I bought a Harbor Freight 1/2 inch impact wrench 20 years ago and wished I'd bought it a decade earlier. There are no end of uses on cars and motorcycles, though I will admit these days I often use a 3/8 cordless. With corded drivers, if you need an extension cord, I would suggest a 10 gauge as they draw a lot of current and are seriously impaired by thin extensions.
@_v28613 күн бұрын
i used a litte Liquid Wrench.. it helped a lot 😊
@drherpymiklos15 күн бұрын
Brilliant. It worked!! Thank you!!
@whoknows475618 күн бұрын
Any drawbacks to using the Torque Wrench?
@roymartin815719 күн бұрын
Just use a large pair of channel locks. Put something over the tank to protect the paint. I've gotten a lot of them of that way. The cap is ruined anyway if it fails, but if you don't want to damage it, put painters tape around the cap first.
@Harleyguy03Ай бұрын
I just replaced my perfectly fuctioning 24 year old Rheem 40 Gal gas water heater (better to be proactive rather than reactive at this point) Anyway, I was curious if I could get that old anode rod out with tools I had on hand and see what was left. My old craftsman air impact wrench may have worked if I had a commercial quality air compressor, the home duty compressor just didn't have enough oomph. Next came the breaker bar and various lengths of cheaters. To keep the empty water heater from turning I put a 2nd length of 2" pipe between inlet outlet connections to act as a counter force braced against my body. No amount of force from my 77 year old body could break loose that stuck anode rod, I really wasn't surprised....Oh well 🤷♂on to the next project. L0L.
@macfady2181Ай бұрын
Should you relieve the tank pressure via the valve prior to trying to remove the anode?
@samuelfubara51562 ай бұрын
Commentary was a little bit excessive
@Scot7t7t73 ай бұрын
I'm removing my anode rod, and the instructions say to use a 1 - 1/16 inch socket. The socket has some play and does not seem to be the right size. This anode rod came with the Rheem water heater. I tried a 26mm, but that is too small, and a 27mm is a bit larger. Is there a specific size that will fit on the anode rod nut?
@jeffreyplumber19753 ай бұрын
vice grips? saw? I just grabbed it and bent and then lifted it the rest of way out LOL. thought it was easy
@jkucukov5 ай бұрын
What I noticed on mine after having replaced the old rusty ine, now that it's exposed to air it's prone to sweating and the nut portion will likely rust due to condensation long term. I need to have a good solution to a closed cell insulation
@hjets53875 ай бұрын
Or you could have just bent it...........
@rodneywilson63965 ай бұрын
Thanks for the information. I was able to remove the locking mechanism as suggested. It came out easy enough. Was able to push with a screw driver the metal tab that remained at the bottom of the hole/shaft. Turned the gas cap counter-clock-wise while pressing the metal tab with the end of the screw driver until it grabbed and the cap came off.
@chasejuggler7 ай бұрын
Harbor freight corded impact did the trick for me! Took about 4 pulses on my Rheem tank.
@lordvader34257 ай бұрын
Could I use 3/8" Impact Wrench Ryobi P263 to break it? Or it should be 1/2" Wrench (I don't have one)
@joseph78e4n67 ай бұрын
I had a two foot breaker bar on mine . the water heater moves. ???? now I have to buy the impact tool ..
@ralphtisdale34288 ай бұрын
How dumb are the water heater manufacturers that they install solid anode rods too long to remove, and without a gasket that permits easy removal? Idiots!
@luke_8_178 ай бұрын
I used my impact gun and only a nut came out. So either my anode rod was completely eaten away or the impact snapped it off. Either way, next time (2.5 years from now) I will use a cheater pipe and raw mussel. ( I now have a new water heater)
@Richard-ej4zi8 ай бұрын
May I ask if the water heater moves when you use the impact wrench to loosen it? Thank you so much.
@mrobvious11008 ай бұрын
I also put a white mark on the side of my black socket and when I saw it move just about 1/4" switched back to the breaker bar so that did not introduce too much vibration to the tank. Some of you may even have a socket adapter for a regular drill so once you break the seal then just switch to your drill and you don't have to keep spinning your socket around and around with a manual ratchet you can just spit it out
@mrobvious11008 ай бұрын
Folks make sure you drain about 3 to 5 minutes worth of water then when you remove the rod water won't come out of the hole and run down the side of your water heater
@jimprzeborowski93408 ай бұрын
Spray it with Blaster?
