How to Replace Water Heater Element Without Draining the Tank

[@WordofAdviceTV]

⬇ Other water heater videos you may be interested in: How to Test Heating Elements: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKXch6N9nLZ-abs How an Electric Water Heater Works: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fmTQfGRrfrF0g9U How to Replace Pressure Relief Valve: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mZKalJqVi9VgqLs How to Adjust Temperature on Water Heater: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o37Il6RjYr6okJo How to Replace Anode Rod on Water Heater: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p33doJyhhpyajck Does a WH Really Need to Be Drained and Flushed: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mJOWZpaHqq-Sr5I When Should a Water Heater be Replaced: kzbin.info/www/bejne/roPXlWWiiMdnors Running Out of Hot Water Too Fast: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pV6vpIiNobyJnpI How to Read Water Heater Wiring Diagram: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iombhKh-gJaYqbs The ONE Device Every Homeowner Should Have: kzbin.info/www/bejne/haqVYoGegdqtrM0

[@tomnorman457]

One of the best DIY channels on KZbin. When replacing an element “on the fly”, I go back and close any faucets that I may have opened previously. Then I’ll replace the element “on the fly”. Closing the faucets that I previous opened creates a partial vacuum, and the water doesn’t gush out as fast while I’m removing the old element and installing the new element.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you sir! 🙂 I appreciate the tip!

[@chazrich4990]

Videos in this style are perfect. You show problem solving through multiple problems rather than jump cutting to a 'seamless'/'problem free' repair. You know your stuff and you're a great teacher! Thanks for a candid repair video!

[@PeteEdmunds]

Beast Mode :). Made me chuckle. Thanks for this video - super helpful for me to do a DIY element replacement.

[@walterbordett2023]

I learned this from John Phillips Plumbing YT site. remove the antisyohon valve from the hot water outlet nipple and insert a 1/2 inch cpvc pipe into the nipple and connect this to the suction side of your pump and pump the tank out from the top. You will need to keep the end of the pipe above the sediment level in the tank. Keep up the great videos.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh that's an interesting tip! Thank you for explaining how to do that!

[@coldclimateliving5474]

After you use the screwdriver in the drain valve and you start to get a trickle coming out put drain hose back on then go ahead and turn cold water supply back on, this will stir up sediment in bottom of tank and usually clears blockage at drain , once you get good flow out drainage hose under pressure go ahead and turn water supply off. You then should have the water coming out of hose as water heater drains, also recommend doing what's called a maintenance flush once a year to limit sediment buildup in water heater tank 😊

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you for the great suggestions!! I was going to turn the water back on exactly as you said but it seemed like there was way too much sediment in there so I felt it wouldn't make any difference. Perhaps I should have tried it after all..

[@Eddy63]

Good vid with good tips ... My dog's name is '' Half mile'' cause that's as close as I can get to her as you can see from her lovely snarl Aloha my friend

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you my friend!! Good to see you in the comments. Hahaha and I love it! Half mile sounds like a pretty fitting name for that profile picture. 😄 Hope you have an amazingly great new week!!

[@kaaaah2003]

Thanks, buddy. You're always so helpful and money-saving. Keep up the good work. 👍💰

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! I will try to continue making more videos like this one. 😊

[@netalekh6443]

Thank you, Jay!👍👍👍 God bless you!

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! I receive and may God bless you and yours as well!

