How To Test Water Heater Element With Multimeter

[@rickmucci4785]

Liked and subscribed!!! Thank you sooooooooo much! Well explained, friendly and professional vidéo!

[@davidgrubb7287]

Great job explaining this! Wish everyone was as knowledgeable and directly to the point as you are.

[@tommyteamer9037]

Thank you for letting us know how to test an element on a water heater with a multimeter

[@billcunningham361]

I must say that, I have watched many videos about a variety of interests but, the information provided presented in your videos are the most informative. I am a power lineman by trade and learned many years ago not to touch anything for which you have no knowledge but, your videos provide me with that knowledge and it makes sense to me. Thanks so much.

[@robertpalmatier2699]

I hope I become as knowledgeable as you one day Jay. You are the man!

[@tommywwalden1599]

Hi, great video man! I much appreciate you demostating how to test a VOM and checking the VOM leads before use!!! This procedure is a Best Practice for anyone using a VOM and recommend by all manufactures. I think a good video for you to make is showing Electrical Best Practice procedures for working on/around energized electrical equipment. Jay you stay safe and have a good weekend. thx, tommy

[@chinese244]

AWESOME VIDEO....Simple but to the point explanation. Nice voice and fluent....no crazy music. Thank you again. SUBSCRIBED. !!!!!!!!!!!!

[@scurling2993]

Jay, good info. I would say if someone doesn't know if their multi-meter is working, they probably shouldn't have their hands in the water heater wiring.

[@petemaverick4538]

I hope you think about being an HVAC instructor. Seriously, you should consider it. Thanks

[@WordofAdviceTV]

I appreciate the thought! 😄 I have not really considered being a teacher but no one knows what the future holds right?

[@petemaverick4538]

@@WordofAdviceTV I’m a retired high school teacher 30+ years and I’ve followed your teaching methods for over two years now.. trust me, I know a good teacher when I see one.. patience, passion and communication are the key.. you seem to embody all three of these skills. God bless!

[@mathman0101]

Jay Yes you are just as good as legendary Craig Migliaccio.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

@@mathman0101 Thank you! But AC Service Tech probably knows 5 times more than me to be honest. That man is truly knowledgeable about HVAC. Him and Bryan Orr from HVAC school. I am a beginner compared to them. 😅

[@mathman0101]

@@WordofAdviceTV Absolutely so many talented people in this field included Jim Bergman and so many others. Jay I am someone who learns fast and reads a lot including all the technical engineering books on HVAC/R. Now I advise some of the best HVAC/R engineers in the US especially on the testing and standards side. If it weren’t for you I would not be able have that confidence I am still learning and will continue to learn throughout my lifetime, but you are being modest and rightly so but equally don’t sell yourself short either. All the best for your future.

[@claytonfite3197]

Good morning Jay I have no questions I simply must say the hot water heater looks very close to a new installation. Very clean and professionally installed. I like the safety strap and the electric disconnect. I'm a huge supporter of lockable breaker lockouts. Outstanding job my friend

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Good morning good sir! The water heater is relatively new (2016) and we actually just had a small earthquake here so those "earthquake straps" are definitely a great thing to have! I like the electrical disconnects as well and fully agree that whoever installed this did a great job! 👍👍👍 Thank you for stopping by. May God bless you and yours, have an awesome weekend!!

[@robtemple3445]

Hey J, great video as usual. One thing that I've learned, if the house is on a well, you must check the sediment level. I've seen several inches of sediment in my W/H. If the lower element is at, or below the sediment level, the new element won't last very long.

[@brucemoriarty9964]

Thanks for teaching us DIY's . This sure is a bad economy. God Bless ya and have a great day ! 🙂

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! The economy could be better but it also has a lot of room to get worse... (Hopefully not) I receive the blessing and may God bless you and yours as well!!

[@hebergonzalez91]

Thank you so much for such an awesome video! Learned a lot and found the bottom water heater element was bad.

[@josetjaycastro4778]

Excellent video with lots of amazingly useful information! I appreciate people like you that take the time to make these videos to teach others! I I really excited to check your other playlists! Thank you again!

[@ruftime]

Nice! When checking my test lead continuity, I flex the cable at the ends and along their length, to check for any obvious intermittent issues. Course my equipment has hundreds of hours of use.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Great tip! Thank you for sharing sir! May your leads never fail you! 😄👍

[@dbjordan1170]

Great video on the hot water diagram. Thank you for answering my question.

