EASY Way to Flush Your Hot Water Heater using AIR - Sediment Buster
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- Опубликовано: 10 фев 2024
- Adding AIR to your hot water tank can supercharge FLUSHING IT CLEAN. No more sulfur smells, running out of hot water or high electric bills. The may be the BEST way to COMPLETELY FLUSH your Hot Water Heater. See this little Sediment Buster working & EXTEND HOT WATER TANK life greatly.
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Disclaimer:
Due to factors beyond the control of Silver Cymbal, I cannot guarantee against improper use or unauthorized modifications of this information. Silver Cymbal assumes no liability for property damage or injury incurred as a result of any of the information contained in this video. Use this information at your own risk. Silver Cymbal recommends safe practices when working on machines and or with tools seen or implied in this video. Due to factors beyond the control of Silver Cymbal, no information contained in this video shall create any expressed or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage, or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or from the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not Silver Cymbal. 
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What do you guys think? Sediment Buster: amzn.to/3ODRAh5 Hose Cap: amzn.to/49smLUs Bike Pump: amzn.to/49aOR6K
You forgot to discus changing the tank anodes!
Also helps to have water filters installed to remove sediment before it goes into the hot water heater tank.
@@kevingray8616 The portable battery tire pump might not be a bad approach. Very little extra hardware to bring up there.
I use a Y connector with two shut-offs connected to the drain valve. I connect one branch to a water supply and the other branch to a hose to a drain. I shut-off the drain branch and run water from the other branch. When I want to drain, I close the supply branch and open the drain branch and the drain valve. I think water is more efficient than air.
I watch a lot of youtube, loads of tutorials. Silver Cymbal is one a handful of channels that puts out tutorials that have saved me real money. Like, thousands of dollars. Love this channel.
Wow, thank you for the nice words
He is great
This guy is the home-owner's guru. Affordable solutions to real problems that people have.
Your best bet is to remove the horrible tank drain valve they include with most water heaters and install a straight full port 3/4 inch ball valve with a 3/4 fpt to 3/4 hose adapter installed one end. A ball valve won't clog like the included drain valve will, and you can get much larger chunks of sediment out of them than you can get with the standard drain valves.
I'm regretting not doing this when our new heater was installed. I want to flush it, but I worry about that plastic valve shutting. I did buy a transfer pump, so I guess I'll keep it on hand when I open that valve in case I need to pump 50 gallons up the stairs and out the back door. 😅
This is very good advice!
Only issue is if the boiler valve is all plugged up, that’s what I had for my water heater. But yes, once emptied, I swapped to a full port valve. Game changer for flushing. Definitely will do on the next one before it’s filled.
Do you simply unscrew the drain valve when the tank is empty? I have never change any part of the tank before and don't know if drain value or relief valve can be change. Any ball 3/4 FPT to 3/4 hose thread ball valve work or has to be special dimension for water tank? I have AO Smith Signature 300 Gas Water Tank.
@@lordvader3425yes you just unscrew the old one and screw in a new one.
Any time you stir up sediment like that be sure to take out all your sink aerators before restoring the water. You will clog them if you don't. If you can't remove one easily just don't use it until you have thoroughly purged the system
Excellent advise! We should be using the closest fixture to the hot water tank to flush the tanks output line. Many times it'll be a washing machine. So I take the line off going to the washing machine and replace it with a garden hose and really flush the hot water heaters output.
Always try to ok flush water system through tub when waters first turned on most of sediment will flownout tub to help prevent issues
@@kylequest Thanks! This is important to bypass the washer. After flushing the water heater I had to find the washer inlet screen filter to un-clog…
Another thing to do it set your water softener on bypass, otherwise sediment can and will clog that up too.
@@username8171 Not at all likely since the water softener is on the cold side of things and with this procedure he closed the cold water inlet to the water heater. There would still be full pressure in the cold water lines.
My most popular video is when I changed my water heater 4 years ago with zero knowledge. Paid $379 for it. Labor to put one in is like $1,000 to $1,500. Now that same water heater is $579. This video is a must do to prolong the life.
My water heater is quite accessible. 1/2 hr job, 1 hr max if goofing off. No way would I pay that much!
