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Home Inspector San Diego – The San Diego Real Estate Inspection Company

Posts Tagged ‘Water heater safety’

Water Heater Danger

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011

A poorly maintained water heater can be a time bomb – literally!

Water heaters are often taken for granted. Once installed, they sit there and quietly perform their function without much fuss. People usually don’t pay any attention to water heaters until there is trouble. It is critical for your home inspector to check the water heater safety features to prevent serious damage or injury.

Most of the time water heaters fail resulting in a leak. Water leaks can cause ten’s of thousands of dollars of property damage. When your house floods, expect to make a claim against your home-owner’s insurance because the clean up must be done quickly and properly to avoid mold and other problems. But water heaters pose far greater danger than property damage alone.

In worst case scenarios a bad water heater can be deadly. A water heater can poison you, burn you, burn down your house, and even explode. That’s right, explode. Both gas and electric water heaters have safety features to prevent this disaster from happening. But the potential escalates when water heaters are installed poorly, or repairs are done incorrectly. To illustrate this potential danger the TV show MythBusters demostrated that water heaters can explode with catastrophic power.

All water heaters are required to have a Temperature and Pressure (T&P) relief valve installed. This valve is a critical safety component. If the water inside the water heater gets too hot, excessive pressure must be released. The T&P valve is a pressure activated valve which vents the over-heater water and prevents the tank from bursting.

The problems start when water heaters are installed without the T&P valve (which we have seen many times). Sometimes people cap the T&P valve when they see water dripping from it. This can be a disastrous mistake. By capping a T&P valve it is prevented from releasing excess pressure that can be associated with a failure of the water heater. Typically, a T&P valve will start leaking and the unwitting homeowner or handyman installs a cap on the T&P valve.

Believe it or not we run into modified T&P valves regularly. Here is a picture of a T&P valve that was modified. Whoever did this created a situation that could cause severe injury or death. They installed a spigot into the T&P valve which was turned off. This defeats the whole purpose of the relief valve! If this tank overheats, the pressure will have nowhere to go. Watch the video to see what would happen.

The boiling point of water is 212 degrees F at sea level. When the pressure goes up, so does the boiling point. The water becomes super-heated and the pressure builds. When the pressure builds enough to rupture the tank, the super-heated water instantly turns to steam. This rapid conversion of water into steam causes the violent explosions seen in the video.

If you see water leaking from the T&P valve drain line, do not cap it! Call a licensed plumber to repair your water heater immediately.

Flue Hazard

In addition to the explosion hazard described above, water heaters can release Carbon Monoxide. This can happen

The sections of this water heater flue are improperly installed.

when the sections of the flue become mis-aligned or separated. The sections of the flue should fit tightly together with the lower sections inserted into the upper sections. The sections should also be connected with three sheet metal screws. In the picture at right you can see gaps in the flue sections.

Drain Valve

What does the drain valve have to do with safety? Nothing much unless you’re ground zero for a natural disaster. Ice storm, snowstorm, tornado, hurricane, flood, earthquake. These things can cut off your water supply. Then, you have only what you stored for disasters and what’s sitting in your water heater.

But if your water is hard and you merely installed the heater and forgot about it, then the forty-plus-gallons in your heater might as well be on the moon. Mineral sediment buildup can easily clog the cheap, plastic, factory drain valve on most heaters, as can sludge caused by corroding aluminum anodes, which create one thousand times their original volume as corrosion byproduct. This falls into the bottom of the heater, mostly, and it’s not something you want to swallow, even if the drain valve works.
Nearly a century ago, a British doctor did research that showed that aluminum readily leaches into water and once ingested, does serious damage to stomach, intestines and joints.

Water Heater Shell

We just threw this one in to remind you of something. What you see is NOT the water heater. It’s just the sheetmetal shell that surrounds the tank. How many times have people told us, “It looked just fine, then it started leaking.” On the other hand, if the shell is completely rusted, don’t expect the tank inside it to look much better. And on the other, “other hand,” be aware that water on the floor is not necessarily the end of your water heater. It can come from other places: T&Ps, drain valves, rain down vent pipes, even broken water mains. We’ve seen all of these.

About the author: Philippe Heller is the President of The San Diego Real Estate Inspection Company, one of the largest home inspection companies in San Diego. The company puts safety first, and water heaters are a major inspection item. When choosing a home inspection company be sure to pick one that has your family’s safety in mind. If you have any questions, contact the company at info@sdinspections.com

Tags: Water heater safety
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Water Heater Inspections – Part 2

Friday, August 14th, 2009

After you give your water heater a good visual inspection, there are some other very important safety items you need to check. The first is the Seismic Strapping. These are metal belts that strap the water heater to a wall. The seismic strapping holds the water heater upright in the event of an earthquake. The straps are not intended to protect the plumbing, or avoid flooding. Instead they are specifically required to protect the gas lines. During an earthquake, the water heater can move substantially. Even if it does not tip, the somewhat fragile flexible gas line could easily be broken, which could leak gas and cause numerous fires.

When the requirement for strapping was first introduced, plumbers used what is known as “plumber’s tape” to secure the water heater. Plumber’s tape is that thin metal strapping that they use to support pipes under a house or in an attic. It is about 3/4 inch wide with holes running down the middle. But due to all the holes, the plumber’s tape easily breaks. Remember that a full water heater can weigh several hundred pounds. Plumber’s tape is no longer considered adequate for strapping a water heater (see picture at left). Instead you

Home inspection should check for proper strapping

should use a water heater strapping kit that is available at any home improvement store. These kits contain two metal bands with mounting hardware, and when properly installed will reduce the likelihood of your water heater jumping around during an earthquake.

