If It’s Not Broken Why Replace It 18 YO water heater on second floor

[Scotty13]

I have a 30-gallon Rheem (Model 813V30D) water heater that is almost 18 years old in a closet below my A/C unit. I live on the second floor of a condominium complex. It’s NOT giving me any trouble. Like they say, “If its not broken don’t fix it.”

I have some questions…

1. Should I replace it now before it gives me a problem?
2. How long will a water heater last?
3. If and when it does brake, what’s the worst that could happen?

Thank you,
Scotty

 

[Reach4]

1. Not in my opinion; I am not a plumber.
2. Depends. I find 30 years or more not uncommon. Others say 8 to 12 years, and propose replacing on such a schedule. Depends on water and other factors. Suppose two houses. One replaces the water heater every 8 years. The other every 32 years. For those two house, the average water heater lasts 12.8 years.
3. Leaks water. Usually slowly initially.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[hj]

1. That is a judgement call on your part. We have nothing to base an answer on.
2. one week to 20 years, and it depends on many factors almost NONE of which you have any control over.
3. Anything from seepage to a spontaneous flood.

 

[Jadnashua]

Maybe something to consider is liability to whomever lives beneath you. Often, when they fail, it starts with a small leak, but that's not 100%. Then, it can progress to a flood slowly or quickly, really hard to say. Some condo associations call for replacement on a regular basis, regardless of whether there's any evidence of leaking just to help ensure damage to adjacent units doesn't occur. Go away for the weekend, could come home to a real mess.

There are several things you can do when it is time to replace: install a drain pan (may not help a lot if there's no place to run the drain to, though!), and add a smart shutoff that will cut the water off if there's a leak (an example is www.wagsvalve.com).

 

[WJcandee]

FWIW, every time we have lost a water heater, it has not started with a slow leak.

Rather, the first clue was water pouring through the garage ceiling (with the second-floor little electric one), or (twice), no hot water from the basement oil-fired one, whereupon a trip to the basement reveals a steam-room-like environment. The vessel just cracked, and, upon cracking, loosed its contents on the floor. That's just three out of millions, but it's also a 100-percent spontaneous failure rate.

We now have a drain pan on the garage one. If the thing fails, we WILL almost certainly get some water through the ceiling, but most of the subsequent water running into the thing should at least be contained and vented outside. (Diameter of drain > diameter of water pipe).

 

[Scotty13]

Thank you for ALL your feedback. I’m going to go ahead and replace my water heater.

 

[Terry]

Most condo associations require replacement at ten years.
Being on the second floor with an eighteen year old water heater is just foolish. I hope you have good home owners insurance to pay for the downstair neighbors repairs.

 

[Dj2]

Just the fact that you asked about it - shows that you are thinking about it and worry about the unknown.

Replace the water heater now, also replace all connectors, cold water valve, and sleep thru the night.

You really don't want to know what can happen if it starts leaking when you are away.

 

[hj]

If you REALLY believe a drain pan with a "gravity drain" will keep up with a pressurized leak from a water heater, you have a misguided faith in physics.

 

[Jadnashua]

If you REALLY believe a drain pan with a "gravity drain" will keep up with a pressurized leak from a water heater, you have a misguided faith in physics.

A full flow leak, agreed. A drip, yes. While not always the case, may start with a drip. How fast it progresses to a deluge, no reliable way to tell. The WAGSVALVE will shut the inlet water off, so all that would be left (and it could be significant) is what's in the tank. Better than an open supply pipe that could dump thousands of gallons.

 

[dosby]

I replaced my 18 y.o. 50-gal water heater recently with absolutely the same brand and size and all other specs.
The outcome turned out to be quite huge. At the highest water temp setting in a previous heater, hot water used to turn to 100F warm just after a 30-min full-flow shower. Now with the new one, the water never gets warm at the lowest 120F setting, I am not re-adjusting my shower faucet at all when I am showering.
Think of the energy/money wasted with such subpar heating efficiency.

 

[Reach4]

I think you are saying that you cannot get hot-enough water for your shower even on full-hot at the shower. Did I misunderstand?

The plumber may have added a mixing valve that mixes cold water with the hot water. Maybe that unit is adjusted wrong.

 

[dosby]

I think you are saying that you cannot get hot-enough water for your shower even on full-hot at the shower. Did I misunderstand?

That used to be the case with the old water heater, not any more. The water was really hot first, then after 30 minutes of showering it was not hot enough at full-hot shower setting.

The plumber may have added a mixing valve that mixes cold water with the hot water. Maybe that unit is adjusted wrong.

The plumber didn't mess with shower valves at all, he just replaced the water heater. I am not aware of any mixing that would possible at water heater.

 

[Jadnashua]

Did the hot/cold lines get reversed? On some, you can do that IF you swap the dip tube location. This might be done to make it easier to access the control panel or get the T&P drain line where they want it. If you're getting hot water from the cold side, it's coming from the bottom of the tank. The dip tube directs the incoming cold water to the bottom of the tank and minimizes mixing during use so you can draw the hot water off the top.