It's crazy, it used to be about $800 installed for a normal tank. Prices are out of control. Too bad our salaries haven't kept up!
And regularly change that anode rod (every 3 years at least) or more if you have a water softener.
Secret weapon to saving money is learning to DIY.
My county requires a permit.
Moved in just a few months ago into a home built i think in the 80's. Got a new clothes washer and a week later called the manufacturer out as washer had broken. They told me it was due to sediment in water. Thankfully they covered the repair but when I flushed the water heater holy cow it was like mud city!!
Plumber checking in, You can use the pressure from the cold side to flush out the sediment through the drain valve at the bottom. However if you truly want to prolong the life of your tank replace the anode rod every 4 years.
And THANK YOU Chris - for stating directly that a water heater should definitely be flushed!
Here in Texas, our water is so hard, it can stand up on its own. I have to flush my tank every 6 months to 1 year, due to the hardness. We are at about 16-17 grains of hardness We get these white rocks that clog up up the drain valve, so when I replaced my gas hot water heater, I removed the factory drain, replaced it with a 3/4" pipe nipple and a full flow ball valve with a hose adaptor. Now it drains smoothly and larger chunks can flow out the heater easily. Best upgrade to hot water heater.
Wow, I'm assuming you are Austin or San Antonio areas from the Edwards Aquifer. My brother lives down there and his water is hard too, about 20 gpg in S.A. I'm in North Texas (Metroplex) the average is about 8 gpg or 140ppm. Same with Houston. Most of our water comes from the Trinity.
Easiest flush method is to hook up a garden hose, turn the heat setting OFF, and open the valve for about 15 minutes. The water intake line needs to be open so the flow and pressure of water will flush the tank. I do this several times each year. Super easy. (02/12/24)
He already made a video for this.
Thank you for making this!
I have a similar (if not the same) holding tank. 3 years no maintenance, so it might be time. Good call on Do Not Touch the relief valve. The spring gets weak over time and may not seal when you play with it. And need immediate replacement.
I live in Florida in an area where the water is hard. I bought this after watching the video. Thanks, Silver Cymbal!
I just did this like others have commented by leaving the cold water on and letting gravity flush out the sediment. Occasionally closing the valve and opening again...a lot of sediment came out, but the anode rod was still in pretty good condition, but I changed them out anyway.
This sediment buster looks interesting and I think I'll give it a try. I do have an answer for those that say, "if it's not broken, don't fix it" I say, if it's not broken, see if it can be improved! Think Model A to Tesla.
Thanks for the video!
Nice! I typically drain my tank every year and made it easier with garden hose quick disconnects. This is something I need to try though.
Cool product if you have a tank with a lot of sediment in it.
I flush my tank every 6 months and I open the cold inlet after opening the outler. The cold water coming increases outlets flow and stir up any sediment.
That looks like a good tool. I vacuum mine out through the bottom heater element hole, add water as needed and wet vac the scale out. 20 years and running good. My second set of elements this year.
This is the most valuable channel on RUclips, great work as always Silver!
Thank you very much
Also a great time to change out the anode and test continuity and resistance of the heating elements.
Very helpful sir.
You're absolutely right about the cost of a new water heater... Right before Christmas I needed to replace my 22-year-old water heater (only 40 gallons, not particularly large!), and the total cost came out to $2050!
Crazy how expensive stuff is now and losing your hot water is no fun while they do the work or the tank has failed.
What I've done is close the hot line, keep the cold on and use the water pressure to force the sludge/sediment through the drain.
Me too. I installed mine in 1992. It still works. I partially flush every 6 months.
