On my State WH it's also a hex head, think it was 1 1/8"?, but it was obviously the only fitting there. I'd make sure the new one will clear. Otherwise there are ones available that are linked together that will go in for sure. I think waterheaterrescue is one place that sells them. Also, you might want to check around to make sure you're getting a decent price.
I'm still skeptical about the anode being the problem.
I've heard of anodes being a problem with smell. The usual reason given is that they encourage bacteria growth which releases hydrogen sulfide. I've never seen it happen myself. My inlaw's water has that smell, but it's fr om a well, and in both the hot and cold water. The hot water is worse of c ourse because it volatilizes. But while I haven't seen it, there are lots of articles that say it happens.
But how does an anode release air? It can't be the HS gas. There's only a tiny amount dissolved in water, it just happens to affect our nose very ea sily. If it were concentrated enough to burp at a faucet, it probably woul d be enough to kill you. For sure it would corrode anything nearby, probab ly eat through pipes.
I haven't seen anyone suggest any other gas that an anode can produce. Wel l, long ago there was a report of hydrogen in a water heater, but I tracked down the original report and it turned out to be something else, long stor y.
And if it were any other gas, I don't think the OP would be reporting it as air. Does it smell at all? Will it burn?
And if it were some other kind of bacteria reacting with the anode, and it' s making enough gas to burp, I'm not sure I'd want to drink it. Must be li ke jello inside, with that much bacteria.
How about this for a scenario? Your well pump is injecting air into the wa ter supply. You actually have air in both hot and cold water pipes. BUT, you never notice it in cold water for two reasons. Cold water dissolves mo re air, and your cold water pipe layout has some areas where it gets trappe d. Your hot water tank has a dip tube for cold water entry, but hot water leaves through the top. Your water sits in the tank long enough for air to separate and form a layer on top of the water.
The thing is, an anode is a pain in the butt to get out. They're usually s crewed in really tight. And even if you get a shorter one or segmented one , you still need clearance to get the old one out. I wouldn't try this exc ept as a last resort.
Had another thought.
Well systems often have an expansion tank. There's usually a pressurized side, maybe air is getting in from there?
It was just one possibility that was suggested. I don't think it's necessarily a likely culprit either. Problem is there just doesn't seem to be any good explanation and the anode, if it can be removed, is pretty easy to rule out.
n is that they encourage bacteria growth which releases hydrogen sulfide. I've never seen it happen myself. My inlaw's water has that smell, bu t it's from a well, and in both the hot and cold water. The hot water is worse of course because it volatilizes. But while I haven't seen it, th ere are lots of articles that say it happens.
Agree, that's my understanding too.
only a tiny amount dissolved in water, it just happens to affect our nose v ery easily. If it were concentrated enough to burp at a faucet, it proba bly would be enough to kill you. For sure it would corrode anything near by, probably eat through pipes.
I agree. I don't have an explanation for what possible chemistry could account for a reaction at the anode. Here is another thought. What happens if you have a bad electric heating element that has the electric element in contact with the water? That would produce oxygen and hydrogen. Maybe that is more likely than some kind of reaction at the anode. Might be worth seeing if air shows up with the tank turned off.
Well, long ago there was a report of hydrogen in a water heater, but I t racked down the original report and it turned out to be something else, lon g story.as air. Does it smell at all? Will it burn?
I would think any gas that's observed, absent anything unusual, would be reported as air, because that's what we tend to think of as "trapped" in a water system.
t's making enough gas to burp, I'm not sure I'd want to drink it. Must b e like jello inside, with that much bacteria.
e water supply. You actually have air in both hot and cold water pipes. BUT, you never notice it in cold water for two reasons. Cold water di ssolves more air, and your cold water pipe layout has some areas where it g ets trapped. Your hot water tank has a dip tube for cold water entry, bu t hot water leaves through the top. Your water sits in the tank long eno ugh for air to separate and form a layer on top of the water.
Something like that is theoretically possible, I guess.
ly screwed in really tight. And even if you get a shorter one or segment ed one, you still need clearance to get the old one out. I wouldn't try this except as a last resort.
The anode should come right out of a new tank. I got mine unscrewed on a 5 year old tank without anything special. If it's 15 years old, that could be a whole different thing.
I think that is a very interesting theory, although I doubt the part about "your cold water pipe layout has some areas where it gets trapped". But, the idea that the hot water tank is a place where the pumped-in air can get released and trapped seems plausible to me. And, if cold water holds more trapped gases than hot water, when the gas-infused cold water gets heated in the hot water tank maybe that releases the dissolved/trapped air.
One big hole in that theory is why this phenomena only started right when the water heater was replaced and not with the old one which would have identical characteristics with regard to trapping air. I'm thinking my electrolysis by a bad heating element sounds better. I've never heard of that happening, but it sounds theoretically possible, no?
