Lukewarm Water Not Easing Your Body Pain? Make It Temporarily Hot With This Tip

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Taking a hot or warm shower or soothing bath can alleviate many health problems, such as neck pain and stiff muscles. But if your home's water doesn't get hot enough to soothe your body pain, it's time to clean your water heater. Sometimes, water heaters fill up with minerals that make the water hard. The minerals or sediments can also form a thick blanket over the bottom of the water heater that prevents the water inside it from absorbing heat. As a result of these issues, your home's water doesn't reach the right temperature or flow through your plumbing properly. Improve the quality of your water temperature by removing the sediments from the water heater.

How Do Sediments Affect Your Hot Water?

Sources recommend setting the temperature of your water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid burns on the skin when you bathe or use water in the home. But if your water heater stays well below the recommended temperature, no matter how many times you reset it, you'll need to remove the sediments from it. 

The minerals usually settle along the bottom flooring of the water heater but can eventually break off and float to the surface of the tank. Every time you turn on your shower or faucets, the loose sediments leave the tank and travel through your plumbing lines. Eventually, your plumbing lines clog up and block the flow of hot water to your faucets and shower head.

Cleaning out your water heater is one of the ways to stop the problems above.

How Do You Clean Out the Water Heater?

It won't take long to clean out the water heater. You'll need one long garden hose, a large bowl, and old rags to do the project. 

Now, follow the simple steps below: 

1. Shut down the electricity to the water heater at the circuit breaker. If you use gas, turn the control dial to "off."
2. Turn off the hot water heater by rotating the relief valve clockwise. Keep turning the valve until it stops.
3. Wait one hour for the water heater to cool down.
4. Position the bowl beneath the drainage valve located on the bottom of the water heater to catch any water that shoots out of it.
5. Place the end of a garden hose over the drainage valve. Place the unattached end of the hose somewhere in the yard and away from the house to avoid flooding your foundation or plants with water and old sediment.
6. Turn on one faucet inside the home closest to the water heater's location. It'll make your job easier if you can keep everything in close range.
7. Give the tank 15-10 minutes to drain completely. 
8. Turn off the faucet to allow air to enter the heater. The force of the air will trigger the water heater to release its contents.

Take note of the amount of sediment that leave the tank. A large pile of sediment may indicate that the tank needs a thorough cleaning. Also, listen for sounds of clanking and rumbling in the tank. If you notice strange sounds, there may be large pieces of sediment that haven't broken down yet. 

Contact and report any of the problems you notice to a water heater service technician in the near future. The water heater may have rust or corrosion inside it that can permanently damage the appliance or your plumbing system.  

After you complete the cleaning, remove the hose and turn the water supply valve back on. Return power or gas to the water heater, then wait about 45 minutes to one hour for the appliance to heat up. Turn on a hot water tap, then place the tip of a hand thermometer beneath the water. If the temperature on the thermometer reaches the temperature recommended above, you've solved your problem.

If the water doesn't reach the recommended temperature, schedule a water heater repair appointment as soon as possible. 

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22 January 2016