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Repair Water heater valve

Pressure switch
Thermocouple & Thermopile
Dip tube
Anode
Troubleshoot gas heater
Troubleshoot electric heater
Water hammer
Low hot water pressure
Gas control valve
Resource:
Troubleshoot and replace by type of gas control valves
Troubleshoot gas water heater
Troubleshoot FVIR system

How to light water heater
How to adjust temperature


Use pipe to remove gas control valve
How to replace water heater gas control valve thermostat
Do not remove valve from tank to replace Honeywell gas controls
How to replace Honeywell gas control valve
Bradford White gas water heater  Turn off gas valve Gas shut off valve

Buy
Brass Gas ball valve at Amazon

Resource:
Emergency steps for leaking water heater
How to install gas water heater
Water heater safety precautions

Ball valve Ball valve is OFF when handle is perpendicular across gas or water line

All ball valves are same
Same for gas and water lines.
1/4 rotation needed to turn ON or OFF
When handle is perpendicular to line, then valve is OFF
Buy:/ water
3/4" ball valve at Amazon
Brass ball valve
Buy:/ gas
Gas ball valve
Brass drain valve    Water heater drain cap  
Drain valve

Use hose cap to solve dripping drain valve
How to troubleshoot and replace drain valve

Buy:
Buy replacement brass drain valve at Amazon
Brass hose caps at Amazon

water heater ball valve
Water heater drain valve
Replace Water heater drain valve with ball valve
Easier flush and clean out
Full open position lets you insert 1/4" copper pipe flushing tool

Resource:
How to clean sediment out of water heater
How to replace drain valve
How to flush water heater/ steps3/4" ball valve at Amazon
Brass ball valve

Buy: parts to make this drain valve
Dielectric nipples at Amazon
3/4" ball valve at Amazon


3/4" pipe to 3/4" garden hose
Flush tool
tank rinser
Plastic tank rinser
Works with ball valve shown above

Buy:
Tank rinser at Amazon
Resource:
How to replace drain valve with ball valve
Water heater flush tool


Make a flush tool
Works with ball valve
36" aluminum tube or plastic tube connects to garden hose.
Remove drain valve to insert tool -or- install full-flow ball valve shown above
Tube inserts through ball valve opening.
Make tool using 3/8" flexible copper pipe
Buy:
3/4" Hose barb adapter at Amazon
Hose adapter to 1/4" compression
No-rust hose shut off at Amazon
3/8" clear hose at hardware
Hose clamp at hardware
sharkbite ball valve

Sharkbite ball valve for pex water line
Hot or cold installation
Push fitting... push pipe into fitting
Pex polybutylene pipe is popular for some installations because it is quick and easy, reliable, not overly vulnerable to low temperatures, can be retrofit into old construction with minimal effort, can be installed in new home very quickly, and is low cost

Buy:
Sharkbite ball valve at Amazon
Sharkbite water heater connection
anti-siphon valve Anti-siphon valve/ attach to outdoor spigot
Install on each outdoor spigot. Then attach garden hose to valve.
Prevent water from being drawn into home from outdoor hose
Each time water is turned on inside home, the pressure from running water can draw water into plumbing pipe from garden hose
Never leave end of hose in a swimming pool, pond, or puddle of water

Buy:
Anti-siphon valve at Amazon
TP valveTP valve / temperature-pressure valve
Mechanical 2 in 1 protection against excessive pressure and excessive temperature. TP valve will release water when conditions exceed TP valve rating, causing cold water to enter tank. This reduces both pressure and temperature. TP valve automatically closes when emergency conditions are over. Lift and gently lower TP valve once each year.
Residential water heaters are pressure tested to 300 pounds per square inch (PSI) and have a working pressure of 150 PSI.  T&P valve will open when the pressure inside the tank exceeds 150 PSI, allowing pressure to vent safely. T&P valve will open if water temperature at top of tank reaches 210°F which is maximum allowable temperature for any water heater. TP valve must be rated for more BTU than tank rating so release of hot water can outpace ability of tank to heat more hot water.... standard TP valve will have a 'steam rating' of 100,000 BTU. If tank is rated more BTU, for example 150,000 BTU as seen on label located on side of unit, then a TP must exceed BTU rating of tank.