[@Rsk14]

Such a great detailed explanation .. good on ya mate

[@claytonfite3197]

Good morning Jay, Thank you for reminding me of a terrible experience changing the bottom heating element on an Aosmith Electric hot water heater. After turning off the electricity to the hot water heater I verified which element was bad presto The bottom was bad so I decided not to drain the hot water tank. Disconnected my wires and got my inch-and-a-half Socket on the element with a new one on the side ready to go in I proceeded to pull out the old element and it was stuck I could not get it out bending it up and down nothing worked I was soaked luckily it was a basement floor no carpet nothing else got wet but me so, therefore, I made a promise to Always drained the hot water tank first no exceptions thank you. I will now go walk two miles 😄lol

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh nooo! This is a classic case of misery needs company! What are the chances that you had a similar experience like that! Thank you for sharing your experience as well. Good to know that I am not alone. 😄😇

[@claytonfite3197]

@@WordofAdviceTV There's nothing like on-the-job experiences😅

[@jaimegonzalez6926]

I think I'm confident enough to replace my water heater thank you.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

I am sure you would do a great job too! 👍

[@jaimegonzalez6926]

@@WordofAdviceTV I invented a new way to drain a tank maybe you be interested in helping selling my invention since you know about this things than I do or tell me where to start...let me know if interested and we can exchange numbers?

[@spelunkerd]

I love these kind or real world examples. Before doing something it's always wise to have a healthy dose of reality.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Glad you liked the video! Yeah, it definitely helps to get a preview of the job that you're about to tackle. 😄

[@jacobbowling263]

Hi Jay, I hope you’re having an awesome day and I am doing well, my children are doing well so all is well I hope you have an amazing week.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

I love the immediate comment!! 😄 Glad to hear that all is well with you and family!! My family is blessed and doing good too. May you have a fabulous week as well my friend!

[@QueenaMelina]

I LOVE YOUR AC AND HEATER VIDEOS 🎉

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you!! I hope to make some furnace videos soon!

[@sheilam4964]

Thx for filming this and sharing it with us.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! Thanks for stopping by for the new video! Have a marvelous new week!

[@sheilam4964]

@@WordofAdviceTV - You have a marvelous week, too.

[@georgedavis6583]

Sometimes they're really difficult to get to drain especially if its city water. I use a 2 hose y splitter on the tank, Take a clothes washer hose and attach it to one side of the y and a drain hose to the other. Using the valves on the y you can back flush the tank just a few blasts will usually clear the drain.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

That's a great idea! Thank you for the good tip!

[@georgedavis6583]

@@WordofAdviceTV if people saw what's in the bottom of a city water hot water tank they'd think twice before drinking it

[@strayedcat1966]

@@georgedavis6583 Kidney & Gall Stones

[@pinballrick6031]

This video mirrors my exact experience replacing the element. My water heater won’t drain because my water softener broke and all the media ended up in the bottom of the water heater tank. (I was really hoping you would share an easy way of getting all that crud out of the bottom of the tank. Oh well...) After futile attempts to drain the tank, I always end up swapping the element out on the fly. It used to concern me that some of the water gurgling out when I remove the element ends up beneath the skin of the water heater, but eventually concluded that this thing is generating a lot of heat and any water that gets in there is likely quickly evaporated. As long as the thermostat and the element connections are dry I figure I’m good to go. Despite having a (new) water softener, my heating element still acquires quite a bit of mineral deposit build up, (we have extremely hard water), so I tend to replace the element every other fall. My water heater is accessed from outside the home. The element failed once in the dead of winter and I had to do this job when it was 30 degrees outside. I don’t want to enjoy that experience again. I could be wrong, but I figure all that scaly build up reduces efficiency making it more expensive for me to heat the water. I know elements aren’t that expensive so maybe I’m being cheap, but other than all that scale build up there really isn’t anything wrong with the old element when I remove it. After the job is done I soak that old element in vinegar for a day or two and all those deposits pretty much just wipe off and, barring physical damage, I have a clean spare element that I can later swap back in. Of course, I still like to keep a spare brand new element on hand just in case, just like I used to keep a spare capacitor and a spare heat sequencer on hand before I replaced my old central air system.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you for the detailed comment, I'm sure some people will benefit from your experiences. Yeah sorry, I didn't want to deal with all that sediment. 😅 It would probably be a good video to do though... I'm not a plumber so maybe I don't know some of the tricks. The easiest way (as far as I know, none of the methods are easy) is to take out the lower element and scoop/vacuum/scrape all of that stuff out through that opening. You'd need to tape a tube to the end of the vacuum hose since most vacuum hoses are too large to fit. And if the water heater isn't draining, you'll have to use a bucket to catch most of the water coming out of the lower element hole. Once the bucket fills up, put element back in, dump bucket, and repeat. It's annoying to drain and even more annoying to clean... If anyone knows of a good method to clean it other than what I described, I'd love to hear it.

