water heater question

[Tx_Atty]

when I leave town in winter, I usually shut the water off at the curb. Someone recently told me I need to shut off the water heater if I shut off the water.

Since I have a hard time believing 40 gallons of water can evaporate in 5 days, should I turn it off or leave it alone?

thanks!

 

[sagebel]

If you do get a leak that drains the tank, you will be heating air. This will butn out the elements on an electric heater. Unless you have a lot of piping below the the tank, I wouldn't worry about it.

Scott

 

[95_stroker]

One thing to be careful of when leaving a hot water heater hot for an extended period of time (usually longer than two weeks) is that hydrogen gas can be formed in the hot water system. There have been several cases of electrical appliances hooked to the hot water system (dishwashers primarily) exploding upon the first run after an extended period of time of no hot water use.

Clicky da linky. Had someone been in the kitchen when that dishwasher launched they would likely have died.

soooooooooo...... Its a real good idea to run the hot water taps in the farthest locations away from the heater for several minutes when you return home, dont smoke while flushing the system and make sure no electrical devices that could cause a spark are in operation at the time as well.

This has been your SDD Holiday safety awareness bulletin.

 

[BIG JOE]

when I leave town in winter, I usually shut the water off at the curb. Someone recently told me I need to shut off the water heater if I shut off the water.

Since I have a hard time believing 40 gallons of water can evaporate in 5 days, should I turn it off or leave it alone?

thanks!

When we leave town for a week (5-10 days) I turn the Hot Water heater down to "Warm". Our current water heater has a "Vacation" setting. In that setting, the pilot light stays lit, but wont cycle until the water temp gets to 50*. (To keep it from freezing ?)


You may have the same setting ?



Joe


If we leave town for longer periods, I turn off ALL pilot lights.. the water, and relieve the pressure a bit. ( Turn a Faucet On-Off quickly)

When we return, I do just as Stroker sez. (In compliance with the SDD Holiday Safety Awareness Bulletin)

 

[JLDickmon]

I'm not sure I'd turn it completely off if I was only gone five days.. if it's electric, you'll get lime deposits on the electrodes that will burn them out in a heartbeat.. if it's gas, you have to dink around with re-lighting the pilot...
plus, if you get a cold snap while you're out, you run the risk of frozen pipes...

I'd just crank it down to the lowest setting..

same with shutting the water off at the curb.. you're gonna end up with a broken pipe that the city will tell you is all yours.

throw a neighbor a key and tell him to run the water for five minutes a day to keep the wetness free-flowing

 

[Tx_Atty]

same with shutting the water off at the curb.. you're gonna end up with a broken pipe that the city will tell you is all yours.

I can avoid that by opening a few faucets after I shut it off right? draining the pipes enough to allow for any expansion?

 

[powerboatr]

Peter
when we leave
i turn off the big electric water heater
the ice maker and the street valve
set the house heat to 50
then burp the lines so all the pressure is off , just in case we have a freak artic - freezing and no power fr a few days

in the rv its an ALL water line drain and water heater, all gas is shut off
our water heater thats lp has an automatic relight so the pilot isnt a problem

then when we return its a good time to flush the water heater and remove all that sediment then refill and turn it on

 

[JLDickmon]

Peter
when we leave
i turn off the big electric water heater
the ice maker and the street valve
set the house heat to 50
then burp the lines so all the pressure is off , just in case we have a freak artic - freezing and no power fr a few days

in the rv its an ALL water line drain and water heater, all gas is shut off
our water heater thats lp has an automatic relight so the pilot isnt a problem

then when we return its a good time to flush the water heater and remove all that sediment then refill and turn it on

yeah.
what Robert said

 

[CHPMustang]

When we leave town for 1+ weeks I usually shut off the main ball valve coming in then switch off the single element heater but on our return on goes the water then purge out the hot line at one of the sink taps for a couple mins then kick the heater back on.

In the end it saves a few bucks in the utility bill.

 

[Maxtor]

We leave the outside water on, just in case there is a fire while we are gone, so a neighbor can use the water hose to help put it out.

Since we do not live in cold country, we have a water valve just outside the house and turn it off. That way, if we ever sprung a leak inside, it would not flood the house. We also turn off the water heater (electric) if we are gone for over one week.
A water line freezing here is once in 35 years.