Are you wondering how often you should flush a hot water heater? Are you curious about why you should even have to do it? We’ve got the answers you need to help you maintain this essential household appliance!
How Often Should You Drain Your Hot Water Heater?
There are several factors that can influence how often you should drain your water heater. The industry standard is at least once per year. However, there are factors that can require a homeowner to change their water heater more often.
Hard Water
If you live in an area with hard water, you will likely need a hot water heater drain every six months. Hard water is packed with minerals that love to build up and cause chaos in your appliances. If you live in a home with hard water, think about how the build-up can clog shower heads or build up on sink faucets. Now imagine that same build-up accumulating for years without ever getting cleaned. A biannual visit from a professional plumber can help you ensure that you aren’t taking years off the life of your hot water heater with hard water buildup.
Older Plumbing Fixtures
Many homes may have older plumbing that releases sediment into your hot water heater. Not only that, your city’s local water supply may also be delivered via pipes that have internal corrosion, mineral build-up or other problems. If your plumber flushes your water heater and you find your heater is running constantly or pumping cloudy, discolored water into your home several months later, you may need to join the people flushing their systems every six months.
If you aren’t part of the group performing an extra drain each year, you can schedule an annual drain and flush service. We usually recommend that our customers schedule their cleaning in the fall as part of their pre-winter preventative maintenance. Don’t forget that tankless water heaters also need periodic maintenance. They should be flushed once a year to improve performance and extend the life of your appliance.
How Do I Know I Need to Drain My Hot Water Heater?
- You have had your hot water heater for over one year and you have never flushed the system.
- Dirty or discolored water. If your hot water is rusty, you should contact your plumber sooner than later.
- Weird noises. A hot water heater making popping noises or crackling like a campfire likely means that all the sediment in the bottom is making bubbles that “crackle” and pop as they rise in the heater.
- Hot water runs out fast or isn’t as hot as expected: This can be a sign that your element isn’t able to properly heat the water due to sediment accumulation.
- Slowing supply: Sediment build-up can create clogs that slow the output of water from your tank.
- Older tank. Older tanks need a little extra assistance in order to keep them running smoothly. A biannual cleaning can provide a real boost.
Why Do I Need to Drain My Hot Water Heater?
At a glance, a hot water heater seems like a fairly contained system. A solid tank anchored in your house and fed by a city water supply or a private well. How can sediment even enter the hot water heater in the first place? As we’ve discussed in past blogs, there are miles and miles of pipes that make up the water delivery system.
Old pipes, new pipes, damaged pipes, tree roots, leaking fittings … There are plenty of places for sediment to creep into your water supply and collect in the bottom of your hot water heater. And that’s just where sediment can enter from the outside! It does not factor in the buildup that comes from hard water, pipe deterioration or unfiltered private wells. In short, the hot water heater is never as clean as you might think. That’s why it’s important to flush a hot water heater annually, if not more often.
If you’ve never had your hot water heater drained and flushed, you’re not alone. While we can’t pinpoint an exact number of untouched appliances across the country, we can say that a significant number of our customers throughout Southern Colorado have never performed the maintenance. It makes sense! In addition to the assumption that your water heater can’t get filled with debris, it’s also a hidden system. It sits tucked away in the basement or a closet and no one really thinks about it unless it’s not working. As professional plumbers, our goal is to help you prevent that last bit.
Prevention Matters: How Sediment Impacts Hot Water Heaters
Poor Water Quality: Homeowners have enough issues managing their water quality without creating an enemy within to battle, too. If your hot water heater is collecting sediment, it’s depositing some of that sediment into your bath water, your dishwater and the water you use to clean your clothing and bedding.
If your hot water is cloudy and gritty, or if you notice that your clothes are dingy and discolored after a wash, it may be a result of a dirty hot water heater.
Shorter Lifespan: When sediment collects in a water heater, it can cause the system to overheat. Tanked hot water heaters use an element to heat the water on standby so you can enjoy those warm showers and use hot water to clean dishes and clothes.
When sediment builds up, it can smother the element and insulate it so it can’t heat the water as effectively. Meanwhile, the heater continuously signals the element to continue heating, forcing it to work longer and harder in poor conditions. This leads to deterioration and reduces the lifespan of the appliance.
Tank Damage: The components that heat the water are not the only parts that are affected by sediment in hot water heaters. The tank itself can be damaged. Sediment can cause the interior of your hot water heater to corrode and rust. Over time, it can begin to leak wherever rust weakens the metal.
Even worse, your water heater could experience a far more catastrophic break that instantly dumps gallons of burning hot water onto the floor. A flood is bad enough. A flood of extremely hot water can lead to black mold, dissolved drywall, peeling paint, warped wood, collapsed floors and worse!
Can I DIY Draining a Hot Water Heater?
You can certainly consider draining your hot water heater on your own, but we typically recommend you schedule an appointment with a plumber to ensure it is cleaned thoroughly. The general steps for flushing a tanked water heater involve:
- Turn off the fuel or power supply to your electric hot water heater or a gas hot water heater. If you have time, allowing the hot water heater to cool a bit can make the job safer for people who do not have experience. The water can be HOT. Keep that in mind when placing the end of your hose, too.
- Attach a hose to the drain valve. Place a pan or cloth beneath the drain to protect against potential leaks. Place the end of the hose in a safe place, as the water will be hot and can kill plants or burn people and animals.
- Open the valve and drain the water. Use caution if the water is hot! It can take a while to drain the tank. The bigger the tank, the longer the drain time.
- Flush the tank. Remember that all of the sediment will not drain just using the hose. You will need to run more water through the tank to ensure it’s actually empty.
- Close the valve and disconnect the hose. Make sure there are no leaks.
- Refill the tank.
- Turn on the power supply/fuel
As you can see, there are several points in the process that benefit from the eye and skill of a professional. Fortunately, flushing a hot water heater is not super expensive and a professional plumber can complete the service. If something goes wrong, you’ll already have an expert onsite to fix it!
Boost the Power and Lifespan of Your Hot Water Heater
Flushing your hot water heater will help you remove damaging sediment from your tank and keep it performing at its peak. You and your family will enjoy cleaner water while extending the life of your appliance and preventing potentially disastrous damage to your home.