Water Heaters - Air caught in system after flushing?
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2Limeys
05-01-05, 10:02 AM
Hi all
I have two gas heated hot water tanks side by side approx 10 yrs old Rheem Professional 40 Ruud and decided to try some routine maintenance and have ended up worse off!
We moved in two yrs ago and dont think the tanks had ever been flushed or drained. We were finding that we were having to turn the heat on the faucet further and further to hot to get the right temperature. I went out and bought 2 new dip tubes figuring they could probably use replacing anyway. Using the instructions on your forum I first flushed the tanks (easy) then drained the tanks (easy).
First problem..there is no way I can remove the copper pipe to get to the dip tube..it appears to be soldered tight and surely not designed to be removed?? I even tried unsoldering but its not budging.
Figuring I would just leave it I turned on the water on the inlet valve leaving the hoses attached at the bottom for a last flush then just turned off the faucets at the bottom then reopened the gas and relit the burners. Now we have our second problem which is worse...every time we turn on the cold water or flush the toilet we get a loud bumping noise the the water spurts and splutters..is this normal to begin with following a tank flush or is it trapped air in the system...if the latter what do I need to do to clear it out?
Any help would be appreciated..I have never had to do this job!
Thanks
I have two gas heated hot water tanks side by side approx 10 yrs old Rheem Professional 40 Ruud and decided to try some routine maintenance and have ended up worse off!
We moved in two yrs ago and dont think the tanks had ever been flushed or drained. We were finding that we were having to turn the heat on the faucet further and further to hot to get the right temperature. I went out and bought 2 new dip tubes figuring they could probably use replacing anyway. Using the instructions on your forum I first flushed the tanks (easy) then drained the tanks (easy).
First problem..there is no way I can remove the copper pipe to get to the dip tube..it appears to be soldered tight and surely not designed to be removed?? I even tried unsoldering but its not budging.
Figuring I would just leave it I turned on the water on the inlet valve leaving the hoses attached at the bottom for a last flush then just turned off the faucets at the bottom then reopened the gas and relit the burners. Now we have our second problem which is worse...every time we turn on the cold water or flush the toilet we get a loud bumping noise the the water spurts and splutters..is this normal to begin with following a tank flush or is it trapped air in the system...if the latter what do I need to do to clear it out?
Any help would be appreciated..I have never had to do this job!
Thanks
majakdragon
05-01-05, 03:56 PM
Anything you did to the water heaters should have NO effect on the cold water supply lines anywhere in the house. If ,somehow, air got into the cold water lines you should be able to turn on all cold water faucets at the same time and bleed it out. This includes flushing the toilets while running the other fixtures.
Just a comment on the cold inlet line to the heater. It was "hard piped". This means that instead of using a union in the line, the plumber screwed the threaded adapter into the tank and sweat the rest of the copper line into it. Only way to remove it now is to turn off the cold water supply and cut the line. Then unscrew whats remaining of the pipe and the adapter. Then you can sweat a union in when you reassemble it. Good luck.
Just a comment on the cold inlet line to the heater. It was "hard piped". This means that instead of using a union in the line, the plumber screwed the threaded adapter into the tank and sweat the rest of the copper line into it. Only way to remove it now is to turn off the cold water supply and cut the line. Then unscrew whats remaining of the pipe and the adapter. Then you can sweat a union in when you reassemble it. Good luck.