[@JohnDoe-ej1lw]

Hey Jay...seems like the water quality where you live is not that good...I had that same issue with my water quality since we use well water and installed a softener and its been keeping good with my appliances....thanks for sharing the video....God bless my friend 🙏

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Yeah, the sinks in the house get a black tint to them with time so I was thinking the same thing. Glad to hear that a water softener solved the problem in your case though! May your appliance enjoy a breakdown-free life for the next 20 years at the very least! I receive the blessing and may the Lord bless you and yours as well my friend!

[@ohiopat]

When draining, open the drain before you shut off the incoming water so the pressure clears the drain . Then shut off the incoming and it should be draining.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Ah, that's a great tip!! Thank you for pointing that out!

[@Shyboiscony]

@@ohiopat you right

[@knowledgeispower6192]

Love the videos. Keep them coming.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you! I will try to do just that.

[@zekenzy6486]

Great video. Thank you for sharing

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you sir! I appreciate you stopping by for the new video, have a fantastic new week!

[@Shyboiscony]

Good Video. Thanks for sharing

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you! Glad you liked the video! 🙂

[@emilepmartin]

Great video Jay, love the content! Looks like you have some really hard water (as do most of us) so...do you have any tips on whole home water treatment systems if they're worth it to reduce or eliminate these hard water minerals damaging our appliances?

[@WordofAdviceTV]

A whole house water softener would definitely help with the hard water. The house I owned in Minnesota had one and I never had any issues related to hard water. If you plan to stay in your home for a while, it's probably worth looking into and will help prevent appliance breakdowns caused by scale and mineral build up.

[@harrydickson4575]

Great video 👍👍👍

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you my friend! May you have an amazingly blessed new week!!

[@ronkrodel2422]

Good job as always.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you sir! May you have an amazing new week!

[@cyanidex]

After you saved me with your furnace gas valve advice, I have been hoping to see a video about troubleshooting hot water heaters. 😅 I'm currently having an issue with the thermal switch tripping on occasion. It happens more often when the door is closed so I'm assuming it's not getting enough air. Any thoughts?

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Glad to hear that the videos have been helpful! Do you have makeup air going into that room? Perhaps this something you could add if you don't? I talk about that somewhat in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p4fHiaZ-d6aCrc0si=6cb5AMLjAODcAkfo

[@kkovler1]

to make draining the hot water tank easier, You can buy a transfer pump. It might even help if the tank has sediment in the bottom as it could break it up a bit with the increased flow.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Great idea! Thank you for the suggestion!

[@dm7097]

1) always replace the factory drain valve with a full port valve 2) flush the tank at least twice a year 3) when attempting to flush a tank, give it a quick blast with the cold water valve

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Great tips, thank you!!

[@ranger178]

might be a good idea to open covers and spray element the day before with penetrating oil to maybe loosen up the element and open drain after turning power off with water pressure still on to clear out the drain and get rid of hot water before closeing valve and draining tank by gravity. roger wakefield showed a new tool it had a way to blow out junk in drain valve he has video on it.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

All great tips and suggestions, thank you!

[@10forthebigguy753]

@@ranger178 that’s exactly what I did. It never soaked past the rubber ring.

[@ranger178]

@@10forthebigguy753 so the rubber ring is on outside and the threads are inside in the water? on his water heater the threads looked clean and the metal around outside of element looked corroded outside the rubber o ring

[@E85_STI]

I’ve never drained or changed heating elements in my home but I kinda want to do it for maintenance. Now to help drain you can use the hvac vacuum attachment and pull the sediment out and it will start to flow out.