Good point. I was actually thinking of adding the far out possibility of inadvertent electrolysis to my post since it is an electric hot water heater. I had even started looking up electrolysis of water (which I generally think of as involving DC rather than AC current
But, if the "air" coming out of the hot water spigots really is a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen, I guess holding a flame near the spigot could produce some interesting results -- hopefully just a popping sound and not a real explosion. And, I guess there would be no smell to the gas as there would be if it was hydrogen sulfide gas.
I've never heard of it happening either, but it seems like a good idea to check it.
If it's electrolysis, it is splitting water into a stochiometric mixture of oxygen and hydrogen.
Just put a small plastic bag over the faucet, turn it on, and collect some of the gas. Test it with a match or lighter. Hydrogen mixed with the ideal ratio of oxygen should definitely burn.
If you use DC, you get hydrogen at one electrode and oxygen at the other.
If you use AC, you get a mix of gas.
BUT, your water has to be conductive. You need to add enough salt, acid, lemon juice, etc. to let the current flow. Pure water won't conduct.
d, lemon juice, etc. to let the current flow. Pure water won't conduct.
He did say his water has a lot of minerals. That sufficient.
of oxygen and hydrogen.
e of the gas. Test it with a match or lighter. Hydrogen mixed with th e ideal ratio of oxygen should definitely burn.
Maybe she'll light up like one of those faucets from the folks that have nat gas in their water from fracking.....
Could be fracking, too.
ed side, maybe air is getting in from there?
All well systems (except direct pumping) have a "tank" that uses a bubble to that uses air to keep the system pressurised. Even if the bladder is leaking over the period he reports. All the air would have been gone by now and he would be having major problems with short cycling. If you are referring to the real "expansion tank", small and separate frm the main tank, same thing would apply - air would be gone by now.
Harry K
n is that they encourage bacteria growth which releases hydrogen sulfide. I've never seen it happen myself. My inlaw's water has that smell, bu t it's from a well, and in both the hot and cold water. The hot water is worse of course because it volatilizes. But while I haven't seen it, th ere are lots of articles that say it happens.
only a tiny amount dissolved in water, it just happens to affect our nose v ery easily. If it were concentrated enough to burp at a faucet, it proba bly would be enough to kill you. For sure it would corrode anything near by, probably eat through pipes.
Well, long ago there was a report of hydrogen in a water heater, but I t racked down the original report and it turned out to be something else, lon g story.as air. Does it smell at all? Will it burn?
t's making enough gas to burp, I'm not sure I'd want to drink it. Must b e like jello inside, with that much bacteria.
e water supply. You actually have air in both hot and cold water pipes. BUT, you never notice it in cold water for two reasons. Cold water di ssolves more air, and your cold water pipe layout has some areas where it g ets trapped. Your hot water tank has a dip tube for cold water entry, bu t hot water leaves through the top. Your water sits in the tank long eno ugh for air to separate and form a layer on top of the water.
If he has a submersible, there is no air available to inject. HOWEVER you do hve a good point. Some wills produce water that has air dissolved in it. It could be coming out of solution and collecteding as you suggested.
I occasionaly get a short 'burp' from my system. Never paid attention if it is only from the hot side.
Harry K
I'm not sold on any analysis yet. It's just been my experience that until you find the real "root cause," you're spinning wheels spending money.
It might be useful to know the water analysis. I assume you wouldn't drink well water without an occasional test, so you should know pH, TDS, hardnes s, conductivity, etc.
Even though these symptoms appeared when the water heater was changed, it's not a given that this was the cause. Maybe the characteristics of the wel l had changed, and it would have happened with either heater. That's the k ind of coincidence that drives you nuts troubleshooting.
til you find the real "root cause," you're spinning wheels spending money.
rink well water without an occasional test, so you should know pH, TDS, har dness, conductivity, etc.
's not a given that this was the cause. Maybe the characteristics of the well had changed, and it would have happened with either heater. That's the kind of coincidence that drives you nuts troubleshooting.
There is another puzzling aspect to this:
"any time you run a faucet it is fine until the hot water makes it to the tap and then it gurgles and spits every few minutes. "
It sounds like this then goes on continously? If some gas of some kind is getting generated in the WH, by whatever reaction you would think it would show up as the first hot water arrives. But you'd also think that it would not last too long. I mean how much gas could there be? You would think in a few minutes it would be over. And then if you drew hot water again in like 5 or 10 mins you would have no air, or at least no noticeable air. And if you let it recover for say 8 hours, then you'd have more air again.
