How Long Do Water Heaters Last?

How long do water heaters last? We’ll give you that answer. The truth is there’s no set age on the water heater. It’s not like there’s an expiration clock that makes it go away. The real question is. How long can I forget about that expensive piece of equipment?

 Well, you have a lot of different choices. If it’s up in an attic, you don’t want to forget about it in there as long as maybe somebody that’s got one on a stand-out in the garage, the reason being when a water heater in. the Attic ruptures. But the water is going to come down like that. It’s going to come down, hit the sheetrock, come through. If it’s upstairs, just come spread out more and come down.

 I have seen houses that people had to move out of for eight or nine months. While they came in and rebuilt the sheetrock, the kitchen, the flooring, the ceiling, anything and everything that water touched had to be rebuilt had to be mold remediated to make sure they didn’t grow mold later, a lot of different problems. So the question is how long I can forget about it. Well, it’s really up to you. 

Water Heater Ruptures:

How long do you want to forget about it? Is it something that is going to be that big a deal? When it ruptures because if it’s out in the middle of the garage, it doesn’t matter if it ruptures and water gets on the garage floor, and you don’t have anything important there. Who cares if it’s in your attic right above your game room, right above your living room, and you’re going to lose furniture. You’re going to lose flooring, walls, electronics, stereos, and speakers.

Truth about Gas Water Heater:

You know it may be a bigger deal. So the truth is a gas water heater lasts about eight to twelve years now some things make a difference. There here in Texas, we have tough water-hard water to shorten the lifespan of that water heater. The other thing is when you put that water heater in new in a year, did you change the anode. The anode rod is the magnesium-coated rod that drops down the middle of it. 

Pinholes:

What happens throughout the life of the water here and especially during that first year? Any minor microscopic pinhole fissures that crack anything like that will pull the magnesium off that rod it’s going to go over. A here itself to the inside of your tank, which will help seal those off. Still, after that first year, your sacrificial anode rod is pretty much gone if you change it after that first year; the remarkable thing is anything else that needs to be filled will be pulled off that ride help plug those holes patch those holes make everything better. It’s going to help your water heater last longer.

In Texas:

 So here in Texas, with the hard water without doing anything to your water heater, it could get your life cycle could get as short as six or seven years if it’s up in the attic between six and eight years. I Start telling people, hey, look; you need to think about changing the water heater if it’s out in the garage. I may say to them how you can probably wait till eight or ten years electric water heaters speaking of ten years are good for about 10 to 15 years. They last longer, I think it’s because they don’t get near as hot. When that burner assembly fires up on the bottom of a water heater, it heats the water very intensely, about 40,000 BTUs that fire, and gets that water heater.

Reason to Live Long:

 Hot especially the bottom part so that water heats only as you know heat rises so that water heats and goes up the gas or electric water heaters are a little bit different you’ve got two elements at the side that heat up and then they slowly heat that water up and down all around it. So I think that’s why they last a lot longer. There’s not much difference in the tanks other than the holes in the side where the elements and control valves and things like that go in, but I genuinely think that’s why electric water heaters can last longer. 

Hard Water:

 Now water quality, there are things that you can do to improve your water quality. You can do a hardness test and determine. How hard your water is there are we’ve got a couple of different products that we use for anti-scale and if it’s something you’re interested in giving us a shout talk to us ask us what they are maybe.  I’ll show them to you and tell you about them tell you how they work. Still, we also like to test the chlorine. When we try the hardness now, the chlorine will not affect your water heater near as bad.

Chlorine:

We want to be at least able to tell you what kind of water you have, how hard it is how many chemicals are in it? Is there chlorine in your water? Is there chloramine in your water that gives you the answers that you need to know? There now the good thing about water heaters if you’ll give your water heater. With a little bit of love, you can make it last longer.

Flush it Soon:

All you got to do or the essential thing to do is go out and flush your water heater. I recommend that people do this from the first year. If you wait for three or four years and think about it, you might be okay if your water heater is 4 to 6 years old. Don’t start thinking. Okay, I’m going to flush it now and make it last longer. Chances are you’re going to wash it; you’re going to pull some of that calcium and magnesium. That’s built up in the bottom that it may be plugging a hole, and then you’re liable to make that water heater leak.

 So what I recommend is from the very beginning from the time your water heaters new show it a little of what I like to do is go out every couple of months drain about a five-gallon bucket out of the bottom you’ve got a drain valve on base you can do and learn things going on, so that’s what takes care of a little bit of love flush your water heater do it at least once a year. If you can get out there and do it every couple of months, it’s worth it now. Why is it worth it? Because you can take that six-year water heater, and if you’ve treated it properly and you’ve got good clean water coming in, that water heater can last 12 years that water heater can last longer.

Personal Experience & Conclusion:

 I had a water heater in my garage, so I wasn’t worried about it, guys that lasted almost 16 years now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not telling you can make your water heater last night long think about where it is okay use your brain think about where it is and think about what damage is this water heater going to cause if the bottom falls out of it and water goes everywhere there are other things you can do for your water heater. 

It’s also got a battery backup, and there’s a sensor that goes down in your drain pan if a drop of water one drop of water. It calls on that sensor. It shuts that valve and sets off an alarm. Why is this good because? If your water heater ruptures. It’s going to happen at 5:01 Friday afternoon after you’ve gone on vacation at five o’clock. Friday afternoon, it’s going to rain all weekend.

So the neighbors walking by your house and see that water pouring out of your garage. Your front porch, they’re going to think your driveways are just wet because of the rain. When you come in late Sunday night from your weekend away, you’re going to realize your water heater flooded in that three-quarter-inch water line has been running full blast all weekend long, guys; imagine a five-year-old kid a pairing plan with a water hose spraying it around everywhere. That’s about what it’s going to be like. So there are things that you can do to take care of it.