Natural Gas Water Heater Question??????

[BamaSixGun]

i have a 40 gallon natural gas water heater in our house. this is water heater number 2. i put it in about 4 to 5 years ago. for the last three or so years, i have to re-light the pilot light at least once or twice a week, sometimes more, sometimes less.

that problem maybe caused by my baby boy running up & down the hall. (the WH is in a closet in the hallway)

now i have another problem, i have the pressure relief valve plumbed thru the floor, so if it ever goes, the water goes under the house.

WELL, i went under the house today, cause i noticed water standing in the lowest part of the crawl space. the leak is coming from the pressure relief valve plumbing that comes out under the floor. its a contant drip every second.

what would be causing this???

1. is the relief valve bad, and allowing water to pass thru it???

OR

2. is the water heater goin south???

i know there are bound to be some prof. plumbers in the house, please help.

 

[bushpilot]

is you water particullary hard ? it seems like a frequent replacement.

if youre water is hard (or even if its not) its not a bad idea to drain
the water heaters every year.

Our house in virginia had a leaky "pop off" valve...and i had it draining thru
the floor (into the crawl space too)...you could SEE the deposits around
the relief valve.

given that youve got TWO problems id probably say the hec w/ it and
replace the entire thing...not that i like that solution either.

can you even buy a pop off valve (replacement) ? and i wonder if the
pilot is goin out because of the 'breeze' or because of the thermo
valve/switch ?

sorry i cant offer much more...we've got tankless heaters in the
new house...love 'em...we NEVER run outta hot water no matter
HOW many folks are takin' showers back to back or at the same time....
no pilot lights either...theyre piezoelectric igniters...they light when you
turn the hot water faucet on.

 

[94f450sd]

well a good little wind from the hallway will blow the pilot out.but an issue i have with my propane furnace is the wind that happens to come in through the exhaust pipe on the roof.

the drip could be a bad relief valve.you could try opening and closeing it a couple times to see if it will stop.if not then you probably need to replace the valve if its replaceable.could also be some junk stuck in the valve itself since rust will settle to the bottom.

 

[DaveBen]

I would go down to Home Despot and get a new relief valve and be done with it. Life is too short to be screwing with the appliances.

Dave

 

[BamaSixGun]

I would go down to Home Despot and get a new relief valve and be done with it. Life is too short to be screwing with the appliances.

Dave

thats kinda what i am thinkin dave.

would i have to drain the entire heater just to replace the pop-off valve?

bush, i like the idea of a tankless water heater. can it be installed in any kind of set-up?? (electric, propane, natural)????

 

[bushpilot]

bush, i like the idea of a tankless water heater. can it be installed in any kind of set-up?? (electric, propane, natural)????

ours is NG, and i KNOW they make electric...i dont know if they have
a propane set up (thats just an orfice change....same as i did on
my outdoor grill, when i converted from LP to NG).

i wont kid you the TANKLESS heaters are BUCKS...but theyre SMALL
and energy efficient (no wasteful pilot, or heating of the water/tank
when no one is using)...theyre on the order of about 400 bucks (at lowes)
from what i can recall seeing.

you might have to make some plumbing changes....nothing too tough.
but you should have no problem retro fitting one into your place.


this is our first experiance w/ one (well actually TWO) in our house....
ive got THREE teens (one girl) and a wife who take a garden tub bath
almost EVERY night (shes a nurse...wants to get ALL those germs off)...
we have had guest over and tanken 7-8 showers (3 at a time is our
max.... in diff baths) back to back and ive NEVER hear anyone say
the water went COLD.

course this brings up a NEW problem and i have SERIOUSLY considered
installing a shut off valve so the KIDS realize theres a COST associated
w/ LONG HOT showers

 

[DaveBen]

You can get propane demand water heaters. I know several people in the Sierra Foothills that have them. And no you don't have to drain the tank all of the way to put in the valve. Just down to the valve level.

Dave

 

[bushpilot]

fyi (ours came w/ the house)...but theyre bosch...

and apparently you can get qualify for some 300 buck tax credit...

 

[powerboatr]

bama
water up there is HARD and full of that red stuff in the yard....
and second if your pressure relief is spitting it can be several things
1. weak spring
2. high city pressure
3. hot water pushing against said city pressure which causes yours to burp
4. you may need an expansion tank

and

we had to flush our tank every year up there and each time it was FULL of red sand and this my friend will play heck on teh valve if it opens, the sand gets sort of caught. as for the fire, a simple pressure wave wil turn it OFF
gust of air
etc... you may have a simple isue like to tight of a house.. did you change som ewinders or new door seals recently
also check both the fresh air intake vent and the exhaust for a clog.
4-5 years is a long time for your area.......

 

[BamaSixGun]

bush = i'm gonna check into the tankless, thanks for the info.

dave = thanks for the info on draing just below the level of the pop-off.

robert = i have always thought, that we do not have enuff pressure, i even had the city come out and pressure test, they told me i was right on target.

but when i take a shower, the pressure is never the same, sometimes it feels like it could peel the chrome off a bumper, and sometimes, you barely get wet. (go figure)

the first water heater, the heat tubes inside rotted away, and clogged the sink screen filters.

i am really tired of having to light the pilot as much as i do. if the tankless is around 400.00, sounds like it would be worth it to change, and we do have natural gas here bush.

the tank i have now, cost over 200.00 i believe, so it would be money well spent to spend a little extra.

thanks for all the help.