That white crusty material is probably your dip tube breaking down. That is why you dont seem to have as much hot water.
25 yrs. is a long time for a HW heater these days. You’re next one won’t last as long....
My only advise is to get a natural gas water heater, we went from electric to gas and I couldn’t get over how much we saved and the recovery time was much quicker.
25 yrs. is a long time for a HW heater these days. You’re next one won’t last as long....
So do you flush it once a year like you are suppose to?
Kiss it goodbye before it leaves you cold, naked & sopping wet on a 30 degree morning.
Doubtful.
It probably has so much corrosion that any attempts to clean the internals would hasten leakage.
It is probably better to start looking around for a replacement. One that old could ‘spew’ at any moment.
Trash the thing and get a new one.
The dip tube takes cold inlet water all the way to the bottom of the tank. The hot water is forced up and out at the top. If
your dip tube breaks halfway down, then you only have half as much capacity left.
I will send you a site link that explains it better.
It sure doesn’t owe you anything.
Let it die with dignity.
Make an air compressure out of it
There ain’t but about 4 basic parts to a water heater - the control section, the tank and two heater rods. Most have one of the rods go out and have it replaced.
Hard water can do some damage also.
But hey man, after 25 years, maybe it’s time to retire the beast and get a new energy efficient one.
Our’s was about 21 yrs old when we switched it out.
Well, recognize that a tank of this age could fail at any moment so any money you put into it could be instantly lost. Given that, the first and simplest thing to do is flush the tank with the bottom valve. You probably have a lot of sediment that will come out. The second thing is to test the top and bottom heating elements to see if they both work and their thermostats work. You could have one of them that has failed and you would still have some hot water, but less than normal and with a slower recovery period. Replacement is relatively easy with the correct parts.
Did you price Lowes or HD? Probably $450 for a big one. Are you in a rural area? Try Craigslist.com? Under professional services. Sometimes you can find good used stuff too. I think the old one is shot.
The new water heaters are more efficient but of lower quality.
I just replaced my 18-year old electric a couple days ago. I figured it that the tank would not be in great shape after cleaning. After I took the old one out, I found that the TPR valve was badly corroded—I probably had a safety issue there. If I were you, I would just replace it.
Sounds like its full of sediment, to the point of trying to flush it out is futile. This would explain all the issues you are having.
The next water heater you buy, flush it out at least once a year and replace the anode rod every five years or so. You will get maximum life from that unit.
The hot water and also the slight electrical current, causes minerals and chemicals to participate out of the water and build up inside and ‘scale’ the sides of the tank.
Have you drained and flushed the tank?
Have you replaced the heating element?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GERpIx_QLo