How to convert energy smart water heater to ordinary water heater:

How to convert energy smart water heater to ordinary water heater

Currently called 'heaters with electronic thermostat,' or 'electronic display,' made by AO Smith , also sold by Craftmaster, State etc.
This page shows how to convert the electronic heater into ordinary heater by replacing electronic thermostat and thermistor with generic thermostats, and re-wire as needed. Power is turned off while doing this work.

Energy smart was originally designed to integrate with smart grid, but smart grid (via demand response program) has not materialized for most areas 2022.

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Use only 600 volt wire.
Lamp cord, extension cords are not rated 600 volt.
Use copper wire only. Aluminum wire is fire risk and should be avoided or installed by professional.
30 amp breaker use 10 gauge /
120-240 volt 30 amp outlet can be installed on 30 amp breaker only/ use 10 gauge wire ... cannot be connected to 15-20-40 amp breaker.

Orange/ #10 gauge wire, with ground ... 30 amp capacity. Safe maximum: 30 x 80% = 24 amps.
Buy:
10-2 gauge/ 30 amp
10-3/ 30 amp
Southwire electric tools

Yellow 12 gauge 20 amp
120 volt 20 amp outlet can be installed on 20 amp breaker, but not 15 amp breaker/ use 12 ga wire.
... cannot be connected to 30-40 amp breaker. 1

Yellow/ #12 gauge wire, with ground ... 20 amp capacity. Safe maximum 16 amps.
Buy:
12-2 gauge/ 20 amp
12-3/ 20 amp

NMB is house wiring
UF is underground
Rolls of stranded wire
HOOK UP Wires

Electrically insulated tools
When removing insulation from wire, do NOT score or put cuts on surface of copper wire. Doing so increases resistance and heat on wire and creates possible weak point.
Buy tools:
KLEIN TOOLS
Wire strippers at Amazon
Electric Wire Stripping Machine
Linesman pliers
Utility knife at Amazon

Electrical tools must be insulated.
Always best to disconnect power, but insulation failure, lack of proper grounding, grounded neutral, lack of GFCI, out-of-code wiring, generator operating without transfer switch, and other problems still pose a risk to anyone working on electric power ... even when breaker is off.

Buy:
Electrician tools kits
KLEIN TOOLS
Tools kits
IRWIN tools
KNIPEX

Telephone cable knife
Low Voltage Mounting Bracket for Telephone

2016 energy smart

Why convert to regular water heater?
1) So water heater can work with any voltage/ connect to 120 volt generator How to connect water heater to generator
2) So you can convert water heater to 120 volts for slow off-peak heating How to convert water heater to 120 volts How to wire water heater thermostats
3) Convert to EZ same day repair using generic parts from hardware store How to replace water heater thermostat
4) Less vulnerability to surge/ electronics can blow out with simple power outage How to wire whole house surge protector
5) EZ diagnosis of problems .... How to troubleshoot electric water heater
6) No app, no sign-in, no privacy invasion, no pop-ups.... just a plain simple ez-to-fix water heater
7) You can rewire for simultaneous or off-peak Read off peak water heater thermostats
8) So you can integrate two water heaters using same 30 amp breaker Read two water heaters
9) So you can integrate with solar Convert water heater to solar DC power
10) So you can add a timer without burning out water heater electronics Water heater timers

Older style energy smart : element and thermistor

Note: the wires for thermistor (thermostat) are small.

A thermistor is a heat sensitive variable resister. A change in water temperature changes the thermistor resistance (measured in ohms).
-The energy smart control board interprets change in resistance as a change in temperature and uses information to activate and deactivate call for heat. This system requires proprietary control board for operation, and is susceptible to surge and voltage anomalies.

Ordinary water heater thermostat is mechanical bi-metal switch that bends with heat, and connects and disconnects two points to open and close the circuit.
To convert: remove the thermistors, add ordinary thermostat, and re-wire for non-simultaneous operation.

Note: all energy smart heaters are non-simultaneous
Ordinary residential water heaters are non-simultaneous

Older energy smart

Cut back foam insulation with wallpaper knife/ wear eye protection.
Use same elements that come with tank.
Yellow and blue wires going to upper elements from top of tank do not need to be replaced. Blue wire going to lower part of tank may be undersized #14 gauge.

The problem with older energy smart: the wires are stranded and not solid copper. Stranded wire is fire risk if not crimped to terminal. Do not put stranded wire under screw plates on thermostats. Do not solder stranded wire ... the heat on wire will melt solder, and cause fire. Use same terminals that are connected to end of yellow and blue wires.

