Technical > Home Improvement > Replace TP valve or water heater?

reply to Shady Bimmer

Re: Replace TP valve or water heater?

reply to James_C

reply to James_C

The thing is, they can only work within what their parts suppliers allow.

Suppose a switch on product X is rated to last for 1,000,000 cycles but it would typically encounter only 2,000. They can't just decide "we'll buy a 2,000 switch to save money", because such switch doesn't exist.

They could say "we'll go with a lower gauge of steel", but you can't get fractional gauges at good price, the optimal thickness to a penny pincher is probably somewhere between two standard gauges.

Same with a glass lining thickness, wire quality, and any other parameter. They can't just decide to spend less to try to aim for a warranty period, only to not spend more than necessary to meet that period.

Again, the proof is everywhere around you. The theory that this is what they do, must then be tested to be proven true. No matter how much they claim that in an ideal world this is the goal, in the real world it doesn't work out that way.

If two choices have the same warranty length but one is 20% less expensive, it's time to look at the reasons why the other is less expensive. Many people do not make the warranty the primary purchase criterion.

If your claim is that an elaborate calculation lets someone sleep better at night thinking they spent the least amount possible, good for them to sleep better at night but this in no way bears on a consumer's expectation that a product shouldn't last longer than the warranty. Again, this is proven to be the existing factual state of things by the actual products' lifespans.

reply to TheSMJ
I sure am glad that my vacuum cleaner with the 1-year warranty didn't quit working after 13 months.... Or some electronics device is still working just fine months after it's 90-day warranty....

But since we're talking about water heaters, mine must have been a fluke, eh ? It was a 10-year warranty Kenmore installed by a previous owner, in 1985. It lasted almost 3 times longer than it's warranty. Not 11 years, not 15, almost 30 years !

reply to TheSMJ

reply to Hall

reply to TheSMJ
All that's left is to pipe the pan to a floor drain.

PS: I would have used a brass nipple on the cold inlet instead of galvanized.

reply to Shady Bimmer
Sorry, my background is mechanical design engineering. Of course, it also involved pumps used in the chemical industry, so there was very little room for acceptable design failure there.... If one of them failed, depending on the failure, of course, and what failed, really, really bad things could happen.

reply to TheSMJ
With a black marker, write the date of install and the warranty length on the heater.

reply to TheSMJ

reply to jack b

reply to Hall
There are a couple threads about this already, but the consensus was that installing the water heater this way prevents any possible issues with dip tubes in the future, since the water is directly entering the tank from the bottom whereas using the port at the top would mean the cold water needs to run through the internal dip tube to make it to the bottom. Furthermore replacing the stock drain valve with a ball valve is beneficial since they're less likely to clog with sediment. The stock drain valve on both of these heaters had a hole smaller than my pinky, and it took a solid 15-20 minutes to drain all 40 gallons from the tank.

In reality broken dip tubes are somewhat rare these days since the problem was fixed in the late 90s (but they still do happen). Had I not already plumbed the old tank this way I probably would have used the port at the top, but since I already had this ready to go I decided to use what I already had.

@jjoshua: That's a great idea. I'll do that when I get home.

@Jack: The nipple was factory installed so I assume you're referring to the cap. What's wrong with using a galvanized cap?

I do intend to connect the drain port on the pan to the tube that runs from the furnace to the floor drain. But right now there's little point in that because all the floor drains run to a sewer pipe clogged with roots from an overgrown shrub which used to be about 10 feet directly above the pipe (I already cut it down since critters were using it to climb onto the roof). Eventually I'll rent an auger to clean it out and get the drains working again.

The lower galvanized nipple and the cap will eventually rust, but it's not something urgent, by any means. When they do start to rust it can discolor the water. I would look for a brass or stainless pipe plug for the abandoned inlet connection.

Also what can happen with using dis-similar metals (ferrous/non-ferrous) in a potable water system is a tiny electric current is generated, which can accelerate corrosion.
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reply to TheSMJ

I don't see any problem with the nipple. There is no dissimilar metal issue as both the nipple and the tank are made of steel. The nipples used on water heaters are plastic lined so they don't rust on the inside. A small amount of rust may form inside the cap but it will easily outlive the life of a water heater. I have galvanized pipe over 60 years old that is still functional. This is a non-issue to me and not worth the dollars to change anything.

reply to TheSMJ
Shouldn't there be a dirt leg on the gas line?

That's what the loop in the extra-long flexable hose is for. It would have been a serious PITA to use the old dirt leg, but I still have the pipes and it could be done if the loop doesn't work out and a clog forms.

reply to robbin
In MY experiance - if there is ANY galvanized metal on your potable water system - replace it with brass. I had Galvanzied nipples into my master bath shower controls rust out while we were on vacation - I still don't have any idea how to repair the resulting water damage I have.

But the nipple the galvanized cap is screwed onto is steel. Wouldn't putting a brass cap on there cause MORE corrosion issues?