Hot water comes out slooooowwwww!

[James55]

My house and water heater are both 18 years old. For the past several years I have noticed that when I turn on the hot water faucet, cold water comes out for a little while, then when the hot water starts to flow, the water pressure seems to slow down by quite a bit. At this point, I have to turn the faucet up more to get better pressure.

Is this a sign that my water heater is on it's last legs? Do you think that it's filled up with lime or some other deposits?

When I turn the shower on, I have so-so water pressure. Seems to be getting worse with time.

So what are the symtoms of a water heater going out on you??

Any help at all will be considered priceless!!

James

 

[King3244]

Do you have old style taps with washers? If you do then as they get older they deteriorate and when you close the tap the washer compresses. When you turn on the hot side the hot water causes the old washer to swell which in turn restricts and slows the flow. What? Is true. I don't think that it has anything wrong with your water heater. It just heats water it does'nt have anything to do with pressure.

About 20 years or so ago is when washerless started coming in. Maybe your builder was trying to save 50 cents?
LOL.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Drivesme]

You are correct, mine does that very thing and they are old washer type.

 

[James55]

Hi guys thanks for the response. I just changed sinks and faucets in my bathrooms about three months ago. I'm not sure whether the new faucets have washers or are washerless, but I can find out. Thanks for the tip.

PS, I haven't drained my water heater in 18 years. I think that now is a good time to do it, so that will be my weekend project!

Thanks again!

James

 

[King3244]

Well if it hasn't been drained in 18 years you may not get it drained now do the accumulation of crud in the bottom. If you do do it be prepared to replace the drain valve as they have a bad habit of not seating and you may end up with a slow leak. I don't know...........after that long maybe leave well enough alone.
If you have a finished basement now might be the time to bite the bullet and replace it before it starts leaking (always when you are away thus causing lots of damage).........its had a good run.
Also if you just changed those taps I doubt that they would have washers. So I don't know what is causing you problem.

 

[James55]

I'll keep on trying!

I was thinking that these faucets don't have washers at the time that I bought them. They are the kind with the on lever that you lean left or right for hot or cold water. I don't know why the water would slow down once it heats up, so figured it must have something to do with the water heater. I mean, theres nothing else between the street and my faucet is there?

Luckily the water heater is in the garage, so there would be no problem with water on the floor, and the water hose should hook up easily enough.

So I was looking into tankless water heaters elsewhere on this site. I think I'll stick with the tank. That way, I can do it myself!

If you do think of anything that would slow down my hot water flow, let me know!

James

 

[Master Plumber Mark]

slow hot ater

the problaem is your water heater is just very old

If you turn on more than one hot water faucet in the house and they both trickle down to nothing, its most likely at the water heater


usually its at the conncetions from the heater to the pipes, wether it copper, galvanized , or whatever it most likely has slolwy been corroding shut for a
long time. Eventually it will almost seal itself shut...


its best to just change the heater,

ocassionally we will service a heater like this by just cutting the copper on the outgoing hot line about 4 inches above the heater , then useing a long larged sized screwdriver, pokeing down into the heater to see if theri is an obstruction. If you hit something that stops your progress, , most likely, you are hitting the stoppage. Its a matter of pokeing through it with that screwdriver and a hammer, you want to turn it as you go, which sort of rheems out the pipe.., put it baack together with a brass compression coupling and you are probably good to go for another 5 years or so.

But as old as that one is , if you do find an obstruction at the heater, its probably best just to put that old dog to sleep.

 

[edbreyer]

One more thought...

THe Heater does need to go. Shop around now to find a good price instead of waiting until it leaks and rushing to buy one at the closest place.

I expect that the reason the pressure starts out better then fades is that a little bit of extra pressure builds up when water is heated (i.e. heat expands). When you first open a hot faucet you get the benefit of this slightly increased pressure and then it drops to whatever line pressure can be mainitained through the restricted/corroded heater.

Bottom line - replace the heater at your earliest convenience.

 

[James55]

Ok guys you won't believe this. My faucet is the kind that has one lever. I turned the hot water on in the morning and watched it. When the water got hot, the lever actually moved downwards. This made the water run more slowly. By pushing the lever backwards I increased the flow. I may just go out and buy some new faucets. This is the first time that I have used this sort of faucet and I'm not liking it!

When I drained my water heater, it came out very slowly there. I will replace it soon though.

Overall, the water pressure in my house is ok. I'm wondering if that will improve when the water heater is replaced? Hmmmmmm...

 

[Gary Slusser]

If the slow down is hardness scale formations, you need a water softener to keep it from forming. Softened water will dissolve the scale and open the restrictions but it will take some time.

Gary
Quality Water Associates

 

[James55]

Water softner

Where would I put the water softner? In the water heater itself??

 

[King3244]

The water softener is an appliance not a chemical. It would be installed on your cold line between your water heater and your service inlet.

 

[James55]

That should do it!

I never would have guessed! If I ever get all of this straightened out, I hope I NEVER have plumbing problems again. This is a great place to go though.
Next up, painting the house! Please make it stop....