water heater troubleshooting

Users who are viewing this thread

eod4647

New Member
Messages
18
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Good Morning,

I foloowed a guide mentioned in a previous post on troubleshooting the ECO on a water heater and I'm still in the dark as to what the problem is. I've got 246 volts coming in to the top portion (the ECO?) of the upper thermostat, with the same voltage at the next set of terminals where (I'm guessing) it actually feeds the thermostat. After the last time it tripped, I reset and measured 241 volts goingto the upper element, nothing to the lower. There was no voltage at the lower element, which is normal if I understand how the heater works. I wasn't able to wait around and see what voltage it had when it did kick in. I have also measure the resistance of the elements and get about 15.5 ohms on the upper and 15.1 on the lower, and as far as I know both are 3800 watt elements.
I can't figure out anything definite with what I've discovered and I'm thinking I'll go buy a new lower thermostat and see what happens. Any thoughts or possible solutions?
One other thing, I don't know if it's normal or not, but when touching just one lead of the multimeter to the individuals terminals on the ECO I get about 19 - 21 volts, not sure what that means or what might be the issue. Thanks. And the wtare heater is 5 years old.
 

hj

Master Plumber
Messages
33,602
Reaction score
1,041
Points
113
Location
Cave Creek, Arizona
Website
www.terrylove.com
There is a strict protocol to testing the elements and thermostats, but I am not sure if you are going about it in the right way, or if you have the proper device to do a proper test.
 

Thatguy

Homeowner
Messages
1,454
Reaction score
3
Points
0
Location
MD
(240^2)/3800 = 15.2 ohms which is close enough to your measured values, but check for infinite resistance between the element and ground.
 
Last edited:
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks