Water heater question

[ScubaLatt]

During the winter months or anytime the temp drops below 60 degrees my water heater does not seem to put out as much hot water. Summer months no problems at all. Could it be one of my elements is out? I have a 50 gal in my attic and it is only 7 years old.

Any ideas?

[LPfishnTIM]

7 years old is young for a water heater, I do water extractions and most that go out are over 20 years old.

[eman]

Make sure that power is properly hooked up to both elements and that they both are
getting power . unless you have a continuity tester i dont know if you can check the elements themselves.

[BigAl]

The copper lines coming from the water heater also take more heat during the winter from the water flowing through them. During the summer, the pipes are warmer and don't rob as much heat as when the pipes are cold. (That's assuming you have copper pipes)

[barbarian]

Actually that is very normal. The '50' is what it stores hot, not what it delivers. The amount of hot water a unit is capable of delivering is directly related to the temperature of the incoming cold water. Every gallon of hot water used is replaced immediately by a gallon of cold water. In the summer, it is very possible that the incoming water is 80+, but in colder temps it may be 50-60 which cools the remaining water in the heater faster than it can heat it. In the summer, a 50 gal water heater may only be able to actually deliver 35-40 gallons at the most of hot water but if it is cold causing your incoming water to be colder it is realistic that it may only be able to deliver 25-30 gallons of hot water. One trick is turn your temp up on the water heater so that the water is hotter at start and be able to compete better against the colder incoming colder water. You have to be careful though if you have kids because it will be scaldable.

[ScubaLatt]

thanks everyone. I am also thinking about getting one of those water heater blankets.

[weedeater]

I was having same problem a few yrs ago and have found that if I just turn elements up higher during winter it solved my problem and I just lower them when summer comes

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by barbarian

Actually that is very normal. The '50' is what it stores hot, not what it delivers. The amount of hot water a unit is capable of delivering is directly related to the temperature of the incoming cold water. Every gallon of hot water used is replaced immediately by a gallon of cold water. In the summer, it is very possible that the incoming water is 80+, but in colder temps it may be 50-60 which cools the remaining water in the heater faster than it can heat it. In the summer, a 50 gal water heater may only be able to actually deliver 35-40 gallons at the most of hot water but if it is cold causing your incoming water to be colder it is realistic that it may only be able to deliver 25-30 gallons of hot water. One trick is turn your temp up on the water heater so that the water is hotter at start and be able to compete better against the colder incoming colder water. You have to be careful though if you have kids because it will be scaldable.

Thanks B, just gots me another word for my vocabulary.
Man that chick is Scaldable as in Hot.

[huggybro]

That's normal. First thing I would do is shut it off, let it cool and try and drain some of the bottom off. You might be starting to have some sludge/iron/rust buildup in the bottom. Pull and inspect the anode while you are at it. Use a hose to agitate and flush the bottom. If the anode is okay, reinstall. If not replace. Are you sure it is a dual element? Mine is a 50 with only a single element.
If it's up in your attic, during the summer the surrounding ambient temp is hot. During the winter it is cold so your water heater has to work harder. Suggest you adjust it to 120 degF when you adjust your clock forward in the spring and up to 140-150 degF when you adjust your clock back in the fall.

[Ray]

If you are on a water well and don't have a filtration or water softener system, you can build up sluge pretty fast. My dad had a small 20 gal. water heater in his 1/2 bath and it filled up with some white silicone looking stuff in about 5 years. He went tankless cause he doesn't use that bathroom much.

[Gerald]

Another thing.......

Your hot water heater may be wired to only deliver the "normal" rating of Kilo-watts. On some hot water heaters there is a "jumper" included when you buy the HW heater. Installing this jumper allows the heater element to heat the water faster.

Check the manual and see if you have this. I don't remember if this "jumper" is a separate piece or something that you take off and reinstall in a different position.

I did this when I replaced my hot water heater ~5 years ago..... but don't remember what I had to do.