A water heater is among the essential plumbing components of your Boca Raton, FL, home. It ensures that you have a continuous supply of heated water for showering, bathing, cooking, and other uses. However, the unit also runs into leaks, heating element issues, and sedimentation. Dealing with a damaged water heater can be a frustrating experience, especially if you’re getting ready to enter the shower room or even preparing a meal.
When the water coming through your hot water faucet is lukewarm or cold, it is usually a sign that the water heater has run into issues, most probably with its heating elements. The water heater’s heating elements can give out and would need a plumber to replace them. But what might be the reason for the malfunctioning water heater’s heating elements?
Minerals Dissolved In the Water
Like all components in your water heater, the heating element wasn’t designed to last forever. If your home gets hard water or water containing lots of dissolved minerals, your unit’s heating element deterioration speed might increase. The dissolved minerals return to their solid state during water heating. These minerals coat your heating element, insulating and preventing heat transfer between the water and the element.
Minerals also can collect at the bottom of the water heater tank and create a sediment layer. This places more pressure on the heating element. Therefore, the heating element usually fails faster, prompting you to enlist a plumber for its replacement. You could prevent this from arising by having a professional flush the water heater tank after every six months or one year. Doing this will help remove the sediment layers and extend the service life of the various other water heater components.
Pockets of Air
The heating element of your water heater doesn’t work unless it is submerged in the water entirely. If it works without enough or any water in the water heater tank, it could produce enough heating energy to burn out its core within a short period. The element should have water where it can transfer the heat to protect it from burning out and experiencing significant damage.
Whenever air pockets develop within the tank, usually because of a failure to flush the tank out thoroughly before you fill it up, the element might be burning itself out without sufficient water. Therefore, the heating element might fail faster and more frequently than it usually should. A professional plumber will inspect the water heater tank to determine if the air pockets cause heating element issues.
Cracks in the Heating Element’s Coils
Excessive sediment buildup, harmed interior parts, pressure fractures on valves, and rusted heating elements are a few prevalent causes of water heater cracks. Contact a water heater system repair professional if you suspect a break in the heating element’s coils. The coil’s thickness can split, causing the flow of power to get disturbed. If you ignore the issue, things can worsen, and you might need to replace the heating element entirely. Therefore, enlist a plumber to inspect the water heater, effect the required repairs, or even replace the heating element.
Power Surges
Because an electric-powered water heater is connected to a power outlet in your house, any sudden electrical power surge can also damage the heating elements. The power surges may occur in the event of electrical storms or if the electrical utility provider experiences sudden surges on their end. All electrical water heaters have a voltage rating.
To prevent this, have a plumber install a surge protection unit at your Boca Raton, FL, home. Some types of electrical plugs also can prevent power surges from damaging the items plugged into them. Therefore, you might consider replacing the plug if the heating element frequently burns out in case of an unexpected or sudden power surge.
Wiring
Only the electrical-powered water heaters use a heating element to warm up the tank’s water. Gas-powered water heaters feature a burner at the base. If you use an electric water heater, the heating element will directly contact the water, so contaminants in the water may be the source of the problem. Your electric water heater’s wiring could also be to blame.
Your unit’s components are powered by heavy gauge wiring. Thus, a faulty connection between the wiring and the water heating unit could cause the element to fail. Get this problem inspected by a reliable and experienced plumber promptly. A wire which has moved out of position or become damaged could also be a problem.
Thermostat
Each component of a water heater serves different purposes. While the heating element heats the water, a thermostat helps regulate the heating element should heat the water and at which temperatures. Based on the predetermined temperature, a thermostat helps control when the heating elements heat the water. When temperatures rise above usual, the high limit switch on these devices cuts off power to the outside. The red reset button on thermostats allows you to restart the electricity. Have a plumber check or inspect the unit and determine what made the high-limit switch be activated.
Dry Fire Occurrence
Dry firing happens whenever an installer forgets to turn on the hot water tap while the water is flowing into the tank and fills it up. This causes the air to bleed from the system. As a result, an air pocket starts to develop at the top portion of the water heater tank, which exposes the upper heating element to air. Enough heat that could melt the copper is generated whenever the heating element heats up in an air pocket. Hence, you must have a plumber inspect the water heater regularly.
Have you noticed that your water heater is producing cold water or not heating the water to the set temperatures? The heating element may be the culprit. For the water heater repair in Boca Raton, FL, contact our able plumbers at MainLine Plumbing.