[@dido1803]

You did great job on explaining. I learned a lot. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Awesome! I'm glad to hear that! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. 👍👍

[@cesarflores7524]

You're the goat bro

[@Froggability]

I also always check each element with my “megger “ insulation resistance checker to see if the element sheath has split and water has entered. I probably also make more use of my clamp ammeter and the LoZ volt tester to avoid any ghost volts. And Thx Jay !

[@She_Tried_It]

Yes!!!!!! This handsome fellow is LEGIT!

[@scotthill4293]

your doing a great job with your channel. you have taught me a lot and aloha

[@dankelley9361]

As always, great video in both being tutorial & home owner friendly 😁

[@tommycho9068]

Great video for beginners Thanks.

[@North1Isley]

Had a reading of 600 000 ohms on my lower element today :D time for a new Water Heater it seems. Thanks for the Video

[@steelbender4463]

Fantastic video! Well spoken, easy to follow your instructions, great camera work. I just subscribed because I know I'll learn from you! Thanks for taking the time to make your videos.

[@mrbig4532]

I was taught many years ago to always drain the tank and pull the element. If you don’t you could get false reading from the tank itself. You could get positive continuity, and ohms readings. So to be sure pull the element so it can checked visually and with the meter.

[@wm5793]

Thank you for the valuable information.

[@rnptek]

Very good video sir. Thank you for sharing👍

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! Thank you for stopping by to watch it! Have a magnificent weekend good sir!!

[@watkinsrcful]

Love your work. Thank you.

[@geneballay9590]

very well done. thank you for sharing

[@QUILLS747]

Excellent. Just what I needed to know :) Thanks. Keep up the great work :)

[@maynardhahn8118]

Really good video very understandable

[@YouAreGettingBetter]

Great video! Thanks so much!

[@laylamakkar5136]

me too Liked and subscribed!!! Thank you sooooooooo much! Well explained, friendly and professional vidéo!

[@alanjackson4397]

Great explanation for checking water heater elements thank you

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome! Glad you liked the video. Have a marvelous weekend Alan! 👍👍

[@robertpalmatier2699]

Definitely the Le Bron James of HVAC!!!

[@armyhero25]

Thank you !

[@steelcrusher]

Thanks 👍👍

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're the man Steelcrusher! Have yet another fabulously fantastic weekend good sir!!

[@steelcrusher]

@@WordofAdviceTV no sir, you are beyond the man! Your videos are on point!!!!! I love all the tips and ideas for real! Thank you sir. 👍👍👍

[@bwselectronic]

Another fine video from Dad Jokes Inc.🤣🤣🤣

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Lol thank you! 😄😎

[@vince6829]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Much appreciated.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

You're welcome and thank you for stopping by to watch it! God bless you and yours, have a fantastic weekend!!

[@mahmoudalimardani5490]

Thanks

[@lovepreetlove9984]

Hello Jay, Really thankful to you. If possible can you make video on how relay works.

[@MLef111]

Great video.

[@harrydickson4575]

Another thumbs up video 👍👍👍

[@WordofAdviceTV]

It's an honor to get the legendary thumbs up! Thank you Harry, may you have a phenomenal weekend my friend!! By the way.. I really liked how you had exactly 500 subscribers. It looked nice! Now you have 496. Who dared to unsubscribe from Harry!? Let me fix that quick... 😇

[@harrydickson4575]

@@WordofAdviceTV you’re the man, I haven’t made a video in years I used to make them with Ralph from T&N Services

[@WordofAdviceTV]

@Harry Dickson Yes, I actually remember watching some of your videos years ago. 😄 Perhaps you should make some more. 👍👍

[@harrydickson4575]

@@WordofAdviceTV I’ll try to make one this coming week or two lol

[@pa7422]

Thanks.

[@vernessalkic1065]

Awsome video

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you! 🙏😊

[@Eddy63]

Great little demo ... How much celery did they offer you 🤣😅😂 My wife would love to have a coffee mug that size 🤣😅😂 Aloha my friend ...

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Glad you liked it Eddy! 😄 Haha and the joke. Yes, that's a fun little gift! Just look up giant coffee cup on Amazon, there's a bunch of them. Aloha from Hawaii! Hope your week is going great!

[@coolramone]

HOT water heater is redundant. BUT, I would rather have a hot water heater than a cold one. 😂 After measuring 17 ohms I pressed the red button and reset the breaker on the water heater and now I’m getting 240 bolts and 18 amps.👍Thanks WoA

[@manikandanmuthu8476]

Thanks bro I like u channel

[@mauriciobarrossilva5249]

very good .