Leave small black and red wires in place ... they will not pull out because of foam insulation ... cut back small wires and cap off.

The orange wire from top of tank to upper compartment is not needed unless you want to rewire for simultaneous operation (not recommended) or redundant operation (no advantage).
So the orange wire inside upper compartment needs to be cut off .... but the end is stranded, not solid copper.
Cap off extra orange wire at top of heater so a short circuit cannot energize wire.
Since the orange is not long enough to reach right side of thermostat ... do NOT run wire over top of thermostats or elements. Instead use a wire connector and jumper orange wire with short piece of 10 gauge solid copper wire ... do NOT use stranded wire for jumper wire ... use solid copper wire only. Put the solid copper wire under screw terminal on thermostat ... never put stranded wire under a thermostat or element screw ... it will heat up, splay apart and come loose ... cause arcing and connection failure, melting, short etc.

Buy:
Wallpaper knife
Yellow 12-10 gauge terminal
Wire strippers
Energy Smart

Resources:
How to wire thermostats

Typical water heater set at 120°F ±10% accuracy
Bath shower hot-tub temperature 104°F

Terminals:
Crimp terminals onto stranded wire

Buy:
Crimping tool kit
Blue for 16-14 wire
Yellow for 12-10 wire
Ratcheting Crimper

Blue terminals for 16-14 gauge wire at Amazon
Yellow 12-10 gauge female terminal 16 pcs

lower element on energy smart water heater

Cautions for older energy smart
Jon, an electromechanical engineer, emailed saying that 'his' energy smart had #14 blue wire between upper and lower elements.
He replaced the blue wire with #10 wire. The new wire can be pulled through the insulation after drilling a hole through the insulation.

I took the photograph on the right that shows lower element on the energy smart at Lowes in 2009. The blue wire is definitely smaller than the orange wire.
What does this mean? If it is #14, then it would get warm when lower element is energized ... leading to inefficiency.
What should you do? Replace with #10 solid copper is best plan.
If you leave the #14 blue wire in place, then it is important not to clip off the crimped end on wire, and use it 'as is.'

Jon was further worried about the stranded wire used inside the energy smart. In his role as an engineer, he performed tests on crimp terminals, and that terminals crimped by hand are not reliable, and can fail.
My response: Stranded wire is a hazard, and cannot be put under a screw plate without risk of failure. As a result, crimped terminals must be used with stranded wire.
What should you do?

There are three solutions for stranded wire on the older energy smart:

1) Keep the existing factory-supplied crimp terminal in place ... and install under screw terminals on element and new thermostat.
2) Snip off the factory crimp terminal and connect the stranded wire to short length of solid copper wire ... cover the connection tightly with twist on connector ... then put the solid copper wire under screw terminal.
3) Hand crimp a terminal onto the stranded wire ... crimp it on very firm ... and pack insulation around it tightly so it won't move.

Remember the enemy of any electrical installation is movement.

Thermostat Clip is needed for lower thermostat
Clip to hold thermostat/ Thermostat mounting bracket
Bradford White part # 239-44479-00/

Bradford White part # 265-51046-00
Rheem AM23557

The new thermostat MUST sit flat against tank wall or it will not read correct temperature.... thermostat cannot be placed loosely inside the compartment. The clip will hold thermostat firmly in place.

Buy:
Thermostat clip
Adapter kit with thermostat clip

	Display EMS control on front
	2016 energy smart with EMS control on front Regular thermostat can be installed in place of electronic thermostat Simple re-wire and 2 thermostats is all that is needed. I used knife, hammer and screwdriver to remove thermostat.
Cut insulation out of the way using a utility knife with sharp blade ... .... do NOT throw away insulation ... The insulation must be put back when finished. If insulation is missing after heater is reassembled, then thermostat is exposed to room temperatures and will not read correct temperature. Wires have to be disconnected, and cut as needed. Wires on electronic thermostat can be loosened with screwdriver or cut off ... the electronic thermostat is not going to be re-used... pry out electronic thermostat using misc tools ... for example, hit upward using hammer and screwdriver. Do not cut off wires inside the heater too short. If wires are too short, then it is okay to add a length of 10 gauge wire and connect two pieces using wire nut or wire connector. Use wire stripper to trim back insulation. Best not to use utility knife to strip wire insulation ... cuts on surface of electric wire can cause excess heat, and possible point of failure. If wires are too short ... do NOT lay them across the new thermostat. Add length of wire and route the wire above or below the thermostat. Note: the wires on this model heater are solid copper. Do not use compression terminals with solid copper ... solid copper wire can be put under the screw terminals on new thermostat and will work great. Use compression terminals ONLY if wire is stranded. The thermostat bracket or thermostat clip on upper part of tank should work fine for new thermostat. When finished, the new thermostat MUST sit flat and tight against tank wall. Insert thermostat under thermostat bracket and then wiggle back and forth to ensure it sits flat.