Definitely one of the better products I've seen for cleaning out a water tank. However, in my experience with two different older electric water heaters, this product wouldn't do much good. First tank i cleaned had blown an element second one was still working but hot water production had been tapering off with less run time and lower temperature than when we moved in. So both times i opted to remove the elements and discovered an easy 2 gallons worth or more of sediment at the bottom. The 2nd tank i had religiously flushed every 6 months since we moved in getting small amounts of debris but otherwise clear water. The 2nd tank (which i just cleaned 3 weeks ago) the elements were so built up they barely came out of the tank. Research suggested vinegar can help loosen the build up when allowed to sit for about 6 hrs. So i had about half a gallon of 45% vinegar that i mixed with a couple gallons of water into the tank. As a test i put some of the sediment and vinegar water into a glass cup basically so i could check to see if it softened up at all. After 3 hrs theres was almost no changr so i scrapped that idea and went back to old trusty. I taped a length of garden hose (no fitting on the end) to my shop vac hose and fished that into the bottom element hole and began sucking the sediment out. Some of the chunks were about an inch or so oblong shaped and in general most of the sediment chunks were way too big to fit through the drain valve. 2 hrs of liposuctioning my tank with the hose and i got about 95% of the sediment out. This also allowed me to inspect the inside of the tank which the tank itself looked fine but the anode rod and hot water dip tube are in bad shape. However 2 new elements and thermostats for $35 and the tank is good to go for now and the plan is to replace it next year with a more efficient one. So I'm not going to bother with the anode rod or dip tube. The only way that sediment was going to fit out of the tank drain would be to remove the valve completely which i tried to do but the plastic valve was seized in place and wouldn't budge. Circling back to the test sample of sediment and vinegar water, i let that sample sit in the cup for 2 days and the sediment was still rock hard requiring reasonably strong hits with a hammer to break the chunks into small enough pieces that they might fit through the drain valve.
Astounding!
it would have been nice to state if you have hard, soft or normal water and to what degree.
That would make more sense to those of us that know very little.
@@lunatik9696 I've never tested our water but I've been told by others that its hard. How hard i couldn't tell ya but about every 6 months our water fixtures have some white powdery build up. Clr to the rescue on those things. Also my water heater is set to 125°. My understanding is the hotter its set the worse the mineral build up will be. 125 is toward the bottom range of water heaters.
Very useful video. Thanks a lot !!!
Looks like fun.
I just drained my tank today for the first time in 5 years and managed to get about an entire hand-full of calcium deposits. When i installed the Bradford White gas heater, i made sure to get a contractor grade version which is built better, and has solid brass fittings. I did replace the normal spigot drain valve and installed a 3/4" (or 1" i forget) ball valve with a big lever. Makes draining and even inspecting the insides very simple.
I also made sure to loosen the fitting that the Anode rod is attached to, gave it a few wraps with teflon tape, then screwed it back in. When the rod needs replacing, that simple task is going to make things much easier.
Once again you never disappoint. Very useful information, thank you.
It's why I use a whole home filter and water softener. And as a few people said, when you get a new water heater, replace the stock drain valve with a full port ball valve, and I always use a hose bibb cap on mine.
Great Video. Perfect timing for me and my hot water water heater cleaning.
Super helpful. Never knew this was an option. Thank you
Glad it was helpful!
Great video!
For a twenty year old tank, I'd say you're in really good shape! That thing is clean!
I’d be interested in what the anode rod looks like.
I have drained my tank in the last two years, but I am gonna get this gadget and give it try. I find I don't have to shut off the gas to the tank, but just set my control to pilot only so it doesn't heat.
My water tank went 2 months ago. I am skilled enough to change it myself. $1300 for the HWT at a plumbing supply for a 50 gallon tank- ours was a high recovery unit. You’re spot on with the 2000 dollar charge if you’re in the typical water tank replacement. More like 3-4K for the power vented high efficiency units. That’s insane
he said the most expensive appliance they have in their house.
i say BS, try replacing a furnace central air unit.
Without question the furnace/air conditioner/boiler/heating and cooling equipment is the most expensive and that is not even close
Roof and siding has entered the chat.
Appliances were talking if you consider an hvac unit an appliance. If not then windows wants a piece of this too
@@lesg9604 I missed that , I was only speaking out of pain since I had to drop 25k on a new roof and siding/paint.
I have never seen this before, that for sharing this video. Keep up the excellent videos you do, I have been following your channel for a while and have used the products you showed.