[@leoleo2056]

Great video!!!! What’s the most current multimeter you are using? Thanks!

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Thank you! I have been and still am using the meter in the video. No complaints about it, it's great!

[@Rightsrestored556]

My hot water heater only has a lower element no upper element. There is a plug where the upper element would be. Can I add an upper element?

[@oglerdeleon9494]

Before adjusting the water temperature higher than 120°D coud do damages on young ones and I would recommend to check Your water supply lines. Example Pex could melt down at 130° Degrees and do damages up to 25k in minutes.

[@classic287]

I changed the elements once, so far on my water heater. It’s been about 10 years, so like everything else, I’m sitting here waiting for them to malfunction. Hopefully they won’t do so at the same time. 😂😳

[@Jasonwolofsky]

Hey J! this was awesome. Question for you. I disconnected the power and checked the continuity of all three elements. Top was 16, Middle was 21 and bottom was 75. When i went back 20 minutes later they were all around 17. What would explain such a differences in measurements. Settings were exactly same on the multimeter.

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Did you take the first measurements right after you turned the power off to it? If the element was just on/hot, it will have a higher reading. The higher the temp, the higher the reading. When you checked a second time, it already had time to cool off. Thats the only explanation I have for this one, not sure if it could be something else.

[@Jasonwolofsky]

That’s exactly what happened. I assume since it’s the bottom element it just kicked on after I used hot water this am. Tks for your help

[@randymarshall1267]

At 5:54 in, you do realize that when you say that you set the meter to the OHM setting but the video shows a completely different meter (a red one) set to a voltage reading . Am I missing something?

[@skyhogg8000]

I noticed that too, but I assume he simply found a photo with good contrasting colors to show what the ohms symbol looked like. On the photo he used it was white against a black background. On his yellow meter it would have been harder to see the symbol.

[@kashifiqbalzafar]

Hello sir, Can we change 3ph-380v-60Hz compressor of 64LRA, by 3ph-380v-60Hz compressor of 87 LRA

[@positiveboy8563]

Jay what good brother .. have a question . I have a maytag top loader washer model mvwx500xw2 was working good antill someone put clothe in it too much machine going back and forth like someone playing bass my wife stop it , take out the clothe and put it correctly and it was OK after that. No banging but when the machine stops the clothes wet did not spin out dry .. I changed the pump and the actuator the main sharf clutch & belt the capacitor the machine now wash and when it reach to spin it put water in the push it out and then put again 1to 2 are 3 times before it spin out when it did the clothed still wet can you tell me what to do here please... now my wife blame me..

[@bobbywanger8123]

👍👍👍🔥

[@dbjordan1170]

Should the voltage across the heating element leads on the lower heating unit equal that across the top heating element? My top shows 240 volts but the bottom heating unit is showing no voltage across the leads. Is that normal?

[@WordofAdviceTV]

On most water heaters, yes. The elements come on one at a time. If the top one is on, the bottom one should be off. This video may help paint a clearer picture of how that works: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iombhKh-gJaYqbssi=qf1gPcIDJlHHpmyh

[@morokeiboethia6749]

Question - I did my annual draining of my hwh and after filling the tank back up and cutting breaker on, the water temperature was suddenly much hotter than it originally was. It was really hot even though the thermostats were set to 130. It had always been a "strong warm" but after draining and refilling suddenly the temp was really hot. Not boiling hot but it was never that hot even when originally installed. From the things I've read on the internet of potential problems, just about everything I read were problems that caused the water temp to drop but in my case the temperature went up higher than it should be and it occured immediately after draining the tank. Any idea on what would cause this? I know removing the solids would help the temp go up but I'm pretty sure this is a lot hotter than what the thermostats are set to because it was never this hot. The tank was installed about 5 yrs ago so its not brand new but not very old either.

[@davidwhite8045]

I have completed your test as detailed, and the readings were 14. My panel had tripped, I did the test, the panel would not reset, I then replaced the thermostats top and bottom, the power panel reset, unfortunately still no hot water. I’m assuming I should just change the elements? Is there anything else I can do? Dave

[@karendadd483]

Hi thanks for video was great..I have question ..I checked elements I have a good reading on both ..I do have hot water but have both temp settings maxed out at 150c but when I take a temp reading of my water it is only 124c could this be a thermostat issue ? If so do you have a video to check them ..also with it being set at 150c the plastic protective cover is warm is that ok ?can I just remove it when I put my covers back on ..thanks

[@l.a.m7645]

Im assuming you have to drain system to change element

[@WordofAdviceTV]

I have changed them without draining the water heater but I would not recommend that. If possible, do drain it.