[@shawnn5213]

Exactly, great idea. Just like HVAC condenser line

[@gnic76]

Glad I have a gas water heater. 😂 Hope you try and clear the drain valve and get some of the sediment out, your water heater should last longer and you might get more volume out of the tank.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Lol, I agree about the joy of having a gas water heater. 😄 I don't know if I want to deal with all that sediment since the water heater is leaking on top and will likely be getting replaced soon.

[@gnic76]

@@WordofAdviceTV Yeah, if replacing soon, I wouldn't bother either. I'd pull the elements for spares if similar to new one and leave it at that. 👍

[@bobwelch5056]

Thank you Jay

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You bet! And thank YOU for stopping by for the new video! Have a fabulous rest of your Sunday!

[@libbyd1001]

With my water heater, each time I have replaced the sacrificial anode, I try to drain just a few inches of water to relieve some pressure and not have water bubbling up out of the anode port. I've found every time, that in order to have any water come out of the drain at the bottom, I must manually open the pressure relief valve a little. Letting that air in, allows some water to drain out.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

That's a great tip! Thank you for sharing how you get your water heater to start draining.

[@Olds_Pwr]

20 years ago or so I had to do this, I remember syphoning the water from the top of the tank. Perhaps it was from the water inlet/outlet or the popoff valve.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Good thing that you only need to do this about once every 20 years right? 😄 Not sure about the syphoning part so can't comment on that.

[@davidmckinney6577]

Hello 👋 🫂 good buddy Jay 👍..I recently changed a element in a water heater about a month ago for a person and I opened the valve at the bottom and nothing came out so I took a big long screwdriver and got it to open up it still took a while I had to go back with the screwdriver a few times to open it up. And I like to never got the old element out it was rusted in there it was a really old water heater and about a week or so later it started leaking at the top because it was so old I think it was about fourteen if I remember right but anyway I went back and put in a new one and I took out the new element and saved it and I gave the tank to a friend of mine who collects scrap metal. My uncle is back in the hospital and now very serious condition he has a blood clot at the base of his skull and his kidneys are shutting down and they found four more masses in his lungs and tomorrow they will start dialysis. He skipped his appointments to get hydrated and he got so dehydrated it cause his kidneys to shut down he was supposed to have palliative care come to his house to give him fluids twice a week but somehow it didn't get started yet and he is in terrible shape but he sure has willpower to live I will say that if it was me I would have given in long ago but I don't think he will be here much longer he has a very strong will to live but you can only go so far even with that..I like the chin whiskers it is what I have except mine is Grey. 😂. Take care buddy and God bless you and your family tell everyone I said hello and I love you all and give them a big hug for me I'm still hopping around one one and a half foot I'm still not any better but I know they are better days ahead.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Aloha David! Good to see you in the comments! It seems like you have experience with just about any repair work out there. 😄 The ultimate handyman! I am sure the people in your area appreciate you. It's interesting how that happens so often right? Someone posts a video and it's on a topic that you either just experienced or are about to engage in. Sorry to hear about your uncle, that sounds bad. Maybe his strong will can carry him through this crisis as well. May the Lord bless him and give him the strength to endure this trial. About the chin whiskers... That's very accurate! 😂 I am one of those people that could never grow a beard. What you see in the video is about the most it can grow. I'm sure your grey version looks way cooler. Thank you, you take care and stay safe as well. God bless you and keep you in your going out and your coming in. Hope you get better soon, way to have a positive attitude!

