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When off, how long does a HWH hold heat?

3K views 17 replies 10 participants last post by  Startingover 
#1 ·
Turned my 40 gal. HWH off 24 hrs ago. Water was still hot enough to shower just now. It felt normal. Do they really hold the heat this long? Sort of worried it isn't really off. The timer light, on the wall above it went off when I flipped the breakers.

thanks
 
#5 · (Edited)
Depends on how old the unit is. What that means, is if it is over 12 years old, it would have possibly been insulated with fiberglass. Anything within the past 8 or so years, closed cell foam would have been used to insulate the tank.

Also, what do you mean by timer light? Is there a timer that shuts off power to it at a set time, then turns back on power at a set time? Pictures of this "timer" light helps to help us help you better. If it is a timer unit, most have a manual switch inside that you can move to turn on or off, without having to wait for the clock to make a rotation to turn the switch inside on.

Also those timers can go bad over time, so it also helps when you post the picture of the outside, also post a picture of the inside of the unit, and any manufacturer & model number info on the plate inside the door for the timer.
 
#6 ·
If you have an extra insulation jacket it basically doubles the R value, it will hold the heat quite a while, just dry some laundry and pile the clothes on a bed in a heap, the next day you can still feel some warmth in the pile of clothes.
Personally I prefer a standing pilot gas water heater, my previous one that came with the house had an insulation jacket over the unit the utility company provided free, the main burner NEVER came on unless I actually used enough hot water to trip the thermostat. Despite claims the pilot "wastes" gas that little pilot light alone was enough to keep the water at the set temperature or a little higher in a 40 gallon tank. Keeping the main burner off was certainly not a "waste" of gas, if it was an electronic ignition the stupid main burner would be coming on and off continuously.

When I replaced the unit about a year ago, I got another one with a standing pilot but haven't put an extra jacket on the unit.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Update:

The plumber just came. He took the anode rod out and it was no bigger around than a wire clothes hanger. To test the HWH before replacing the anode rod he plugged the anode hole and said if it doesn't leak he would put a new anode rod in. If it leaked he said I need a new HWH.

Within 5 minutes it started leaking again.

I know the AO Smith is top of the line, but he said just to get a GE for $300 or Whirlpool so I have a 6 yr warranty and it will be cheaper for me. His fee seems reasonable to me so I'm lucky.

Dug thru my Goodwill donation box and retrieved my tea kettle I was giving away so I can heat water for dishes till Saturday.

The only thing I didn't know I was suppose to do.........I didn't turn off the water knob above the HWH, so it continued to leak until he got here.

I'm sorry it wasn't just the anode rod but I'm lucky I discovered there was a problem before I had a house full of company. And I'm lucky that, thanks to all of you, I now know if there's a problem to turn the electric off and to turn the water line off, so I learned something, which is the purpose of this site. Yes, the recessed area, on top, where electric is, was full of water and he said I could have gotten shocked if I hadn't turned electric off.

thanks for all your help.
ps

is it recommended that I buy a new drip pan? Maybe I will since things corrode, crack and crumble with age and the existing one is likely 9 or so, just like the HWH.
 
#12 ·
Update:

The plumber just came. He took the anode rod out and it was no bigger around than a wire clothes hanger. To test the HWH before replacing the anode rod he plugged the anode hole and said if it doesn't leak he would put a new anode rod in. If it leaked he said I need a new HWH.

Within 5 minutes it started leaking again.

I know the AO Smith is top of the line, but he said just to get a GE for $300 or Whirlpool so I have a 6 yr warranty and it will be cheaper for me. His fee seems reasonable to me so I'm lucky.



is it recommended that I buy a new drip pan? Maybe I will since things corrode, crack and crumble with age and the existing one is likely 9 or so, just like the HWH.
Odd, funny thing is the water heater that came with my house when I bought the house 15 years ago was gas "State" glass lined brand as I remember, and the date on the thing indicated it was from 1978, it never gave me any trouble but the drain valve would not drain so I left it alone.
It lasted for me 13-14 years and I replaced it about 1-2 years ago only because there started to be a drip around the drain valve.
I replaced it with one from Sears, and when I cut the tank open on the State water heater it had lime buildup about 12" deep! (we have very hard water here)
So that water heater lasted about 34 years, the last 13 of it's life at least- it had never been drained/flushed because the drain was totally plugged by lime.
There are two water heaters at work from about the same vintage (electric tho) and they work fine and don't leak.

You must have really acidic water or something, the annode in my old one had plenty of metal, I can't explain why mine lasted 34 years and I read about other's having rust out and leaks in 5, only thing I can come up with is they are made crappier today than they were 34 years ago.

State is hardly a premium brand, in fact I think it was one of the cheapest ones made, given the type of people who lived here around then they would have bought the cheapest one they could find.
 
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