Seems like some of us are finally doing things that needed to be done quite a while ago. I had to replace the water heater about 5-6 years ago and have a Bradford White Defender with the swirl feature to help prevent buildup. Well, the heater has been banging and popping for a quite a few months, so I decided to drain it. Not much came out. I saw a video YT explaining putting a larger gate valve to improve drain flow. Upon removing the stock valve, I saw why it was making so much noise (see pics...sorry for the blurry one). I'm still in the process of filling and draining to get the garbage out and have also thought about putting in about four gallons of white vinegar for a day (I have a few pieces of scale in a half cup right now to see how well it works). Some big chunks came out by carefully using a small screwdriver to lift them out. Scale and fine particles are still draining.
Now I'm wondering, is it too clogged?
Now I'm wondering, is it too clogged?