How To: Drain a Water Heater (electric)
Want to have your water heater last longer? Regular preventative maintenance will help ensure this. I recommend draining it two times per year.
TIP: Put a maintenance reminder in your electronic calendar.
Before you drain your water heater, its a good idea to turn off the electricity to it at the breaker box.
The example shown here is a Whirlpool 50-gallon electric water heater purchased in 2003. I have set up a regular schedule of draining it two times per year. It is located in my garage so I am able to drain it with the hose directly to the street by extending the hose through the garage and down the driveway.
Next you will need a hose to drain the tank. I simply detach my garden hose and use that temporarily for this task. You will be connecting the hose at the bottom of the tank as shown here. I would recommend having some old towels or rags available to slip under this area. Once you have a secure connection, take a screwdriver and insert it in the valve area (not sure of the name here) slowly open it up. You will discover quickly if your connection with the hose is tight enough. If there are no significant leaks, just let the water run.
Check the other end of the hose to see if water is coming out. On this particular maintenance I had rusty colored water coming out and then clear water. Sometimes I can actually see hard water deposits spitting out of the hose at the end. I let the water run until its clear for a while. When you feel satisfied that all sediment has been removed, go back to the water tank and tighten up that screw again. Now its safe to detach the hose.
Note: I did not touch the on-off valve at the top of the water heater. Here is a photo of what the top of this water heater looks like. The narrow gray tube is connected to a timer which is cropped out of this photo. The copper pipes to the water in and water out, have insulation foam around them.
That's it! Remember to turn the breaker back on for the water heater when the job is done. Good luck and may have you have many worry-free years from your water heater!
TIP: Put a maintenance reminder in your electronic calendar.
Before you drain your water heater, its a good idea to turn off the electricity to it at the breaker box.
The example shown here is a Whirlpool 50-gallon electric water heater purchased in 2003. I have set up a regular schedule of draining it two times per year. It is located in my garage so I am able to drain it with the hose directly to the street by extending the hose through the garage and down the driveway.
Next you will need a hose to drain the tank. I simply detach my garden hose and use that temporarily for this task. You will be connecting the hose at the bottom of the tank as shown here. I would recommend having some old towels or rags available to slip under this area. Once you have a secure connection, take a screwdriver and insert it in the valve area (not sure of the name here) slowly open it up. You will discover quickly if your connection with the hose is tight enough. If there are no significant leaks, just let the water run.
Check the other end of the hose to see if water is coming out. On this particular maintenance I had rusty colored water coming out and then clear water. Sometimes I can actually see hard water deposits spitting out of the hose at the end. I let the water run until its clear for a while. When you feel satisfied that all sediment has been removed, go back to the water tank and tighten up that screw again. Now its safe to detach the hose.
Note: I did not touch the on-off valve at the top of the water heater. Here is a photo of what the top of this water heater looks like. The narrow gray tube is connected to a timer which is cropped out of this photo. The copper pipes to the water in and water out, have insulation foam around them.
That's it! Remember to turn the breaker back on for the water heater when the job is done. Good luck and may have you have many worry-free years from your water heater!
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