[@ataho2000]

Hey J, I have a question. What is the problem if I have normal water pressure on the cold water but not no the hot water?

[@leootanielu5710]

I love the video how to check the elements, but my water heater is electric and solar and the solar portion of the water heater is not providing hot water I change the thermostat and it still not working. 0:14 0:14

[@draugrx23]

What if the heating element 1 of 2 (lower) is going between 12 and 14 then suddenly OL?

[@gtxhunter]

Tested my outlet have power there, took wire nuts off where cord connects to water heater wires and tested and I’m getting O.L does that mean my cord is bad?

[@arenmoore2516]

Hello hello! Very informative vid. Question: Why would my unit read 0.5 volts even with power turned off to it? I tested my multimeter like you showed, and I'm getting around 120v at an outlet, continuity is check as well. It seems like the unit is getting even a small amount of power even with the breaker switched off. Also, with the breaker on, each terminal (at the top like you showed) is at around 128/9 volts, and together it's showing 250V. That's a bit more than 240, huh? Anyway, I'm trying to test the thermostats and elements because we are getting like 10 mins of hot water MAX. Thing is, it's a new unit and it's been like this since we got it. Wondering if i might have messed up some wiring on the top when i installed it. But also wondering if somethings up from the power source at the breaker :-/.

[@frankvaldez2769]

Im not an electrician and before i hire one which I'm sure they can be expensive, but trying to prevent from hiring someone, I wanted to ask, my electric water heater's hot water runs out really fast. I get hot water for about 5-7 minutes and then its cold. It's brand new. I've had it for about a month now. What can the problem be????? Thanks!

[@_._gyokan_._]

Question, my continuity setting reads out 25 Ohms and beeps, my resistance setting reads open, on the same element. I took the range off auto and all that, its still reading open. Is this a meter sensitivity issue?

[@theoisaac9948]

1👍👍💯

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Good to see you Theo! Thank you for stopping by man and leaving a thumbs up comment! 😄👍👍 May you have a marvelous weekend followed by an exceptional week!

[@AnthonyGibson-n1g]

Both my elements are good but I’m still not getting hot water. What do I do next

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Have you checked with a meter if they are getting power? I had a no hot water issue recently and it turned out to be a bad circuit breaker. Either the water heater is not getting power or the thermostat is not letting the power through (likely a bad thermostat then). If the upper thermostat has a reset button, have you tried resetting it?

[@brobinson8614]

I wouldn’t replace both, because I’ve found elements 25 years old still going fine

[@OLskewL]

If I've replaced the thermostat and the geyser still isn't heating up, what could be the problem? (electricity is fine in the house).

[@brobinson8614]

Water leaking into a crack in the element itself can give a resistance reading too

[@KennySouthPark86]

When i measure my heating element with 200 Ohms option on multimeter, i get a constantly changing reading (let's say it goes to 80 ohms and from then it starts going down, non stop, and the longer i wait, the longer it goes down) Does this mean my heating element is broken? I tried 2 multimeters, one gets no read at all, the other one does that.

[@stevenkoerner4942]

If I change the heat element and thermostat in my hot water heater and still don't have hot water and put a new breaker in my breaker box

[@stevenkoerner4942]

And what can I do

[@agustinmontes8049]

I drained my electric water heater but didn’t shut the power. What should I expect after 56 hours?😢

[@WordofAdviceTV]

Oh boy... Sorry to hear that. After you filled it up again, do the elements work/heating the water? If not, then one or both burned out. The glass lining inside the water heater probably cracked too. Thats what protects it from inside from rusting. No immediate consequences for that but long term it just means your tank will start to leak quite a bit sooner than it would have originally.

[@marvinisit]

or in our county, just pull the disconnect right beside the water heater........

[@german69692007]

I get .48 and 0 on the top

[@jessieperez2422]

You supposed show how test the element but not o never the ommeter. 😅😅😅😅

[@Xander-Gen]

So mine is reading negative 12 🙃

[@tomthumb5445]

5:48

[@redblazehorse]

I have never seen a "Hot" water heater. If your water is how, why are you heating it? I have a "Cold" heater heater.

[@johnnytoy5487]

It's a water heater,you don't have to heat hot water. 🤔

[@gusvietnam5086]

Great video! Thank you