Gas hot water heater problem I think....

nvguy

Hi all,

I live in a condo and my hot wate heater is in an outside closet basically. I have noticed the last two days that it is venting hot water from the drain pipe that leads outside to the ground. the hot water heater looks just fine externally. Im getting plenty of hot water in the house. So why would it be venting like this? I cannot be sure how long it has been doing it but it has been going for hours since i first noticed it.

jaydevries

is it coming from the relieve valve
http://www.google.com/search?q=water...w=1600&bih=775

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be careful my advice only comes from general knowledge i know about the 4 rules it takes to plumb and they are
1 poop needs to flow down hill. 2 hot on left cold on right
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nvguy

Hi,

from the diagrams you supplied i believe it is coming from the relief valve. from what i can tell the drain is connected with piping to the top of the tank.

jaydevries

is it a trickle or a good flow

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be careful my advice only comes from general knowledge i know about the 4 rules it takes to plumb and they are
1 poop needs to flow down hill. 2 hot on left cold on right
3 i get a pay check on Mondays 4 do not chew finger nails at or after work.

nvguy

it was pretty heavy this morning. right now its not as heavy but its more than a trickle.

jaydevries

i would pull on relieve lever then push back off to see if there is debris in valve not letting it shut off if not might need to be replaced. also i would turn water heater off (gas to pilot or flip off breaker) then run some hot water to releive pressure before trying to reset valve and you might also need to add an expansion tank to relieve pressure so not to pop relieve valve

__________________
be careful my advice only comes from general knowledge i know about the 4 rules it takes to plumb and they are
1 poop needs to flow down hill. 2 hot on left cold on right
3 i get a pay check on Mondays 4 do not chew finger nails at or after work.

nvguy

Ok so i lifted up on the valve and it made quite a noise and the water flow increased from the drain. i let it back down and the water flow decreased to where it was before.

ddawg16

They are there to relieve the pressure in the water tank if it gets too high. A common problem is for someone to install a back flow preventer on the cold side....water heater heats up the water....it expands...pressure increases. The PRV prevents the tank from ruptureing.

If the tank is several years old, the valve could be going bad. I believe you can replace them....you just have to turn off the power and water.

Hopefully one of our experts will chime in with more exact details.

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nvguy

so the valve going bad means what exactly? its too weak now and is venting when its not supposed to?

thanks!

ddawg16

That is where the expert comes in....jay gave you some good info....but my guess it is going bad.....or your water pressure has jumped up.

I deal with PRV's but of a much bigger nature.....like 2" and bigger......have never had one go bad...but then again....we remove them and have them 'calibrated' on a yearly basis....

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Evstarr

Duplicate effort - in other word nm

bob22

1. How old is the heater?
2. Is the hot water temperature in the house higher than it used to be?
Could be higher water pressure from supply triggering PRV, faulty thermostat causing tank to overheat and PRV is working as designed to prevent tank from exploding, faulty PRV.
They can be replaced but understanding the root cause would be useful before replacing it or the water heater.

rjniles

If the PT valve started leaking water immediately after you reset the lever, it is not an high pressure issue( the pressure does not build up instantly). Either there is debris in the valve seat or the valve is bad. I would replace the valve. Turn gas valve to pilot, shut off the water supply to the WH and open a faucet to relieve pressure before you remove the valve.

You will have to disconnect the drain line first, this usually means cutting the pipe.

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nvguy

the heater is several years old. not sure exactly. at least 5. will try a new valve as suggest first to see if that takes care of it.

tylernt

Probably about time for a new anode rod while you have the heater offline anyway.