Raise TP leverBuy: TP valves:
Replacement TP valves at Amazon
Teflon tape at Amazon
Resource:
How to troubleshoot and  replace TP valve
TP valve code
Pressure gauge on drain valve/ and compare with outdoor spigot/
Reasons why:
1) Problem with low water pressure
Use pressure gauge on drain valve, and outdfoor spigot to tank pressure and household pressure. This will indicate if pressure problem is before water heater, at water heater, or after. Water pressure cannot exceed 80 psi (50-60 psi is typical). High pressures can cause TP to leak water.
Resource:
5 Steps to determine low hot water pressure
Tank pressureTP valve leaking lot of hot water

2) Pressure over 80psi can damage water heater/ pipes/ plumbing/ pumps etc
Can also shorten life of plumbing fixtures, and faucet cartridges
Can shorten life of water well pump, etc

3) High incoming water pressure can push hot water out of tank quickly, so it appears the heater is running short of
Hot

Solution for high pressure: install pressure reducing valve, along with expansion tank.
Buy:
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

Buy:
Pressure gauges at Amazon
Temperature pressure gauge
pressure gauge  
Permanent pressure gauge
Install Permanent pressure gauge on cold water line
Pressure over 80 psi can damage tank and shorten life of plumbing fixtures
1/4" iron pipe thread

Buy:
Pressure gauges at Amazon
Temperature-pressure gauge
Temperature pressure gauge at Amazon
3/4" to 1/4" brass adapter
sharkbite pressure gauge
Permanent pressure gauge
Pressure gauge for Pex pipe
Pressure over 80 psi can damage tank and shorten life of plumbing fixtures

Buy:
Pressure gauges at Amazon
Sharkbite pressure gauge at Amazon
temperature gauge

Temperature gauge
Permanent install on hot pipe leaving water heater.
Temperatures over 135° can burn and scald skin.
Higher temps pose greater risk. scald chart .jpg
Suggested temperature by usage .jpg
140° is used to kill bacteria, most residential water heater thermostats have high temp range 150°, while commercial tanks can deliver 180°.
Elderly and very young, or people with sensation loss in extremities may not respond to danger before injury.
Temperature increases pressure: FYI: for a closed system: Water confined to a storage tank or piping system, when subjected to a temperature rise of 10°F (increasing from 75° to 85°), increases pressure from 50 psi to 250 psi ... Normal system without check valves etc: Water expands approximately 2% in volume for a 100°F temperature rise (from 40°F to 140°F)
Buy:
Winters Temperature gauge
Temperature-pressure gauge for boiler
1/2" to 1/4" brass adapter
Pocket thermometer

Use brass adapter... stainless can deteriorate if water is softened
Reduce pressure with expansion tank
Expansion tankPressure over 80 psi can damage water heater and pipes over time.
150 PSI maximum allowable working pressure on residential water heater, but water pressure increases when heated.
Install expansion tank anywhere on cold water line, between any check valve or pressure reducing valve and water heater
Hot water will expand back into water line and then into expansion tank, preventing long-term damaging to pipes and fixtures and water heater

Closed system: Water confined to a storage tank or piping system, when subjected to a temperature rise of 10°F (increasing from 75° to 85°), increases pressure from 50 psi to 250 psi.
Normal system without check valves etc: Water expands approximately 2% in volume for a 100°F temperature rise (from 40°F to 140°F) ....40 gallon water heater, water being heated to its thermostat setting will end up expanding to about 40.53 gallons.

Buy:
Expansion tanks at Amazon

Resource:
Expansion Tank Installation pdf
Closed system / pdf
Pressure reducing valve Pressure reducing valve
High pressure over 80psi can damage water heater and plumbing
Install expansion tank, and/or pressure reducing valve
Pressure reducing valve is installed on cold water supply line to regulate and stabilize flow pressure

FYI: for a closed system: Water confined to a storage tank or piping system, when subjected to a temperature rise of 10°F (increasing from 75° to 85°), increases pressure from 50 psi to 250 psi ... Normal system without check valves etc: Water expands approximately 2% in volume for a 100°F temperature rise (from 40°F to 140°F)

