22 Year Old Water Heater - Leave as is or Maintenance it?


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Old 12-16-11, 06:34 AM
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Question 22 Year Old Water Heater - Leave as is or Maintenance it?

Ok, so I have a 22 year old CraftMaster gas water heater that been running fine since I bought this house 2 years ago. Averaging around $28/mo gas bills in the summer with furnace off. I noticed that the hot water output line had a small leak in it so I tried to fix it by replacing the old flexible pipe and the galvanized di-electric connector that had a flat spot on top of it (found out what this was afterwards). I replaced it with a new brass male to male and a new stainless steel flexible pipe, but it still leaks.

After doing some reading I found out that my inspector when we bought this house was completely wrong about the TPR valve. He said it was the old style to put them on top of the hot water outlet.
Which is true but the way mine is installed it violates code for how it should be done. It currently sits on top of a T-pipe and 8in pipe coming out of the heater, so the internal rod of the TPR valve isn't even sitting inside the tank. Also the drain line from the valve changes diameter and is fed slightly uphill before it slopes back down into the same drain that the washing machine dumps into, 2 more violations.
So what I am getting at is with a water heater being this old and my connections being so locked up is it better to leave it as is with the minimal drip I have now, or try to free the connections and do it properly? Is it possible that the TPR valve side plug could be so rusted shut that it won't break free without bending the frame around it?

I would like to disconnect the whole system and clean it out, but am afraid I won't get connections to seal when reassembling, or have something break completely.

Do I have to worry about corrosion going Galvanized steel-Brass-Stainless Steel-copper?

Front


TPR Valve


TPR Valve Close Up


TPR valve side port
 
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Old 12-16-11, 06:43 AM
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Gee, whats your saftey worth ?????

I would think any sensible person would install a new water heater and bring it all up to code. Why even screw around. IMO its just "stinking' thinking" to even try to repair that heater.


Mike NJ
 
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Old 12-16-11, 06:54 AM
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Well, thats kind of what I am thinking. If I don't fix it now I was going to wait for my tax return money and replace the whole thing and redo all the copper connections and setup the TPR correctly. Just wanted to see if anyone else had still used water heaters this old if they were still doing the job correctly.
 
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Old 12-16-11, 07:07 AM
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Well 22yrs is good enough in my book. You can get a 40 gal gas for around $350. IMO I would not buy a home store brand and am partial to the AO smith brand.

You can buy at a furguson plumbing supply that sells to the public.

AO smith 40 gal gas.

ProMax® - Water Heaters Residential by A. O. Smith

Locations finder for AO smith to purchase.

Ferguson Locations Finder

Just my opinion as a plumber.

Mike NJ
 

Last edited by lawrosa; 12-16-11 at 09:35 AM.
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Old 12-16-11, 07:13 AM
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I'm another vote for a new water heater. If you've ever watched the Myth Busters episode about what an exploding water heater then you know the damage it can do. A new heater will allow you to kill many birds with one stone (or water heater). I think the worst part of the job will be getting the old one out of the house as I'm sure it's very heavy.

I have quite a number of cheapie water heaters from big home centers in my rental houses. Within 8-10 years about a third have sprung a leak. Not a great track record especially if you plan to be in the house for the long haul.
 
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Old 12-17-11, 08:24 AM
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If I don't fix it now I was going to wait for my tax return money and replace the whole thing and redo all the copper connections and setup the TPR correctly.
I wouldn't wait another day to get started.
 
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Old 12-18-11, 03:51 PM
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Old 12-21-11, 03:40 PM
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you could set to pilot and drain it down then flush it with cold water leeting it drain off the bottom hose connection.22 years of heat on the galinized plug into a steal female thread.if you went on it with a 24" pipe wrench and persuation from a piece of pipe slipped down the wrench shaft.the relief should be on the side.might want to repipe that galvinized up top with copper into the tank if yor soldering savy...or just refit with black fittings.i'm 23 yrs on mine flush it ever fall get like fine mineral stuff out of it....maybe tax season returns you could throw one in without a big hit...easy job..remove the faucet screens and flush the hot side something always works it way out from a flush out
 
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Old 12-26-11, 06:45 AM
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You might put an additional temperature and pressure relief valve in the opening in the side, of course provided you can unscrew the plug without tearing off a chunk of tank side with it.

The old T&P valve can be left alone where it is.

Then you wouldn't have to worry about the water heater until somehting else (such as a tank leak) happened.

T&P valves should not be re-used. A simple habit plumbers should get into is to discard any T&P valve that gets uninstalled or removed. (Exception made for brand new valve inadvertently installed at the wrong time or place and promptly removed.)
 
 

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