From someone who has cleaned heavy sediment out of their water tank 3 times, if the tank looks like the one you showed at the 50-second mark of your video there is NO Way this device would clean it out it will just move the junk around because by design the water tank manufacture refuses to make the water spicket hole much wider to get the big chunks out. I'm sure this is done on purpose so they will have repeat customers all the time. I drain all the water I can down to below my bottom electric element then remove the element and start chipping away through the element hole with a wooden doll rod so not to damage the inside of the tank and then take a clear rubber tube attached to a shop vac and start sucking it all out piece by piece. It takes a couple of hours, but it's a lot better than paying $2000 every 5 to 7 yeas for a new one. I normally will all purchase 2 new elements and change them out both for around $45 after I get all the sediment out.
Nice
I drained mine two years ago or so and much the same I didn't see anything major
Definitely gonna try this out when I can run the heat on my mini split
This is another excellent video from Silver Cymbal to help one save money……👏
Thank You sir for the informative and educational video. The infusion of compressed air definitely helps in the removal of buildup in the water heater tank. Keep up the good videos. Have A Great Day! 😁👍🏼😎
Thx, great tip and device
Have watched channel for years.
It has been very helpful.
I am in the HVAC program and we were suppose to know about the hot water tank, and was never explained to me in 2 years of education than you came along explain how to clean it in less that 6 min. I subbed Love the video, and thank you for your help.
I just did my annual flush. This would help immensely.
I did find draining was slow. But I turn the cold water on and off once it's almost drained to "stir" up the bottom and it released a big chunk.
This is definitely on my list for next year to speed the process up.
I love seeing devices that actually help out. Thankyou!
Thanks.
Wow what a cool idea! I need to get one of these. My tank needs to be drained soon.
Thank you. I wish I had invented this thing!
Thank you for this video. I have a heat pump hot water tank so it is even more expensive than your typical hot water tank. I will be buying two of these (one for a spare) and doing this on a multi-year basis.
A real life extender on at least older water heaters is to replace the anode. I found that it’s not too hard, especially if you have access to an impact wrench . otherwise, it’s a little bit hard to keep the tank from twisting. The other impediment to doing it is that it’s harder to do where there’s a combination, inlet, and anode. I’ve never attempted one of those.
Someone commented that we should replace the cheap drain valve. I agree. Also, without Inlet pressure, output will be much slower. So adding several shots of air will increase tank pressure and so cause higher flow rates. Duh.
Not only can you clog the valve but the sediment actually clogs micro holes left in the inside of the tank so I have ran into it where a tank was so dirty on the inside that the cleaning process actually made the tank leak and therefore had to be completely replaced anyways!
Guys when your tank is 10-20 years old please just replace them if they have problems! Its not worth the cost to repair in most cases since it wont prolong the life too long!
Especially how much more expensive it is to deal with a flood if your water heater is inside the home.
You must be a plumber. The tank i replaced 5 years ago was made by STATE and was installed new in 1981. Yep, it lasted 39 years. Not bad for a natural gas heater.
My hero! Thanks for sharing the video. Definitely going to do this!
Thank you, so glad it was helpful.
Tanks with electric heating elements will also have a sacrificial anode that should be replaced periodically as it protects your elements by corroding first rather than your elements corroding.
Gas has an anode as well.
Instantly went to Amazon to get one. I've wanted to do this for a the last few months to my hybrid electric hot water heater we installed 3 years ago. Thanks for the info!
Thank you for bring this to my attention,what are the nossels you used and where do you get them?
Thank you for this and all your videos! Any thoughts about the Corro-Protec powered anode? Apparently it’s the last anode rod you’ll ever need!
Have the same type of passive (non-electric) water heater. Tank has never been clean and looking forward in trying this because of recent issues with hot water.
How would this compare to just back flushing the drain valve with a water hose using a double female hose bib adapter? I've used this method for slow draining water heaters before. And best to change out the cheap plastic drains with 3/4" ball valves when installing new.
Another good tip is to replace your drain valve with a full ball valve. Give much more room for the sediment to come out.
Until someone walks by and accidentally kicks the ball valve and it's wide open, draining onto your floor.
Can you post a link to an example of what you said? full ball valve? Noob here.
@@Philadelphia19147 Maybe installing a cap with it would help.