The proper way to install the straps is to use two straps. One at the top 1/3 of the tank, and one at the bottom 1/3 of the tank. A general rule of thumps is to install the straps 9 inches from the top of the tank, and 4 inches above the contols at the bottom of the tank. The straps should be secured to a stud in the wall with a 3 inch lag bolt. Do not use plastic anchors in the drywall. The straps should be looped around the tank. And finally, if the water heater stands more than three inches away from a wall at the back, a supporting brace or block should be used.

If your water heater is in the garage, it should be placed on a platform that is 18 inches above the ground.

Proper water heater strapping.

This too is a safety precaution against fires. Many of us store items in the garage that give off fumes. These could include gas for a lawn mower, paints and varnishes, and even some cleaning products. There could also be a leak from a gas line from a clothes dryer or even the water heater. Most of these fumes will sink to the ground in a similar way that oil and water separate. The vents in the exterior walls of your garage should allow the fumes to escape. If your water heater was sitting on the floor and enough fumes collected, a fire could easily start when the water heater ignites to heat the water. It happens all too often. If your water heater is in the garage and on the floor, you need to have it raised.

To determine the age of your water heater, you will need to check the serial number on the tank. Newer water heaters will print the date of manufacture, but older units used a date code included in the serial number. Some are easy to desipher; the year and month or year and week are the first four digits of the serial number. For example a tank manufactured in March of 1999 will have 9903 as the first four digits (or 0399 depending on the manufacturer). Other companies use a date code using letters. If you cannot determine the age of your water heater, call a plumber or a Home Inspector to help you determine the age of your water heater.

We recommend replacing older water heaters. Water heaters become less efficient as they age due to sediment that builds in the tank at the bottom. This sediment acts like an insulation layer which causes the water to heat slowly, and requires the burner to stay on longer using more gas. This can also cause over-heating of the surrounding area which is a fire hazard. The other reason to change an older tank is to avoid leaks. In a perfect world, water heaters would fail with only a little drip. Unfortunately water heaters can fail with catastrophic results. Since your plumbing system – and the water heater – are under pressure, failure can send excessive amounts of water pouring into your house. Even if your water heater is in the garage, the force of the water can quickly disolve the drywall, and end up in your house ruining flooring, drywall, and personal items.

And finally, don’t store items up against your water heater. It is particularly important not to store combustible items such as wood, cloth, cleaning supplies, etc. But even non-combustible items can reduce air flow and cause the water heater to over-heat.

For more information about home inspections in San Diego, please visit www.sdinspections.com

Tags: Water heater safety
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Water Heater Safety (Part 1)

Wednesday, January 7th, 2009

Water heaters are often taken for granted. They sit in our garage or utility closet and perform their assigned duty day in and day out. If installed correctly they will operate with little fuss for many years. Most of us rarely give the water heater a second thought, but they have a life cycle just like every other component or appliance in your house.

At the very minimum you should take a careful look at your water heater at least once a year. One of the most common points of failure is at the top of your water heater where it connects to the house plumbing. If the water heater was not installed with proper dielectric connectors, you will get corrosion where the copper plumbing meets the steel tank. Corrosino at water heaterThis area is often difficult to see. A tank can be five feet tall and when properly installed on an 18 inch platform, the top of the tank is 6-1/2 feet off the ground. This area can easily be over looked.

If you see heavy rust in this area, your tank is ready to leak. remember that your plumbing system is under pressure 24 hours a day. It doesn’t take much corrosion to eat through the plumbing. Even a small leak can flood your house. Even if your water heater is in your garage, a leak can find it’s way to the interior of your house. Water often sprays out of a small breach in the plumbing with such force that it quickly destroys the drywall, and get’s inside the walls, and into your house. Just a small amount of water can destroy wood flooring, baseboards, carpeting, furninture, or personal items that are sitting on the floor.

Rusty water heater piping can cause leaks

In addition to looking for corrosion, look for evidence of soot at the exterior of the tank. This can be found around the burner compartment cover at the bottom of your water heater. If you are comfortable doing so, open the cover and look inside the compartment. Be careful of hot parts. If the water heater is on the inner cover will be hot. Once you remove the inner cover look for scale and rust inside the burner compartment. Old, damaged parts in the burner compartment can cause the water heater to remain on and over heat. This is a major cause of house fires.

Proper venting is critical to the safe operation of a water heater. Check the flue. It should be properly aligned with the top of the tank. And the sections of the flue should be well seated. Do not use duct tape on the flue. It can catch fire. An improperly installed flue can allow Carbon Monoxide to leak into your living space.

A general rule of thumb is to proactively replace your water heater when it has reached the end of its warranty period. That usually means that if your water heater is more than 7 years old, it should be replaced before you have problems with it. The price ofa water heater is usually less than your insurance deductable. When in doubt, have your water heater inspected by a licensed plumber. It does not cost much and could save your family from injury, and you home from damage.

Part two of this blog will include information about proper seismic strapping, recalled gas flex lines, and determining the age of your water heater.

Tags: home inspection, House fire, Water heater safety
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