[@capt.nemo00]

thanks

[@ranger178]

reminds me of when we went over to a friend's house to help him his lower element went out my dad was a plumber and over in Allentown where this guy lived they used river water that was like liquid rock it had so many minerals the water heater was solid above the level of the element it was way back in early 80s we removed whole plate to get element out and dug out minerals with a giant spoon for hour or two to get it below level of the element as far as we could reach what a mess. luckily our water is ridiculously soft it has almost no minerals.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh man, that does sound like a mess! Scooping out sediment for hours sounds like quite the tedious task. Thank you for sharing your experience!

[@TheExistentialNihilist]

Shouldn't you have turned off the bath faucet as well to vapor lock the system if you plan in doing the replacement without draining the heater? Wouldn't that help to keep water from draining out the element opening?

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Yes, that would have helped and the water would have probably chugged out slower. It would have been better to do as you said.

[@TheExistentialNihilist]

@@WordofAdviceTV Thanks for the response. I've glommed a ton of info from your HVAC vids. Especially the gas furnace diagnostics as I do residential maintenance and we use the Trane 80% efficiencies that you use as examples. Saved me TONS of time. Was just looking for clarity on the element question. Awesome channel!!!

[@WordofAdviceTV]

@@TheExistentialNihilist You bet! Glad to hear that the videos have been helpful for you. Thank you!! Have a fabulous new week good sir!

[@bluecavemen]

If I have a commercial water heater that says 480v on it does that mean I get a 240v heat element for each which equals 480v or do I have to get a 480v for each element? Because I got a 240v element and replaced both of them and the breaker tripped…

[@AvantiSiempre]

What I do is just with the drain hose just open the shut off valve and create pressure And it’ll blow the water out close it and open it few times and 99% of the time it works

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh good to know! Thank you for the tip!

[@luke_8_17]

A must watch, How Not to change a water heater element.

[@KhmerH20]

for draining, I noticed that turning on 1 faucet didn't do it. i had to turn on all of them! then the water start to drain more quickly.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh interesting! Thank you for sharing that tip!

[@KhmerH20]

@@WordofAdviceTV you're welcome! i honestly don't know how it works. maybe it doesn't work all the time.

[@ronamo111]

this isn't anything to do with a water heater but my furnace isn't quite right there is to much flame behind the burn chamber it's floating all over it's not roll out. I was wondering if anyone knows if the fuel rail nozzles can get opened up after so many years. i set the gas valve with a manometer to 4 inches of water col. which is what it calls for on my furnace..

[@rightlydivided]

instead of blowing just reverse a shop vac and/of vacuum it out

[@WordofAdviceTV]

That is a great idea!! Too bad I didn't think of it at that moment. 😄

[@10forthebigguy753]

I did mine recently someone change the bottom element on the fly. The element was bent up, like a corkscrew is because the tank was more than half full of solid scale. I spent all day scooping out the scale.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh man, my condolences! Cleaning out scale and sediment is an arduous task. Would you mind sharing how you go about getting the scale out of there?

[@10forthebigguy753]

@@WordofAdviceTV I cleaned it out through the bottom, heating element hole with a model bar with an L bend at the end. Little by little . Also, I needed a 38 mm socket. I borrowed for free at AutoZone to remove the rusted element.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Ah okay! That seems to be the most common approach - to clean it in one way or another through the bottom element opening. Thank you for sharing your method!

[@strayedcat1966]

Eating an elephant is a long process... one bite at the time. Time for a new water heater!

[@10forthebigguy753]

@@strayedcat1966 I live in Florida and they make you get permit and only have a licensed plumber install it. Around $2000.

[@Shyboiscony]

I think Pipe Wrench works better than the bit extension…..

[@WordofAdviceTV]

All I can say is... Yes. 😇 It's just that many folks don't have a huge pipe wrench laying around at home..

[@Shyboiscony]

@@WordofAdviceTV thats Valid.

[@rafars2246]

Mine is under the stairs, so no maintenance required, just buy one when starts leaking or else hehe

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Lol, sounds good to me. 😄

[@jennyrose2200]

you didn't show the lower replacement.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

The process would be exactly the same.