing a major potential for anyone working on the facilities in the area and even granny on her landline at home. I’m pretty sure several have died due to not using their head while working around hazardous voltage, last year, I heard of a technician, lowering his boom from the ground, getting caught up in powerlines, and the energy went through his boom all the way to the remote control he was holding in his hand. Killed him instantly. 22 year service. Hopefully I corrected a hazardous practice that at least the new guys don’t want to pick up. Be safe out there.
Yeah one of the more common ways to test an element is to use ohms. The problem is an ohms test won't reveal a partial failure of the element like an amperage test will. I've seen numerous elements pass in ohms test but fail an amperage test. This allows you to get the diagnosis correct on the first visit.
So my reset button has popped out about a handful of times and I pushed it back in so we could have hot water but now I have water in what looks to be like a drip pan at the very bottom could you possibly tell me what is going on?
Chances are you have an element that is failing and your temperature pressure relief valve might be dripping.
Thank you so much we are going to do exactly what you showed us at the end of this week
Thank you for an excellent video. Very detailed and easy to follow. As an amateur, I would be shutting off the breaker way more often than you did just to be safe. One suggestion I would like to offer you has to do with the numerous times you said "ah" or "um" during the course of the video. You may not realize how often if occurred and it detracted from the overall quality of your presentation. Otherwise excellent job!
Glad it helped and thanks for the feedback!
Checked power at the outlet it’s good, checked power on the cord connection to the water heater and I’m getting OL, no reading at the thermostat. No volts no ohms. For some reason my ground wire was corroded the area the screw was in was also corroded. I took ground off brushed area to clean metal, cut wire put new end on and screwed it back down tight. Reset button stuck in out position, can not push in.
The reset button will often not be flush with the thermostat housing. It's probably in.
@@SmedleyPlumbing I’m not getting any volts or ohms on the black or the red at the thermostat, power seems to end after the cord connection, wires look clean when I took the wire nuts off so not sure what’s going on.
@@gtxhunter you should be getting voltage at the black and red wires on the top of the thermostat. Then again at the next set of screws down which will prove power is running through the red reset switch.
@@SmedleyPlumbing I know but I’m not maybe the wires shorted out somewhere in the body of the water heater, still not sure how so much corrosion entered the top of the unit, wires were under insulation and the metal panels no leaks in garage so odd.
@@gtxhunter You should be able to do a continuity test from the red wire on the top of the unit to the red wire on the top of the thermostat and then again from the black wire on the top of the unit to the black wire on the top of the thermostat. If you do not get continuity then you do not have a good connection along those wires.
What about if I turned my water off about two hours turned back on and no hot water since.. would that flip the reset
Did you turn your water heater off when you turned the water off? If not, youight have dry fired the element and smoked it.
would a lower element being bad cause a lack of hot water? or would that be the dip tube? ours runs out of hot water after 10mins and what hot water does come out is hot like normal it just gets cold after 10min. 40gal unit
Possibly a failed element. We haven't seen dip tube issues and water heaters for years. That used to be a common problem but it's not very common today. A failed lower element can happen and the heater stay functioning. A failed upper element will typically stop all functions of the heater.
@@SmedleyPlumbing this water heater is like 20yrs old or more. it functions isn't rusted out and doesn't leak. I thought being as old as it is it may be the dip tube.
@@RonComstock quick way to find out is to check the amperage of the elements while it's running.
@@SmedleyPlumbing my cheap meter doesn't do continuity but in one mode Get a short beep on upper element but nothing on lower no power to unit. I remove the element on the bottom and its not broken. It can still be bad though? oh and it's a 1992 unit lol
@@RonComstock of you touch the leads together, does it make a consistent beep?
except my elements show continuity, but something trips internally to kill voltage to the elements. I get 240 V temporarily and then zap - something shuts off and no voltage and no amperage. So maybe an element, maybe a controller?
Use your meter to learn if the element is being sent power but shorting out. Or if the power is being diverted to the other thermostat.
@@SmedleyPlumbing It is 18 yrs old. I could get the bottom heating element out, but not the top one. The bottom one was fine - perhaps 13 ohms or so. There was a lot of corrosion around the threads, so I'm saying no-go on the top element. Pretty sure it is the controller. No flashing green light to signal any problems )-:
@@SmedleyPlumbing The voltmeter will show a temporary Voltage across the element of 240, but then I hear a click and it goes back down to zero. V
My ground wire broke off. How to put back on and is tripping the red reset button
That could cause it. Make sure you wire it back correctly.
And how do i know when the elements are not the problem but the thermostat? How do i check if the thermostat is the problem?
Thermostats are cheap enough that if you're questioning whether they're bad or not you should just replace them. They don't go out all that often but for less than $40 you can buy the parts to replace them.
@SmedleyPlumbing same thing as the elements, they sell them as kit at lowes or homedepot. Why make the video of elements if they are cheap too
@@dannyboy9254 because you still need to verify what's wrong before you start replacing stuff as a guess.
im 21 years old new home owner don’t know JACK… water heater says Installed 2020
Shower etc has Luke warm water! What ya think!?
Watch the video and test the elements
@@SmedleyPlumbing thanks
What if its a brand new ao smith from Lowe's? And it doesn't heat. Then what?
Same rules apply.
What might cause the water temp to to intermittently go from 120 (setpoint) to 145+?
That's usually caused by a slightly failed element. While the unit is at rest, the failed element will mildly heat the water. If the unit sits idle long enough, the failed element can over heat the tank. If idle even longer, it will trip the reset button.
@@SmedleyPlumbingwill setting both thermostats at lower temp help this issue.i have a 3 week old rheem start poppin the thermal.. it works 5 hours then. It trips..can i disconnect the bottom element and let it run only top element and vice versa to prove which one is intermittantly freaking out?
@@davidstevens7809 you need to diagnose which element is bad or just replace them both.
Is this work done by a plumber or electrician?
Typically a plumber. Electricians don't like water much! 😂
Fill the tank back up with water completely before turning the power on or you will ruin your brand new elements with no water in tank.
Yes this is true.