You need bursts of compressed air to stir up the sediment. Using a bike pump or an electric tire inflator doesn't provide enough pressure.
Pressure or velocity? My bicycle pump, a zefal brand, pumps my bicycle tires to 120 psi
@@pootthatbak2578 Velocity. You're using the air pressure to agitate to the sediment so that it will mix with the water and flow out the valve.
I replaced my electric water heater when it was 33 years old. It was not leaking. It had never been flushed. When I cut it open, it was severly corroded, but no sediment. I live in a small town which gets it's water supply from Lake Huron.
I replaced the anode and one of the heating elements on my now 25 year old water heater last year along with flushing it. Next time I want to add a powered anode and full port drain valve. For flushing I leave the cold water on while shutting off the circuit and let it drain outside.
I use an air compressor and a faucet splitter.
There is always a bit of sediment that gets stirred up when refilling tank, let it sit (if possible) before running the hot water, then either remove the aerators at the faucets or take them off later and clean them.
What do you think about changing the sacrificial anode? Is that helpful or a waste of time and money?
One of the things I do with a water heater is remove the crappy valves they put in place and thread in a piece of 3/4 stainless with a full flow ball valve. After that I do something similar using my air compressor but I have a water distribution block and just use a simple air hose "blower" nozzle with a rubber tip. Place that against the water distribution block and open the valve, apply air and then when the tank is pressurized close the distribution valve. Open the tank drain valve up and the stuff blasts out.
A few cycles of adding water (especially if the tank has one of the "swirl systems" for the cold water) and air and draining with the pressure and the tank is clean.
I will eventually replace my water heater with a hybrid/heat pump but that isn't in the budget yet. This one came with the house, was initially plumbed backwards, cranked to the max, and needed the elements replaced (electric) but I suspect it would be good for a lot longer. Also no clue how old the water heater is but the energy guide is dated 2007 so I suspect between then and 2010.
In some places after the water is heated and leaves the tank it will clog the copper pipe with magnesium which is in the water... Slow hot water check the first foot of pipe coming off the W.H. also with hi eff washer check the water inlet where the rubber hose connects....
hmmm, very neat device. How about ion-exchange water softening to pre-process the water in the system?
Yes that definitely make a big difference but of course adds some maintenance and cost, but I guess everything does
You could likely take a 6" long piece of 2x2 and position it on the tank near the elements, then on the back end of the board, use an air hammer on lower power, or even a sds drill in the chisel mode with a flat face bit and likely dislodge much more stuff off of the walls than the air bubbles.
It would be a good idea to take out the strainers in your faucets when you turn everything back on. The debris in the pipes you have disturbed will clog them. After a time of flushing the system, put them back in.
Just turn off the breaker to the water heater and run hot water in the tub until it gets cold. No need to wait hours for the water in the water heater to cool down.
Will doing that replace the need to flush out the tank the other way or does it still need to be done? Thank you in advance
You could also use powered anode rod to help further prevent the sediment. Look up Corro-Protec powered anode rods.
Only $160!!!
The anode rods weren't too expensive on Amazon the last time I looked. I purchased the ones that are in flexible linkd so you can actually get it in there because of the low overhead in the basement. Once that anode rod is gone, that'll accelerate the breakdown inside.
Hi. Very useful video. How long did your water heater run before you flushed it ?
wounder if it will work wit the spout you had and shot clr in to it then drain the tank
Just as a water softener will remove mineral deposits in your pipes and dishwasher, will it not also break up similar things in your hot water heater?
Chris, you do the neatest stuff!! I’m definitely going to check this out! Changed my water heater just over a year ago and need to purge it for the first time. Have you ever thought of reviewing one of those electronic anodes??
You always upload videos on things that I'm getting ready to do 😂
Probably should replace the annode rod as well.
Any aussies have this outlet on their tanks? Not sure if this is a US thing but all my properties do not have this threaded outlet
Watching your video, I figured it's a cheap investment and ordered on before the video was over.
I appreciate your faith in the video. My only regret with this thing is that I didn't invent it! Its patented and brilliant! I hope you like it as much as I do.
@@SilverCymbal I hope your T least getting an Amazon commission.