Do NOT use stranded wire to make conversion Larger image	Wiring diagrams for NEW energy smart with control on front Issues: Remove upper thermostat and upper thermistor located above upper element Must buy upper thermostat and thermostat mounting bracket as shown below The upper thermostat must be covered with insulation when finished Remove lower thermistor located above lower element Must buy upper thermostat and thermostat mounting bracket as shown below The lower thermostat must be covered with insulation when finished The grounding bracket may need to be removed to install bracket to hold mechanical thermostat The mechanical thermostats must sit flat against the tank wall when finished (just like the thermistor must sit flat against tank wall to read correct water temperature) All thermistors and thermostats read approximate temperature. If you have foam insulation... then foam insulation is difficult to cut off precisely All thermostats and elements must be covered with insulation when finished Keep the elements that are provided with tank/ no need to change elements DO NOT USE STRANDED WIRE under screw plates/ crimp terminals onto stranded wire then put terminals under screw plates/ otherwise, use only solid copper wire under screw plates. Reason: stranded wire gets loose under screw terminals when wire gets hot. Solid copper does not. Terminals do not get loose. Loose wires start to arc, causing terminal failure and melted parts. Resources: How to wire thermostats How to replace thermostats Add another thermostat to electric water heater How to test elements How replace elements How to test if power is turned off
Larger image
Lower element 2019 energy smart water heater 1) The thermostat clip on lower part of tank is slightly wrong for holding the replacement thermostat. Alterations or innovations might be possible without buying new clip. Thermostat must sit flat against tank and be secured so it does not move. Movement is the enemy of electrical installations and can cause shorts and failures. Buy: Thermostat clip Adapter kit with thermostat clip 2) The insulation needs to be cut away to access the compartment effectively. The insulation and cover plate MUST be re-installed. If thermostat is not covered with insulation and sitting flat against tank, then it will mis-read temperatures and not function as expected ... usually it will cause overheated water. 3) Since at least 2009, wires inside most 240 volt, 4500 watt residential electric water heaters is 12 gauge. Wires coming to water heater from the circuit breaker (overcurrent protection) are required to be larger 10 gauge, with a 30 amp breaker. 12 gauge wire inside the heater is adequate, and does NOT need to be replaced ... however 12 gauge creates inefficiencies since the downsized wire will produce more resistance against the large current of electrons (amperage) that is getting pushed through the matrix (atomic structure) of the wire by 240 volts. Resistance is like friction that causes heat. Higher resistance means more heat loss, which means a trickle of wasted energy that you pay for.

See larger	Electric water heater thermostats are interchangeable Each works with your water heater Temperature for household use Set water heater thermostat temperature to 120°-125° Manufacturer setting was 135° in 2012, and 125° after 2015 to meet new energy standards. Hot tub = temperature 105° Typical shower-bath = 110°F Buy90-150 degree F for residential tank: Water heater thermostats at Amazon Rheem thermostats More thermostats 89T short/ dual-element thermostat All therm-o-disc products Resources: Therm-o-disc 59T-66T sell sheet/ pdf Therm-o-disc thermostats Difference between Rheem thermostats
	Thermostats Therm-o-disc 59T is a generic mechanical thermost. Minimum temperature 90° Maximum 150° High Limit trips at 170° All values +/- 5 Buy 90-150° F for residential tank: Rheem UV11698 Rheem SP11698 Camco 08163 Aprom / 90-150° Water heater thermostats Camco thermostats More thermostats Resources: Therm-o-disc 59T-66T sell sheet/ pdf Therm-o-disc thermostats Difference between Rheem thermostats
	Thermostat protectors/ for therm-o-disc upper and lower thermostats Terminal protectors for therm-o-disc Does not fit Apcom style All thermostats are interchangeable Buy Camco 08113 Upper thermostat shield 08103 Lower thermostat shield 08130 kit with both thermostats and shields
Larger image	Thermostat and element must be covered Cover, insulation and protector are necessary so thermostat can read correct temperature. Thermostats exposed to room temperature will misread temperature and cause overheating. Thermostat must sit flat against tank.
	Foam-insulated tank Foam is used to fill cavity between inner steel tank and outer tank shell The foam fits very tight against wire so wires cannot be replaced. Start with 3/8" standard drill bit to drill through steel top. Then use 36" drill bit to drill through foam Drill through top of tank near wiring cavities Keep drill bit near outer edge of tank shell Buy 36" drill bits Fish bit Resource: How to test water heater wires
Buy: Fish bit

