15 year old water heater leaking

[rocky126]

Hello,

Im trying to see if its salvageable. It seems to be leaking from the red ring that has some corrosion issues on the connection. However, the white ring in the middle is loose and can be picked up but has no corrosion underneath it. The heater is about 15 years old. I live in Az. where the water is very hard. Any suggestions?

 

[Reach4]

Tie a cloth strip around the nipple about 1 inch above the red. If that gets wet, that would show the water is coming from above.

It the cloth stays dry, replace the WH.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[MACPLUMB]

Replace that hot water flex, take a wire brush to clean up the threads on the nipple,
if it is bad replace it otherwise wrap it with two turns of Teflon tape

 

[Jadnashua]

FWIW, you'll never find Teflon (TM) tape...Dupont doesn't make it and doesn't supply the raw material to those that do...what you'll find is PTFE (generic Teflon) tape. Not all tissues are Kleenex, nor all tape Scotch, or all copies Xeroxes.

 

[Dj2]

Apart from trying to fix what you have, I would put a $$ piggy bank next to this WH, towards a new WH.

 

[Terry]

Many condo associations require replacement at 10 years if you're on a second story or above. The water damage caused by a bad water heater is always more than the water replacement cost.