Buy:
Pressure reducing valves
Pressure regulating valves at Amazon
Resource:
Watts pressure reducing valves/ pdf
Measure water pressure over time
pressure loggerFor people wanting to know about water pressure spikes over time, a pressure logger can be used.
This can be useful if water heater or plumbing fixtures fail frequently due to high water pressure.
Always check the obvious first:
-Water softener can deplete the anode rod, resulting in rusted tank and early demise of heater.
-Stray current corrosion, where electrical items are grounded to water pipes that connect to water heater cause water heater failure..
-Check with neighbors if they have similar plumbing failures due to suspected high water pressure.
-Check for closed system, where home has check valve or other restricting valve installed on water line, causing extremely high  water pressures when tank heats water. Hot water expands when heated. There is almost no compression with water, so pressure backs up into water lines. Normally pressure from heating water is pushed back into the main line on street, or back into the pressure tank on water well. Check valve or one-way valve such as pressure reducing valve will caused closed system, requiring expansion tank.

Buy:
Water pressure logger
Pressure loggers
Pressure and temperature logger

Resources:
Read about closed system
Anode rods
Amtrol Pressuriser is designed to increase water pressure in single and multi-family dwellings. The pump, digital control and tank are engineered specifically to boost city water pressure by up to 50 PSIG Pressure increasing valve
Low pressure less than 20-30 psi can cause plumbing problems.
Tankless water heater might not activate
Home might not be able to run water on upper floors.
Resource:
How to increase pressure using pressure reducing valve
water meterHousehold water meter
A main water meter is approved by the water supplier and connected directly from the water main located as close as possible to the properties’ title boundary.
Only approved contractors are allowed to install household Water Meter that measures usage from supplier

However, you can install water meter on outdoor hose or other location inline, or portable on your water supply without getting approval from the water supplier.
This can assist you for billing a rental located on property, or to check if the main water meter is accurate
Buy:
Water meter/ flow meter
Water meter with digital output
Water meters at Amazon
Resource:
Water meter installations
main water shut off Main household shut off valve
Open meter box. Dig down in soil on house side of meter.
Rotate valve 1/4 turn so handle is perpendicular across line.
Use water key or channel locks etc
Emergency steps to turn off leaking water heater
Leaking water heater

Buy water key at Amazon
Water keys at Amazon
water heater shut off valve Gate valve or ball valve/ Shut off
Installed on cold side of water heater
Size 3/4"
Install on cold water side.
Open hot tap and let run for a few moments. then feel both pipes on top of water heater. Cold side will feel cooler.

Resource:
How to solder pipe
Buy:
3/4" ball valve at Amazon
Brass ball valve

Shop Amazon - Industrial and scientific

automatic water heater shut off valve Automatic water heater shut off valve
Automatically shuts off water in case of water leak
Set detector in water heater drain pan
Plug transformer into 120Volt outlet
Lead free brass

Buy:
Water heater shut-off at Amazon
Floodsafe shut-off
Water detectors at Amazon
Resource:
Onsite Pro FS1NPT manual
Watts automatic shut off valve sell sheet
Watts automatic shut off valve manual
Backflow preventer Backflow preventer valve
Not used on water heaters, but can be part of household plumbing
Backflow preventer is required for connecting irrigation system or sprinkler system to household water pipes. This prevents indoor water use from drawing water from sprinkler pipes back into household water pipes.
Swimming pool, or outdoor ponds: If water hose is left in pool or pond or puddle of water, then water use inside home can draw pond water back through water hose and into home water pipes. Install backflow preventer
Buy:
Backflow preventer
Back pressure relief valve Back-pressure relief valve
Relieves pressure when unit is heating, on plumbing systems where a check valve is required on cold water supply line. To be plumbed over open-site drain.

Buy:
Back pressure relief valves at Amazon
Swing check valve Swing check valve
One way valve: Lets water pass one direction, but not other direction
Why is this important?
Recirculation system loop can draw cold water into hot pipe causing cold flashes during shower.
Bad swing check valve can cause crossover: Crossover
Swimming pool, or outdoor ponds: If water hose is left in pool or pond or puddle of water, then water use inside home can draw this water back through water hose and into home water pipes. Install backflow preventer shown above.
Install this type check valve in horizontal position
Buy:
sharkbite check valve
Swing check valve at Amazon

Install swing check valve
check valve Check valve for sump pump
Not used for water heater
One way flow. Stops water from flowing other direction.

