I'm pretty sure my hot water heater just quit. Replacement suggestions?

[M A V I C]

8.5 yrs old, the drain plug has a small leak. We fixed the issues we were having with it before, but now it seems to have shut itself off. We could try relighting the pilot light and seeing if it will keep working, but the leaking has me concerned. Considering that part of the house is currently drying out from being flooded by the neighbor's place, I think I'll just replace it rather than push it and have to deal with more cleanup.

Any suggestions on this? Any particular brand better than another?

[Black]

What do you mean by "drain plug?"
Definitely relight the pilot light. You should be able to get a few more years out of it.

[NewtonMP2100]

.....if only it were that easy......

.....I wish....I could QUIT you.....

[davester]

Water heaters generally don't have "drain plugs". I assume you're talking about the plastic drain valve. It's extremely common for those cheapo plastic drain plugs to leak. Have a plumber/water heater installer replace it with a brass gate valve.

I'd suggest that you figure out why the pilot is going out before wasting money having the water heater changed out. It's probably due to either a leaking tank dripping on the pilot (unlikely but possible at 8.5 years if the sacrificial anode hasn't been changed out) or more likely due to a faulty gas valve or the wind blocker being left off by whoever lit the pilot last time. If the tank is leaking then you should replace the WH immediately. If not, it will likely be much cheaper to fix what is wrong with it. It should be fairly easy to diagnose why the pilot is going out.

Also, at 8.5 years of age your water heater is definitely due for an anode change (unless it is a 12 year warranty heater which has 2 anodes). Have a plumber replace it and the dip tube with stuff like this: http://www.waterheaterrescue.com/pages/W...o-Mag.html . That site also has advice on selecting a new water heater.

When he pulls the anode rod he can tell you if the old anode is completely gone or still has material remaining. If completely gone then your tank is at risk of failure. If material is still remaining the tank is almost certainly fine.

[Black]

And if you want to replace, you're going to find GE and Hotpoint at all the stores. I bought 4 GEs last year and have had no problems getting them up and running, but of course I can't speak to durability.

[Anthony]

Our next water heater will be a tankless, on demand system. Not sure if that's interesting to you but though I'd mention it.

[mattkime]

Black wrote:
And if you want to replace, you're going to find GE and Hotpoint at all the stores. I bought 4 GEs last year and have had no problems getting them up and running, but of course I can't speak to durability.

how much hot water does one man need??

[macphanatic]

It might be an issue with the thermocouple. If it's a Whirlpool model, there have been a slew of problems with their thermocouples and one of the reasons that I trashed a 2 yr old model and replaced it with a GE. (Do a google search for the issues and Whirlpool's crappy response to a design issue).

[fromish]

Another vote for tankless.

We have had great luck with a tankless Bosch with no leaks, endless hot water, no cost to keep the a 50 gallon tank hot when we're not using water, etc. Also, tankless heaters hold a gallon or two at most, so it's easy to cut off the water and drain them should there be a problem.

However, it makes most financial sense to do what Davester recommends and have the plastic drain valve replaced, the anode checked/replaced, and the pilot serviced.

[deckeda]

re-light it. You'll want hot water later today or tonight. Maybe tomorrow!

Try to determine if the leak is snuffing the pilot (shouldn't be, but who knows.) If you can't determine it and the pilot goes out again (barring anything obvious such as the wind blocker, which is presumably still in-place) then call a tech.

What happens next depends largely on the tech and who he works for --- just like with calling out someone for A/C repair. Some techs won't want to fix a fixable WH, even if all it needs is a new gas valve or sacrificial anode. "It's 'old,' they don't long, get a new one."

*********************
Mine's as old as the house, 18 years. Looks fine but I'm afraid to do anything "preventative" such as swap out the drain valve or replace the sacrificial anode. My pessimistic side says that one or both of those wouldn't come out cleanly and I'd ruin the tank attempting to do so. Shortly following that would be, "Why the fsck did you go messing with the WH, when it was working fine??" It's not my abilities I fear, but the tank's to stand up to some simple wrench turning.