DIYDIYDIY
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I just installed a brand new hot water tank in my home that was built 10 years ago - it has standard copper plumbing throughout the house. My old original tank was working OK, but because it was 10 years old, and could begin to have problems, I decided to replace it now so I could special order and then install a high quality 12 year warranty / propane / 50 gallon model. I live in a Rural setting on a county supplied rural water system - not a well. I have decent water pressure, but not extreemly high. In the past, with the old hot water tank, the hot water came out of all faucets at a slighly lower pressure then the cold did. I always attributed this slightly reduced hot water pressure to the fact that my water heater is in the basement, and the fact that you had to push the water through the tank and up to the next higher level would theoritically cause a slight drop in pressure at the hot water faucets. The new tank came equipped with very thin heat traps in both the inlet and outlet connectors, which look like thin washers that are cut / vented, etc... I guess the theory is the heat stays in the tank but the flaps "open up" when water flows through. The tank also came with what I believe are dielectric nipples - galvanized, with a blue plastic lining inside them. When I installed the tank I left the thin heat traps in place, and used the supplied nipples. After installing the new tank I noticed that my hot water pressure at all faucets was a bit less than I had with the old tank. It's not terrible pressure, but it's not blasing out either and it is defenetily a bit lower than I had with the old tank. The old tank was NOT connected with any sort of dielectric nipples or dielectric connectors, just standard copper unions connected to the water tank. I have checked the faucets and nothing is in them that would restrict the flow of hot water and I don't have anything blocking the inlet or outlet areas or connectors on the tank. I am thinking that it's possible that either those little thin flapped heat traps may be slightly restricting the flow into and/or out of the tank... or the reduced inside diameter of the nipples may be restricting the flow / presure. So, two questions:
1. Does anyone have any thoughts or actual experience in having reduced hot water pressure that they attributed to either those little flap style heat traps, or reduced inside diameter on fittings due to the dielectric inside coating?
2. If I decide to disconnect and try again, and get rid of the heat trap flaps, and go with connectors that do not have any compromises in the inside diameter, should I try brass nipples or the normal dielectric connectors. I have read pros and cons on "brass" vs. "dielectic couplers" when connecting hot water tanks to copper systems... either way would cost me about $10 per side, $20 total in parts.
1. Does anyone have any thoughts or actual experience in having reduced hot water pressure that they attributed to either those little flap style heat traps, or reduced inside diameter on fittings due to the dielectric inside coating?
2. If I decide to disconnect and try again, and get rid of the heat trap flaps, and go with connectors that do not have any compromises in the inside diameter, should I try brass nipples or the normal dielectric connectors. I have read pros and cons on "brass" vs. "dielectic couplers" when connecting hot water tanks to copper systems... either way would cost me about $10 per side, $20 total in parts.