Sometimes the biggest problem is draining the water from the tank. My old heater had about a two gallon bucket of mineral scale in the bottom and I had a job of work getting the thing to drain.
I had replaced the lower heating element a couple of years before and extended it’s life a bit but I don’t really recommend doing that since the heater is failing otherwise too.
So go for it! What can happen? Electrocution? Flooding your entire house? Tens of thousands of dollars in damage? A hernia from trying to move a half full tank?
Lol!
An optimist!