@AidanSkoyles9 ай бұрын
thanks for the video. I bought the same drill (or the Harbor Freight version) and still cant get the dang thing off. Any other ideas? Heater is 20 yrs old and anode has clearly never been replaced.
@jaywalker35539 ай бұрын
Great video bro ❤️👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
@tunapig9 ай бұрын
You are literally me. I'm ordered a bigass pneumatic impact wrench on amazon. Like 1800 torque. We'll see.
@jimmypalavi10 ай бұрын
Why didn't he just bend the rod as he was pulling it out? It appeared to be flexing back and forth while he was trying to clamp it.
@CrescendoKeysChannel10 ай бұрын
Is too much shake cause debris to fall from the rod. Maybe also damaging the glass linings of the tank?
@-.__.__.-Rad7 ай бұрын
that's what I'm thinking... Will it cause a fissure that will turn into a crack in a few years?
@ByrdeyeBengal10 ай бұрын
Been doing this. It’s the only way to go.
@edwinmiranda817410 ай бұрын
I saw ur video 4 years ago and u gave me hope just by watching ur video . I bought the same drill u have and it works. Thank u
@mikeschmidt480010 ай бұрын
Fluid Film worked wonders on mine. Broke free after I let it sit for a few.
@magnetoman8810 ай бұрын
Nice video. Exactly what I will need to do regarding clearance. Got a corded torque wrench from Harbor Freight so hopefully that can break it free.
@michael47lamb10 ай бұрын
There is no need to saw the old anode off, just bend it over once you cant raise it any higher because of the ceiling height. The rod a soft metal. No big deal bending it.
@lillithjones9937 ай бұрын
I’m glad to know that!
@RandomDudeOne10 ай бұрын
That old rod was still good, should have left it in the tank for another year.
@davegaetano711810 ай бұрын
Thanks for posting this. I have the same problem, and I'm hoping this will work for me.
@davegaetano711810 ай бұрын
Another source says 300 lb of removal foot torque
@JackRussell02111 ай бұрын
I tried an impact wrench on ours, but never got it to budge. But now that I see your video, I think the problem was that I wasn't persistent enough with the wrench - I *thought* I saw it move a little. I just needed to be more patient and let it work the magic. In our case, we have tons of ceiling space - that would eliminate the one step where you had to saw off the old one to get it out.
@mendoncaangelo11 ай бұрын
Any drawbacks to using a impact drill?
@daveforgot12711 ай бұрын
How often do they suggest we replace the Anode Rod. That is is great idea. Most people like myself never knew.
@daveforgot12711 ай бұрын
Great Job and video. Its impact wrench is $45 at Walmart 4 years later which isn't bad with all this inflation we've had.
@johnbolongo997811 ай бұрын
I thought outside the box and got a chain saw and cut a hole in the floor.....came staight out with no problem. Now im struggling with this huge hole that my dog keeps falling through......but my hot water smells good. Win Win.
@jenniferw896311 ай бұрын
This is such a perfect video. Using an impact wrench w/o having to strap down the tank. Cutting the old one out. And replacing with a flexible. This is exactly all of what I want to attempt with my 10 y/o water heater. I don't want to have to replace this water heater in 2 years. I recently learned about anode rods, so I hope I am not to late. The water heater seems fine right now as is.. No leaks.. looks new on the outside pretty much.
@PH-md8xp11 ай бұрын
Good video, using an impact wrench is the way to go, as in the video, make sure you use an impact rated socket (usually black). A regular socket will probably crack or break under impact.
@ronblack787011 ай бұрын
so how does your impact wrench work as an anode since you are replacing the anode with a wrench???
@GeorgeKennedy-u4r11 ай бұрын
With my 20yr old glass-lined tank I don't think I'll be trying an impact wrench on it. It could shatter the lining or worse, tear the top of the tank open if it is rusty inside. I've used impact wrenches and seen what they can do. Not really for use on ceramic parts.
@realdeal621411 ай бұрын
For any future anode rod removers: I went to walmart and bought their $45 el cheapo impact wrench. It took 20 seconds and it removed the anode rod, easy peezy.
@patrickpk629911 ай бұрын
nice job, i like the vice grip idea, will use it
@pjmarkert1 Жыл бұрын
Just bend the old rod
@schwinnbiking Жыл бұрын
mine got stripped, its round now so no go. Its been in there for around 15 years.
@Fluffy-Tail-0000 Жыл бұрын
Why not just tip the water heater a little?
@robertsimpson7113 Жыл бұрын
ALSO use extreme caution when cutting as some are made of magnesium which is EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE and requires special firefighting chemicals to extinguish it