Whirlpool EE3J50RD045V Control Board Issue

[muttchaser]

Hello All,
Hoping you can help with a board replacement. I have the above water heater. I tested the elements with a multimeter and they checked out ok. So I looked at the board and found that the orange wire was burned and had burned through the black wire it was lying on as well as melted the plastic base to the metal tank. I have the new board but I'd like to know what caused it to burn in the first place. I have no idea what the orange wire powers. I don't want to just pop a new board in there which will require splicing in the new wire to the old one at the plug in the WH if there is a deeper issue. Thanks.

 

[Phog]

The scorching seems to be localized at the junction between the wire and the circuit board terminal. In circuits this is more typical of a localized defective junction than some larger system problem. If it were a larger problem I would expect that wire to show signs of discoloration and melting along its entire length, instead of just at that one point. If it were my water heater I'd be inclined to try replacing the part -- depending of course on how much the part costs & how old the tank is. However this is by no means a definitive diagnosis, and I am not a professional so please take my opinion with a grain of salt. Finally, Whirlpool does not have a great reputation for quality on these forums, which may also factor into your decision. Good luck.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[muttchaser]

Thanks Phog. My thoughts too. I replaced the whole board rather than just that module as I couldn't find the module by itself. Appears to be working again. As far as Whirlpool. We purchased this house a year ago. They were already installed. Two 58 gallon electric water heaters. One for each side of the house. Guess they didn't want to run out. LOL

 

[Dj2]

Whirlpool WHs used to be made by American Water Heater Co. I still have a few in some of my rentals, some of them are close to 15 years old. Now OA Smith owns American, and is marketing their WHs under the AO Smith brand.

Yes it's true that some (or many) Whirlpool WHs have problems, but so do Bradford White, Rheen-Ruud and AO Smith. When it comes to WHs, it's all luck.