What’s Inside Your Water Heater?
Your water heater is one of the hardest working appliances in your home. It works all day, every day to keep water hot for your entire home. Life without a water heater would be pretty cold.
Let’s have a look inside. Your water heater is a storage tank for hot water. As hot water is used, it’s replaced by cold water. A heating element heats the water so it ready to provide more hot water. This continual heating and reheating take a toll. Years of use, rust and sediment build-up inside the tank. Rust and sediment would normally corrode the lining of the water heater. However, your water heater has a built-in safety device called an anode rod, sometimes called a sacrificial anode rod. It attracts the corrosion process, protecting the metal lining of the tank. Eventually, the anode rod corrodes away. The loss of the anode rod means the inside of the water tank will begin to corrode, seriously reducing its lifespan.
How do you know if your water heater might be starting to break down? It gives off some obvious signs:
Less hot water available
There’s no hot water at all
Water is leaking onto the floor
You hear a crackling noise while it’s heating
According to manufacturers, the average lifespan of a water heater is 8-12 years. You can extend the life of your water heater and help it heat more efficiently by flushing the tank annually to remove sediment.
If you have questions about your water heater, give Anthony’s Plumbing a call.