The slow water before the air was introduced was not due to blockage most likely. You turned off the cold water intake to the tank and the draining of the water created a vacuum as it drained. You specifically kept the overflow valve closed so it could not let air in there either. Adding the air pressurized the tank, eliminating the vacuum, and allowing the water to drain more freely. I like this product and I think it would work perfectly for a maintenance every 3 - 6 months in a hard water location like mine. The first time you hear a pop from your hot water heater, use this device in other words. But for built up sediment that has baked in to a cake, I use a different device that has a snake that goes in to the tank and breaks up the sediment which flows out. (Requires draining of the tank to put the device in place of the hose bib, so much more involved.) But after using the other device, using this one will keep you in clean fine shape I am guessing. Good review and thanks. I will probably be getting one.
I agree that going from vacuum to pressurized was likely the cause for the increased flow. Also, opening the overflow valve would allow the system to burp as the tank refills. 🤓
What's the name of the "snake device" you have? We get the cakes here too. 🤔
Great video! I installed my first water heater less than 2 years ago. We always had our hot water from our boiler. I'm definitely making this purchase. I don't know if you're familiar with the Corro-Protec to permenantly replace your anode and extend the life of your hot water heater by 20 years! Vutb that's another great device!
Can you (for electric) take out the lower heating element and use a electric pressure washer?
flushed my hot water heater awhile ago. Had a terrible plastic drain valve on it, replaced that with a ball valve.
Tried to change the anode rod too, but i was moving the whole hot watwr heater trying to break it loose. 😿
could you do a video on changing the anode rod too?
Link to the hose and shrader valve ?
How does this compare to the Turbo Tank Cleaner?
is air better than the one with the flexible metal snake on the end that really breaks up the sediment. Also if you/I/We buy the powered Anode Rod would we even need to do this at all, ever?
Hi sir
Would u please reply mw about the name of the part by return?
Thanks
Silas
2/11/24
I have tankless that I descale ever year to 18 months. I've had it now for 20 years. One reason like tankles
Agreed the tankless ones can be very cool, but the descaling is really important. I did a video at my friends where we descaled his: ruclips.net/video/YNBdtC9jjLA/видео.html
Drained mine for the first time in 8 years. Was surprised I didn’t get much sediment or water color change…
That’s because everytime you use your hot water the tank gets flushed by the cold water. The cold water pipe goes to the bottom of the tank so it’s a natural flush.
I have one water heater from 2003 and one from 2004. Never been flushed. My dads died at the 25 year mark. So m good with that.
I bet you could just use a blow nozzle to accomplish the same thing.
It seems that my Maytag 50-gallon electric water heater (HE2950T) has two anodes in it (a primary anode and a secondary anode). I tried searching for replacements, but it appears that Maytag no longer manufactures them. Do you think the replacement process would be the same for both the primary and secondary anodes? And since genuine anodes may not be available, what could be better alternatives?
Fascinating, but won't pulsing the cold water valve (quick on and off) do the same thing as to stir the sediments ?
Yes, that will remove some, but if that really worked you would be doing that every time the tank was used and yet many tanks have a huge amount of debris. I think some of the benefit is that when the sir goes in it must stir it up differently. Maybe the air breaks stuff apart. I didnt think anything would come out of my clean tank but it did the trick for sure.
@@SilverCymbal Makes sense ! Thanks for sharing !
Can this be used on a RV water heater?
If you add a Corro-Protec Anode Rod for Hot Water Heater to your take you could possibly make your it last for 20 plus years. I couldn't possibly be happier with mine. They are sold on EBay and Amazon and are described on RUclips.
I made something similar to this before. This looks way nicer
Harbor Freight needs to carry this asap.
Interesting, will have to look into this. 😜🖖
Thank you for the great video. I was going to buy one of these and would have paid $15-$20 at the most. When I saw $40 I thought I'll just make one for about $4.00 or less
One could just take a garden hose and blow air into the end of it.
Why is it necessary to shut off the water supply into the tank? Wouldn’t keeping the water on help?
Caution: If you don't keep a hot water faucet open adding air could over-pressurize the tank! I still may try it next time it is due.