No hot water

by Barry
(Austin, Texas)

4 years old State electric water heater suddenly stopped producing hot water. Why the problem occurred and how can I fix the problem?

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Sep 28, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		did you check the heating elements?
by: Experienced plumber

One of the main problems found on all electric water heaters with the incidence of No Hot Water is with the heating elements failure. The most common problems are: dry firing, grounded element and sedimend build-up.

These is how you will troubleshoot:

Dry firing is the common mistake that happens after draining, flushing or installing the new water heater. If the heating element has not been fully covered (submerged) in water and there is an air surrounding the element, in matter of seconds dry fired element occurs. In this case the heating element becomes defective and cannot operate properly. The only solution is to replace the element, and don't forget to have the tank full of water before starting the unit.

The grounded element is another reason for the element failure and no hot water incident in the tank. This is what causes the circuit breaker to open or close. As the thermostat is equipped with the ECO or Energy Cut Off feature, the grounded element will trigger the ECO (which prevents the unit from overheating) and shut off the unit. Check the wiring and loose wire connections. Sometimes only the thermostat reset is needed.

Sedimentation occurs when the water heater uses the hard water. After some time mineral deposits will cover the heating elements and if the air bubbles get between the element and lime-scale (sediments), the dry fired element occurs.

Hope it helped.

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