This type Check valve is installed on sump pump drain line so water does not run back into sump
This type valve is not rated for household water lines, and will break loose and cause massive water leak.
Use swing check valve shown above for household pipes
Buy:
Buy check valve at Amazon
2" PVC solvent weld check valve
Recirculation system
Crossover valve
Crossover valve
Recirculation crossover valve
Each recirculation system has one-way crossover valve
The valve comes as part of recirculation system
Take apart and clean with white vinegar
Buy:
Replacement crossover valve

Recirculation pump

Resource:
Water heater recirculation system + troubleshoot

Noisy recirculation pump:
Install air vent to keep air out of pump impeller
Take apart and clean pipes and pump with white vinegar
Air vent/ Eliminate air build-up in water line
Add air vent to high point on plumbing
At high temperatures, gasses are release from water ... release of dissolved gas can create air pockets and air locks in plumbing systems.
The spurts of air or gas when opening a hot water faucet can be attributed to the release of dissolved
gasses in the water.
Eliminate banging pipes caused by air inside line
Frequently found with recirculation systems so pump lasts longer, runs quieter
Air in water heater... You can take care of air or gas that is generated in the heater when heater is unused for weeks at a time by adding a vent at the top.
This is done by installing a "T" in the hot outlet  so that the side port on the "T" is facing sideways.
Now take your hot water to the house from the side port. 
At the top port, bush down so you can install a float vent.
With hard water, the vent will plug periodically: clean with white vinegar
Required with solar installation
Buy:
Air vent/ Float vent
1/2" to 1/4" brass adapter
Use brass adapter... stainless can deteriorate if water is softened
Resource:
Air vent .pdf
Spirovent Spirovent is much higher cost but designed to remove air from a relatively fast flowing stream, while a standard air vent shown above isn't.

Buy:
Spirovent
Resource:
Spirovent pdf
Mixing valve         Mixing valve Mixing valve
Different temperatures for different parts of house
Very hot water for laundry room, regular Hot water for rest of house
Rotate knob to select temperature
Requires separate pluming lines to each area of house
Resource:
How to save hot water using mixing valve
Installation pdf
Buy: from my affiliate links:
Mixing valve kit at Amazon
Water heater mixing valves at Amazon
vacuum relief valve Vacuum relief valve
Vacuum relief valve opens when pressure drops.
Air is admitted into line to prevent tank from collapsing
Required on solar water heater installation and marathon polybutylene tank
Buy:
Buy vacuum relief valve at Amazon

Marathon water heater connections
Marathon Vacuum relief valve
Marathon tank is non-metallic, and might be susceptible to drop in pressure in conditions where steel tank would not be affected
Resource:
Review marathon water heater
Rheem Marathon parts list
Marathon troubleshoot walk-thru/ pdf
"Water hammer is the destructive forces, pounding noises and vibration in a piping system when water flowing through a pipeline is stopped abruptly.
When water hammer occurs, a high intensity pressure wave travels back through the piping system until it reaches a point of some relief.
The shock wave will then surge back and forth between the point of relief and the point of stoppage until the destructive energy is dissipated in the piping system.

Example: 1/2 ˝ copper pipe with 5GPM flow (7.2ft/sec.) – sudden stop.
Pressure rise of approximately 412 psi
Example: 3/4˝ copper pipe with 5GPM flow (3.3ft/sec) – sudden stop.
Pressure rise of approximately 188 psi
Resource
Read about water hammer
Trigger Start Torch
Delime tankless
Larger image

 
Delime tankless yearly
Tankless heat exchanger is prone to scale build-up, and must be delimed each year. Error code IL means delime.
Deliming will not restore full efficiency. Read research
Resource:
Service valvesHow to delime tankless water heater
Maintain water heater 2012/ pdf
Delime-tankless-water-heater.pdf
Rheem-De-lime-tankless/ pdf

Buy project materials
Tankless flushing kits
Tankless service valves
Submersible pump
Filter washers at Amazon
Washing machine hoses at Amazon

You need service valves and pipe parts, 1-2 washing machine hoses with female connection both ends, circulation pump, and find 5 gallon bucket along road, plus buy 2 gallons white vinegar at grocery store.
Takes 45 minutes
Water heater odor
Applies to gas and electric water heaters
Larger image

Read more about how to flush water heater each 6 months
Control odor by adding Hydrogen Peroxide regularly
Read more about anode odor problem at pro water heater forum
Install ball valve on Hot side so you can pour in peroxide
Hot side will allow peroxide to enter top of tank. (cold side will put peroxide at bottom)
Applies to gas and electric heaters.

