Water Heaters - Installing a T&P outside of water tank

Im installing a new hot water tank.

The one im replacing was a 30 gal and im going to upsize it to a 40, due to the fact that the 30 just isnt making enough water, plus the tank is worn out.

The problem is that the tank location is built into a closet so i have a fixed height of 52" to work with. The tank is 49" to the top of the hot out nipple.

The T&P is supposed to mount down through a T on the hot nipple and stick in the tank. This wont work with my location because it ends up being around 53.5" tall.

So what i was thinking is to mount the T horizontal and install the T&P into a horizontal pipe off the T. (see pic). http://i650.photobucket.com/albums/uu221/scooby074/Hotwater.jpg

I know that the preferred install is to have the temp probe sticking into the tank itself, but will it function as well installing it the way i want? I will ensure that the end of the temp probe is directly above the Hot nipple on the tank.

Thanks for any advise provided.

Most tanks come with a secondary location on the side of the tank that allows the T&P valve to be installed there. I would use that if at all possible.

Thanks for the reply,

I had a quick look last night and didnt see a secondary location. And the instructions made no mention of it either.

I have another look today.

If i cant find a second location, is there any risk to installing the valve like i illustrated? i understand that the valve might open a little slower in that location, but it should still work????

Well, just a laymans opinion here..but no..I wouldn't do that at all.

The way you show it, it will really only be exposed to the hot water in the tank when the water is flowing which will pretty much defeat the temp protection function. Thats not a "preferred" install, its the way the WH is designed and required to be installed. If you deviate from the design, you are defeating the purpose and putting yourself fully at risk.

I don't have the links but there are occasional reports and videos out there about water heaters blowing up and causing massive amounts of damage. These are not urban legends..they can and do happen. Very very rarely, yes..but they happen.

I would find a WH that will fit...or put a "box" of some sort in the ceiling of the closet to give yourself the required room. How about a washing machine box or similar?

By the time the t+p valve in your design discharged you would probably have 212deg. water in your system (BAD IDEA!). :thumbdn:

The temp. probe must be INSIDE the tank.

Thanks guys. I had a bad vibe about doing it so i listened to my gut and disassembled the cabinet and mounted it up higher to gain some clearance so the T&P is mounted correctly with the probe in the tank.

BUT now i have another problem :wall:

THis is a brand new Giant brand tank. But im not getting real hot water like i should.

I checked the amperage that the tank is drawing, only around 11.5A so im thinking that its only running on one element.

The lower element isnt drawing anything.

I removed the leads off the element and there was only 35v there between red and black :madhell: however between the RED and ground i had 120V but between black and ground i had 0v.

I checked the wires between the lower element and the thermostat (near the upper element ) and the wires have continuity.

there is no power on the black terminal ( on the thermostat) that goes to the lower element, however there is 120 on the red terminal that goes to the lower.

So after all that, is it possible that the thermostat is bad on the black terminal to the lower element?

The elements are wired to be NON-SIMULTANEOUS. The thermostats control the sequence. If one element doesn't come on, you would tend to have stratified temp....hot at the top, but the lower gallons not so hot.

A typical 40 gallon tank would have 4500 watt elements, drawing about 18.5 amps, or 3500 watt elements drawing about 14.5 amps.

Measurements taken to a ground reference will just confuse the issue on a water heater.

Thanks. It appears that the elements are indeed non simultaneous. There was all kinds of hot water there today. I think i may have not had the tank on long enough to get completely hot and the lower element to turn on.

Thanks again to all for the help.