Jump to content

Average Lifespan of Tank Styyle Water Heater?


DrB
 Share

Recommended Posts

Mine is a 40 gal. propane fired unit.  Noticed that the recovery rate had fallen off.  Looked at the burner and noted that the flame from the burner were small.  Cleaned the burner and chamber and flameis much better.  Also drained about 5 gal. of water from the bottom of the tank and it was clear with no sediment. 

Noted the date I installed it, 02/20/1994.  Did not realize it is 27 years old starting it's 28th. year..  Only thing I have done to it is drain some water from the bottom of the tank once in awhile.  Never cleaned the burner before.  Wonder if I should be getting another to have ready for when this one fails?

I have well water and a water softener so perhaps that is a factor on life.  Dave..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had an electric that was over 30 years old.  Really depends on the water for electric.  I would think your gas will work fine again now that the burner is good.  I wouldn't think the scale makes that much difference but I wouldn't be terribly surprised if it did.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

24 minutes ago, crockett said:

If you are going to replace, get a On-Demand Water Heater. Tanks are outdate nonsense in my book.

While I want to agree with you,  there are a lot things to consider when replacing one.  I looked into it and come to find out the diameter of the existing  gas line was not large enough to supply the tankless burner and I was going to have replace the entire gas line and I'm not talking about just a few feet.    

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

53 minutes ago, Batesmotel said:

Flu size is another consideration. I replaced them on a bunch of my rentals. Installing the larger diameter flu for the tankless heater was a freaking nightmare. 

I had forgot about the flu size, and it seems the water input pipe had to be a larger diameter.  I had a unused flue from a older gas furnace but they said it had to be lined with stainless.  Stainless going up through three floors was another added expense. I think the tankless is great for new construction and some upgrades but in my case the cost of all the modification would of taken more years than I'll be in this house.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting. Maybe too much air? The burner in theory, should never carbon up. I've seen them come out of heaters so old the tags couldn't be read, if they were even there and the gas system was near pristine. They were LP, so if you have natural gas, that could be a wildcard, but I wouldn't think i to be. LP and NG, the biggest difference is operating pressure. A lot of crawfish cookers are out the sporting one of these.

As long as it isn't leaking you will be fine. A lot of tossing around for the tankless being this or that, and that is what they are. An alternate. I think they are great in theory, but still have problems and are quite expensive and just don't heat water as well in many parts of the country. Of course if you are where the ambient water temperature is compatible, then go for it. I'll stick with the old fashioned for the foreseeable future though.

I will suggest that any replacement work off a pilot and not an electric igniter. Recent events have proven that a very big positive. I wish our range did. I can light the burners, but the thermostat and igniter for the oven have to have electric. 

YMMV

Edited by LostinTexas
Link to comment
Share on other sites

good advice here.

i`d add check your anode rod at least every 2 years more if you have treated Water,and replace them as needed when you drain it.

 

any Plumbing supply store has them in stock and usually half as much as a box store.

also check your Pressure relief Valve.

Point of use are really, really good but i wasn't sure it could keep up with my long hot Bubble baths so one went to faucets and Dish washer.

speaking for cold climates like i live in insulate your pipes.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, crockett said:

If you are going to replace, get a On-Demand Water Heater. Tanks are outdate nonsense in my book.

I looked into tankless for my new house. If you use a lot of hot water tankless has an advantage in terms of recovery time. Most of us don't have that kind of demand. I didn't with a family of four. Our 50 gal heater never ran out on us.  The other claim to fame, instant hot water, is bogus. It still takes the same amount of time for the water to get from the heater to the tap. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

According to our plumber, you are lucky to get more than 10 years out of a tank, but we just replaced a large one that was original to this home in 1998.  Tankless was not a viable replacement option.  There is no natural gas in this area.  We have a propane tank for the cooktop and the log lighters in the fireplaces, but it is not feasible to have 4 people bathing off of that sized propane tank firing tankless heaters.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, gwalchmai said:

I looked into tankless for my new house. If you use a lot of hot water tankless has an advantage in terms of recovery time. Most of us don't have that kind of demand. I didn't with a family of four. Our 50 gal heater never ran out on us.  The other claim to fame, instant hot water, is bogus. It still takes the same amount of time for the water to get from the heater to the tap. 

Most are that way, but some in line heaters are at every faucet. Still that is not the ordinary.

Pipe insulation? LMAO. Insulate all you want, the water coming in from the main and through your service line is where water temp comes in for how much they will raise the ambient temperature. 70 degree water will get a lot warmer a lot faster than 45 degree water. If you have lower water temps, then you will have to pony up for the more powerful unit, if they even get that powerful.

