I was wondering if anyone would take a moment and help here.
I have a 3 year old water heater (will get information on it on demand)
Problem is that it seems to pop the circut breaker at times, sometimes 1x a day (or once every 3 days) and then it didnt pop the past week.
Resets easily. Except for today where it made a occasional pop noise from the heater wall. Also dims the lights, when it pops, smf when it does pop nothing else is off.
You didn't specifically say it is an electric water heater, but assuming it is, then...
Chances are a heater element (your heater may use one or two, you didn't specify that either) has developed a electrical short to its case and that's what's making the breaker pop.
If you know what you're doing, then use a clamp on ammeter to measure the element(s) current(s) when their thermostat(s) are powering them on and see if it jives with their wattage. If if the current is too high you're onto something.
Alternatively, open the circuit breaker and remove both leads from the element(s). Use an ohmmeter to see if you can spot leakage from the element terminals to ground. If you measure less than 100K ohms, you're onto something there too.
If the above doesn't make sense to you fughedit and call a pro.
The first step is to determine what the problem is. There are three possibilities.
First possibility is that one of the elements in the water heater is shorting and drawing too much current.
Second possibility is that there is a problem in the wire running between the breaker and the heater.
And lastly the breaker is faulty.
I would kill the power to the heater, then remove the cable from the water heater. Assuming you have two elements, pull the covers off of both and remove the wires from both of them. Using the ohm meter measure the resistance on each, it should be pretty close to the same for both. If one of them has a lot lower resistance then that is likely your trouble.
If they check out OK, then first check that there is no continuity on the two wires that were attached to the heater (breaker still off, heater still disconnected, and that there is no continuity from either wire to ground.
If that test holds, then your wires are probably OK.
Reconnect the heater.
If you have another 240 breaker of the same rating for your stove or something else you can swap the two breakers between the circuits (if you know how and feel comfortable doing this.) if the problem goes away or reoccurs on the other circuit then the breaker is suspect.
If you have not found the problem by now, it is either time for the electrician or perhaps you could disconnect one of the two elements in the water heater and see if the problem goes away, if it does not then try running only the other element.
I am no expert, but this should isolate your problem. I suspect one of the elements is the most likely suspect. If that is the case you will probably need a 1/2 inch drive socket of the appropriate size (get a size point) and a breaker bar. Heating the thing with a torch is also a good idea.
Be sure to kill the power, then drain the tank, then replace the element, then refill the tank, then reenergize the circuit. If you don't do it just that way you will wish you had.
The circuit stayed fine thru the night, I ran some hot water and cautiously opened the 2 panels on it to see if I could examine anything out of place and (not knowing or touching anything) but it did make a pop/knock sound in the tank while looking at the tank.
I put the panels back and it brings a question to mind... Why are there 2 thermostats on the tank?
Tank info: I do not see a year on it. Raheem for manufactured homes, model 71-52d b, wattage 240/208 upper and lower 4500/3380 50 gal and yes it has a double circuit switch.
" I would begin by replacing breaker its a low cost repair"
I suppose you would then move on the next least expensive thing, like the upper element, then the lower element, then the lower thermostat, then the upper, and ultimately the feeder cable, and eventually one of your guesses would pay off?
I'd go with Roger and Jeff, who actually give info on how to diagnose the problem, instead of senselessly throwing part after part at it
pop[ping sound may be water boiling in tank, breaker is most likely....
You might have something that is beyond just a DIY fix. I was told by an electrician, that a water heater breaker kept tripping, and the home owner was mad. So he checked it out, the breaker was the right size, but the wires were undersized, causing localized heatin at the breakers terminal and tripping. Good thing the home owner said something, that sounds like a potential fire problem.
In short, get a quick check by an electrician, the breakers might by 'old' or something.
John, aside from testing the various parts to determine the cause of the problem, also check the conductor size and circuit breaker size. Your water heater requires a #10 copper feed cable and a double pole 30 amp circuit breaker
How would a gas water heater make the light dim? :)
I could also be a bad control. I had one burn out and it really fried. Smoke and sparks and the whole shebang. The dizzy woman I was with at that time freaked out and called the fire department. I admit there was a lot of smoke, but shutting off the breaker would have stopped it.
Because there are two heating elements. One thermostat for each element. If it popped inside the tank, you got a bad element.
Not too hard to fix. Shut off the power, drain the water from tank, and remove the 4 bolts that hold in the element. Of course your guess is as good as mine if its the upper or lower element, so you may as well remove both. Look for holes, cracks, pits corrosion, and other damage to the element. They should be smooth.
You'll likely need a new gasket for the good element that you replace. Or just replace both elements and be done with it. They are not real expsnsive.
All of them are, unless you have an old one with a pilot light. Nowadays they all have complete shutoff of the gas when not in use, and electric controls for same.
Again sorry to forget to put all the information in
It is an electric hot water heater. 50 gallon one. made in 2001 the breakers say 25 on the 2 of them
The tank would only pop once... 'just a single pop'. Like at no particular time just random off the wall times would it pop (the most was 3 in a day). Loud enough to hear in the other room. When the kids take showers, I would sit in the kitchen to listen it fire up and it would work fine, it SEEMS to do this when it isnt really doing anything (probably gets bored and wants attention). I was once sorta close to it today when it did pop and it seemed to be in the middle of the tank but i cannot be sure of it.
You guys are awsome to help me do this and I WILL NOT do anything that is dangerous to me or my family, I REALLY appreciate all your ideas.
I have called the company and they told me to disconnect the bottom element (I wont do it until i get some wire caps tho and when turn the breaker off) to see if it still sets the breaker off. I need to get an OHM meter and check the elements first.
Which I will have no idea if that works because like I said before it trips the breaker when it feels like it and it makes that 1 TIME pop noise just a little more then the breaker.
A double pole 25 amp is fine. One thing you may try first is a visual check. Kill the power to the unit and confirm it's off, open both panels and clear away any insulation. Check for any visible burned wires or thermostats or terminals on the heating elements
Typically, it would be AWG # 10 on a double 30 as it's a more readily available breaker, but the amperage of a 4500 watt heater is 18.75 , which makes a double 25 just fine
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