Turn off power to water heater:
Let tank cool so hot does not explode out ball valve
Shut off cold water to tank.

Open bathtub hot side to release pressure.
Leave bathtub valve open until finished. This will tell you when tank has refilled and ready to apply power.

Drain 2 gallons from tank

Add 2 pints harmless Hydrogen peroxide to water heater. Let stand for 2 hours.
H2O2 is easy to flush out, and generally harmless to people. Can be used as mouthwash, read label on hydrogen peroxide bottle.
Do not use clorox.
CLOROX is NOT used for this purpose since it cannot be easily flushed out, and bleach odor can last weeks or longer coming out each tap for extended period of time.
Then drain tank to flush hydrogen peroxide. Refill completely until water is coming out of bathtub drain, then turn on water heater. Applies to gas and electric heaters.

Buy parts to make this drain valve
Di electric nipple
Ball valve at Amazon
Lead-free ball valve at Amazon
Plastic funnels at Amazon
water heater valve Watts makes wide variety of household plumbing accessories

Buy:
Watts / water heater pressure
Watts / filtration
Watts / misc

Heat trap nipples
Hot side and cold side heat trap nipples
Water heater valve making noise???
Might be heat trap nipples or inserts
Resource:
New water heater making noise
Water heater sounds like it's running water
Water heater recirculating pumps

Buy:
Pex-lined di electric nipples/ at Amazon
More links:
2-pole contactor        3-pole contactor 2-pole and 3-pole contactors
Use 2-pole for household 120Volt and 240Volt circuits.
Use 3-pole for 3-phase, or multiple household loads.
Resource:
Contactors
3-phase motor wiring General 3-phase motor wiring
All 3 wires are needed to run 3-phase motor
Contrast: 240Volt household motor requires 2 Hot wires.
Color code for 3-phase wires varies by country, and by application
Motor is switched on-off by contactor or motor starter etc
Resource:
What is 3-phase
How to wire 3-phase timers and contactors
3-pole contactor
Control 3-phase using contactor
Resource:
How to wire 3-phase timer
3-pole contactors
Contactors and relays

Gas and electric water heaters Support the economy:
Buy water heaters from my associate links:

50 gallon Gas water heaters at Amazon
40 gallon gas water heaters at Amazon
50 gallon Electric water heaters at Amazon
40 gallon electric water heaters at Amazon
Hybrid / heat pump/ water heaters at Amazon

Resources:
How to install gas water heater
How to install electric water heater
Troubleshoot gas water heater
Troubleshoot electric water heater
Point of use water heaters
Resources:
Troubleshoot Gas valves with manuals
Icon gas valve

How to replace water heater element Waste King disposal
How to wire tankless electric


Install point of use water heater
Titan tankless

Contactors/ relays
Install and troubleshoot garbage disposal Waste King disposal
Programmable timers

Woods timers
surge protection
Anode rods anode rods
Recirculation system

Tankless recirculation
Point of use water heater
Type 1 and type 2 surge protection surge protection
Buy
Electronic parts

Industrial supplies

Tools and home improvement

Home and garden

Hayward pool
Pentair pool

Southwire electric
Buy
Tools

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
box timers Resource:
Compare box timers
DPDT timers
Intermatic
Control water heater w/ Z-wave
Intermatic control centers Resource:
Intermatic control centers: and parts
Digital control centers and parts
Tork control centers and parts
Subpanels
All control centers and parts
Enclosures
programmable timer Resource:
Programmable timers
Countdown timers
Off delay timers
On delay timers
Timer modules
Din rail
Twin & one-shot
Woods
Intermatic
Tork
Low voltage power packs Recirculation systems
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