Non-fused safety switch
Cuts power to both legs of 240V circuit.
Rated for indoor-outdoor.
-3 Hp motor, 17 amps, use 30-60 amp safety switch
-30 amp water heater, use 30-60 amp
Since water heater is on a breaker, then non-fusible is fine
Buy from my affiliate links:
2-pole outdoor / 60 amp/ non-fusible
2-pole outdoor / 60 amp/ non-fusible
2-pole outdoor / 30 amp/ non-fusible

2-pole indoor / 30 amp/ fusible
2-pole indoor / 30 amp/ fusible
2-pole indoor / 30 amp/ fusible

Heavy duty safety switches at Amazon

Alternate method
Re-wire water heater for PID
Insert probe near lower thermostat.
Position against tank wall and cover w insulation

Wire thermostat and element as shown
240 volt line for water heater MUST be routed through ECO located on upper thermostat.
Why? Because ECO is safety device that will cut power to element in event of overheating.

PID is powered by 120 volt for example.
Hot and neutral are needed for PID.
Set temperature controller program.
When temperature probe senses cold water, then PID activates contactor
Contactor switches 30 amp water heater circuit, and lower element tuns on.
Lower element keeps tank hot.
This wiring design, both hot wires to element are cut off by contactor.
Do NOT connect 240 volt 30 amp water heater circuit to PID... must use contactor

Buy
PID with relay output and thermocouple/ ITC-100HR/Temperature range 50～250ºC
PID Temperature controllers
Digital temperature controller
30 amp contactors

Solid State Relay Board for Arduino

Resources:
Contactors
Select breaker and wire size
Add another thermostat to water heater

Replace short water heater nipple with brass or stainless steel nipple
Use 6 wraps of teflon tape on threads.
6 wraps is standard for all water heater connections, including TP valve and anode rod etc

Buy
3/4" x 6" brass nipple
3/4" x 6 stainless nipple (not recommended for softener)
Pipe threaders

Resources
How to maintain water heater

Replacement parts & maintenance
	Use ordinary 4500 watt foldback element for older and newer energy smart Buy 4500 watt lifetime at Amazon 4500 watt at Amazon 1-1/2" socket
	Tank rinser Works with ball valve Buy Tank rinser at Amazon Resources: How to replace water heater drain valve How to clean sediment out of water heater How to replace thermostat How to replace element How to maintain water heater Identify water heater valves Advantages/ disadvantages/ Install mixing valve
Prevent rusted water heater/ Inspect and replace anode rod Applies to gas and electric heaters Anode rod prevents steel tank from rusting Remove and Inspect anode each 1-3 years Standard hex head aluminum anode rod located in separate port on top of tank. Inspect and replace anode rod each 2-5 years to prevent tank from rusting Buy: Aluminum-zinc for longest protection Magnesium for odor control Buy Zinc for odor control Buy anodes 1-1/16 socket Resource How to check anode
	Advantages of power anode: almost 100% Solution for tank odor, 100% solution for rusted tank when electric power is ON, tank will not rust out, anode can be moved to next water heater, can be installed on most water heaters up to 80 gallon including energy smart, hybrid, some power vent models .... works for gas and electric water heaters, includes LED that indicates if power anode working. Buy: Power anode rod
	Test pressure Gas and electric Pressure over 80 psi can damage water heater and damage plumbing pipes. Faucets do not last as long, water heater can be damaged Put BTG100 or similar gauge on water heater drain valve. If pressure is high, then install pressure reducing valve. Buy pressure gauges at Amazon Water pressure gauges Watts telltale Water Pressure Test Gauge, 276H300 Telltale pressure gauge is left in place for a day, and marks the highest pressure so user can tell if there are pressure spikes that are causing TP valve to leak water, or other possible problems Resource: Test for low and high pressure on water heater Pressure reducing valve and expansion tank
	What if tank is not working? Read 'repaired water heater is not working'

Buy
Tools
Milwaukee
DEWALT
Black and Decker
Stanley
SKIL
Makita
Porter-Cable
Bosch

Irwin Hand tools
Klein hand tools
Fluke electrical testing
Dremel hobby tools

Campbell Hausfeld air powered
Tekton automotive

Powerbuilt automotive
Saws and saw blades

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