gathermewool
Site Donor 2023
I recently performed the first flush for our new-to-us hot water heater in our new-to-us place. I was pretty blown away by how gross it was (see pics below of what drained out AFTER I finished flushing)!
The PO seemed like the kind of guy who would keep up with things like this, but it looks like this ten year-old heater had never been flushed, from the looks of the effluent!
My first place had a gas heater that failed (developed a leak) four years after I bought the place (1990's heater, so it was on borrowed time). I flushed it soon after purchase and it only evidenced a small amount of sediment and discolored water. I flushed it again within 6 months of it failing (IIRC) and the flush effluent was much cleaner-looking - there was no real sediment in the bucket.
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BAD SIGN: While filling the tub (to clean the stupid jets in the stupid tub) for the second time in 30 minutes I noticed the hot water was coming out brown from the spigot. The cold water was clear and there were no hydrants being tested nearby, as far as I know, so that pointed me directly toward the HW heater. I stopped filling the tub and setup to flush the tank, waiting until the next day for the tank to cool down. Luckily, my wife and kid were away for the weekend, so I was able to shut off the hot water immediately, let things settle overnight, then flushed the tank the next morning, without delay. I flushed with a hose for five+ minutes, paused for half an hour, then performed second five+ minute flush.
What came out the during the first flush was medium-brown, with a decent amount of sediment, for at least the first 10-20 seconds! Afterward, the water slowly cleared, but still showed brown in the clear container I used to observe the effluent. I flushed using a ball valve on the end of the hose, filling the clear container and dumping it each time it filled to the top.
After the water remained clear for a couple of minutes at the end of the second flush I paused, waited another thirty minutes, then flushed again. The water was clear from the start of the third flush, so I considered it completed SAT.
I used a clear, white plastic container to catch the remainder of what didn't drain from the hose while disconnecting. What came out in the initial (remainder) flush was what you see below. One picture of it unsettled; one picture settled; one picture of the bottom of the container. I turned on the water just enough to flush the last bit of low-settled sediment flow from the tank drain. I didn't think to take pictures of the actual flush results, sorry!
I'm expecting to have to replace this heater within the next several years. I've got a moisture sensor in its vicinity, hooked up to our Samsung Smartthings hub.
The PO seemed like the kind of guy who would keep up with things like this, but it looks like this ten year-old heater had never been flushed, from the looks of the effluent!
My first place had a gas heater that failed (developed a leak) four years after I bought the place (1990's heater, so it was on borrowed time). I flushed it soon after purchase and it only evidenced a small amount of sediment and discolored water. I flushed it again within 6 months of it failing (IIRC) and the flush effluent was much cleaner-looking - there was no real sediment in the bucket.
//
BAD SIGN: While filling the tub (to clean the stupid jets in the stupid tub) for the second time in 30 minutes I noticed the hot water was coming out brown from the spigot. The cold water was clear and there were no hydrants being tested nearby, as far as I know, so that pointed me directly toward the HW heater. I stopped filling the tub and setup to flush the tank, waiting until the next day for the tank to cool down. Luckily, my wife and kid were away for the weekend, so I was able to shut off the hot water immediately, let things settle overnight, then flushed the tank the next morning, without delay. I flushed with a hose for five+ minutes, paused for half an hour, then performed second five+ minute flush.
What came out the during the first flush was medium-brown, with a decent amount of sediment, for at least the first 10-20 seconds! Afterward, the water slowly cleared, but still showed brown in the clear container I used to observe the effluent. I flushed using a ball valve on the end of the hose, filling the clear container and dumping it each time it filled to the top.
After the water remained clear for a couple of minutes at the end of the second flush I paused, waited another thirty minutes, then flushed again. The water was clear from the start of the third flush, so I considered it completed SAT.
I used a clear, white plastic container to catch the remainder of what didn't drain from the hose while disconnecting. What came out in the initial (remainder) flush was what you see below. One picture of it unsettled; one picture settled; one picture of the bottom of the container. I turned on the water just enough to flush the last bit of low-settled sediment flow from the tank drain. I didn't think to take pictures of the actual flush results, sorry!
I'm expecting to have to replace this heater within the next several years. I've got a moisture sensor in its vicinity, hooked up to our Samsung Smartthings hub.