Just a consideration.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, gwalchmai said:

I looked into tankless for my new house. If you use a lot of hot water tankless has an advantage in terms of recovery time. Most of us don't have that kind of demand. I didn't with a family of four. Our 50 gal heater never ran out on us.  The other claim to fame, instant hot water, is bogus. It still takes the same amount of time for the water to get from the heater to the tap. 

Not if you get a unit with a built-in recirculation pump. Hot water in 1 second.

Edited by crockett
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, crockett said:

Not if you get a unit with a built-in recirculation pump. Hot water in 1 second.

Is that even possible with standard piping? The recirculating, not the one second, that isn't going to happen with the piping in our house. Even if it can circulate, and you'd have to show me, the baffles are further than that. 30 seconds vs a minute and a half maybe.

Edited by LostinTexas
Link to comment
Share on other sites

a lot of it depends on quality of the water, as well as quality of the water heater to begin with.

At 27+ years old, I'd say you got your money's worth out of it.

But until it actually fails, you don't usually know if it's going to survive another month or another decade.  If you are in a situation where being without hot water for more than a day or two would be a major issue, then I'd say go ahead and replace it.  If you don't mind maybe having to wait a week or more without hot water from the tap, then I don't see any reason to replace it before it actually stops working.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I looked into an on-demand a few years ago but a larger propane line and new flu made the cost not worth it. 

The burner was coated with a layer of fine white powder like substance which was blocking some of the burner openings.  I started to wonder if my ex-wife had a cocaine habit and stored her stash in there.  Just joking...  All seems working fine for now but I'm going to start looking at replacements for the future. 

Is Richmond still a good brand? That's what I put in back then.  Been so many years I don't know what's out there now.  Dave..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I once had a gas water heater installed by the local gas utility. I figured that even though it cost a lot more (2x) than doing it myself, it would be top notch. It failed within a year because they installed the hot & cold pipes backwards. To their credit they replaced it all on their dime. We had a new baby in the house and they felt the wrath of the New Mom. :supergrin:

  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, LostinTexas said:

Interesting. Maybe too much air? The burner in theory, should never carbon up. I've seen them come out of heaters so old the tags couldn't be read, if they were even there and the gas system was near pristine. They were LP, so if you have natural gas, that could be a wildcard, but I wouldn't think i to be. LP and NG, the biggest difference is operating pressure. A lot of crawfish cookers are out the sporting one of these.

No such thing as too much air.

LP burns alot wetter than Natural Gas, it causes everything to corrode. Burners especially.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, DrB said:

I looked into an on-demand a few years ago but a larger propane line and new flu made the cost not worth it. 

The burner was coated with a layer of fine white powder like substance which was blocking some of the burner openings.  I started to wonder if my ex-wife had a cocaine habit and stored her stash in there.  Just joking...  All seems working fine for now but I'm going to start looking at replacements for the future. 

Is Richmond still a good brand? That's what I put in back then.  Been so many years I don't know what's out there now.  Dave..

The white powder is soot. Natural gas and propane create white soot unless the air/fuel mix is REALLY bad. Then it's black.

Richmond is a consumer grade store brand. I've been liking the Rheems that you can get from Home Depot. The only difference I've been able to find between the consumer and pro models is that the drain valve is plastic instead of brass on the consumer model.

I've  been seeing on average 7-12 year lifespan for water heaters. You do get the outliers, but those arn't the rule.

Edited by Hauptmann6
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

45 minutes ago, Hauptmann6 said:

No such thing as too much air.

LP burns alot wetter than Natural Gas, it causes everything to corrode. Burners especially.

 

41 minutes ago, Hauptmann6 said:

The white powder is soot. Natural gas and propane create white soot unless the air/fuel mix is REALLY bad. Then it's black.

Richmond is a consumer grade store brand. I've been liking the Rheems that you can get from Home Depot. The only difference I've been able to find between the consumer and pro models is that the drain valve is plastic instead of brass on the consumer model.

I've  been seeing on average 7-12 year lifespan for water heaters. You do get the outliers, but those arn't the rule.

Contradict yourself much? A gas burner that only last a 10 year average, that is 7-12 for you, has very large problems and needs to have someone that knows what they are doing take a look. These should be near a lifetime heater. If water is hard and no maintenance is done ~20 years should still be in the cards before the corrosion creates leaks in the tank.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

  • Please Donate To TBS

    Please donate to TBS.
    Your support is needed and it is greatly appreciated.
×
×
  • Create New...