Another interesting experiment would be to turn off the WH, use up all the hot water and see how it behaves with just cold water in it. Is it possible this "gurgling/spitting" isn't even due to air/gas? Another key experiment would be to get the water going into a container, preferabley via a hose, maybe on the washing machine tap, to verify that bubbles are in fact responsible. I mean you would certainly think it's air/gas related, but who knows. Is it possible something is partially blocking the flow, causing the fits and spurts?
One big hole in that theory is why this phenomena only started right when the water heater was replaced and not with the old one which would have identical characteristics with regard to trapping air. I'm thinking my electrolysis by a bad heating element sounds better. I've never heard of that happening, but it sounds theoretically possible, no?
If it's electrolysis, then one of the elements is leaking electricity into the water and this situation becomes a safety issue. The current flow will eat away the element materials at the point of contact and the problem will get worse fast. At some point, electricity will be felt in the water depending upon the quality of the ground via pipes, water and wiring. Don't do a hand test in the water to find out though -- use a neon tester or a meter and watch what you touch. As the current increases, a breaker should trip.
From a safety standpoint though, check this out right away.
Tomsic
There is a far simpler possible answer.
When the water heater was replaced, all the hot water pipes drained and fil led with air.
Most of it came out, but a little continues to be trapped and causes the sp it and gurgle. It doesn't take much air to do so, and it can be a pain to get the last little bit out.
Occam's Razor, anyone?
Now, for electrolysis. I just doubt it can produce enough gas. I can see two obvious ways to test for it.
Capture some of the gas. Fill your laundry tub halfway with water, put a c lear plastic bag inside it, can be a dry cleaner bag or similar. It doesn' t have to hold pressure. Open the bag under water so it fills. Run a hose from the hot water faucet into the bag. The air/gas/whatever will collect . Poke a small hole in the top of the bag, squeeze a little gas out and use a lighter to check.
If it does not pop, it is NOT electrolysis. If it does pop, electrolysis i s not confirmed, it could still be methane from the well.
Second way: If it is electrolysis, somewhere you have a circuit completed through the water. The element is 240 V, just two hots, no neutral. The c ase exterior is grounded. So electrolysis would require jolts to leak from the element through the tank coating to the metal body and back to the pan el through the ground. The voltage would be 120 of course, not 240. Put a clamp on ammeter on the bare ground wire. You shouldn't measure any curre nt. Disconnect the ground wire, and if it is electrolysis it should stop. You might be able to measure voltage between ground wire connection and gr ound wire with them disconnected. (I always get in trouble here with voltm eter measurements.)
That would mean you have a bad element AND a bad tank coating on a new tank , and it just seems unlikely.
I may have been too skeptical about electrolysis.
I googled and found a case where someone was getting air in the lines, and solved it by raising the water heater off the concrete floor with insulation.
His theory was current flowing from the element to the floor through the water. A concrete floor is normally considered effectively at ground potential.
I don't know what else would account for that fix working.
It does seem if you had that much current flowing, you'd quickly eat a hole in your tank. That's what corrosion is.
illed with air.
spit and gurgle. It doesn't take much air to do so, and it can be a pain to get the last little bit out.
I'd buy that for a few days to a week. But he said it's been going on for a long time, got the impression it's been months, though I don't recall if he's actually given a number. And in every case I've been involved with it was over in a matter of minutes once that line was flowing. It's not unusual to open a faucet a week later, that hasn't been used and have air come out of it, but that isn't what he's saying. He says he has spurting, gurgling going on continously, on all hot faucets. And also that the spurting starts when the hot water arrives at the faucets. That strongly suggests that it's not coming from some random place, but actually from the tank.
Why would that be? A simple battery in a lab experiment can fill a test tube up with gas in a matter of minutes.
I can see two obvious ways to test for it.a clear plastic bag inside it, can be a dry cleaner bag or similar. It doesn't have to hold pressure. Open the bag under water so it fills. Run a hose from the hot water faucet into the bag. The air/gas/whatever will collect. Poke a small hole in the top of the bag, squeeze a little gas out and use a lighter to check.
is is not confirmed, it could still be methane from the well.
ted through the water. The element is 240 V, just two hots, no neutral. The case exterior is grounded. So electrolysis would require jolts to leak from the element through the tank coating to the metal body and back to the panel through the ground. The voltage would be 120 of course, not 240. Put a clamp on ammeter on the bare ground wire. You shouldn't m easure any current. Disconnect the ground wire, and if it is electrolysi s it should stop. You might be able to measure voltage between ground wi re connection and ground wire with them disconnected. (I always get in t rouble here with voltmeter measurements.)
nk, and it just seems unlikely.
The current path doesn't have to be from the heating element to the tank wall. The outside of the element is grounded. If it has a hole in it, the path could be from the hot electrode inside to the metal outside of the heating element. A very short path. Also, it would not require a coated tank. The elements screw in and the metal plug part of the element is uncoated.
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