How To Flush Your Water Heater THE EASY WAY

Comments · 516

• DE

  @demetriosa7646 · 2 years ago

  Anode rod replacement is a plumbers worst nightmare in profit loss. As a homeowner now doing your own anode rod can  extend the life of your hot water tank by a lot of years. I have learned that the good tanks that are sold at supply houses contain two anode rods and that’s why their warranty is greater than the big box stores, but if you do your own anode rod replacements at least three or four year intervals you can get many years out of your hot water tank, it’s such an easy job with so many videos on YouTube explaining it.

  282

• CO

  @condor5635 · 2 years ago

  Just a suggestion putting the gas in Pilot works so much better than turning off the gas. Main burner won’t ignite and you don’t have to relight the heater which is a hassle. Great video

  222

• JA

  @janofb · 2 years ago (edited)

  The rust color is the remnants of your Anode rod.  They have an iron steel core covered with magnesium or aluminum.  When the magnesium or aluminum is eaten off, it starts to rust the iron steel core.  That's when it's time to change.  You can usually tell by running a hot water faucet you don't use much. The water comes out rusty.  I replace mine every 3 years. Regular inspection shows it's just about done after that amount of time for my situation.   Water Heater going on 12 years old and works great. Getting ready to replace the rod again on it's 3 year anniversary next week.   I usually do all the basic maintenance stuff on the house in Dec.  Anode rods, drain water heater, smoke alarm batteries (had to actually replace the units all today - they have a 10 year life), furnace filters (those are 4 times a year), whole house water filter (3 times a year.).  People say to do it in January, but I'm still recovering from New Years Eve that month.

  173

• BI

  @billbradley2480 · 2 years ago (edited)

  My home was new in 2008. I flushed my water heater once a year for first 3 years then the 3rd year the striker wouldn’t work so I had to call a maintenance man to come install a new one. He said from now on don’t turn off the gas. Just flush the water heater with the gas on. He said these strikers aren’t made to last long.

  113

• ME

  @Metals21 · 2 years ago

  2 tips for others reading comments to do besides this:<br>1 - you don&apos;t need to turn it off - put it in pilot or vacation mode<br>2 - drain it all the way down, then turn your cold water on for 20-30 sec at a time and let it drain again. I repeat this around 3-4 times until I see no further setiment coming out. The cold water splashes when the tank is empty really help to stir up remaining setiment in the bottom. Then I&apos;ll fill the tank full, drain it once more, then fill full again.

  286

• TH

  @Thatgirl1973 · 2 years ago

  WOW!!! I installed my water heater maybe 7yrs ago...I&apos;m flushing it this week!

  45

• ST

  @stephen2220 · 2 years ago

  OK, what you&apos;ve flushed out of your water heater is most likely the magnesium from your original Anode Rod that has been doing it&apos;s job by sacrificing itself to protect your water heater for the last 6-7 years. &nbsp;If you haven&apos;t yet I&apos;d replace that Anode Rod asap. &nbsp;You will be surprised how little of it is actually left, especially after 6-7 years...

  54

• MR

  @MrNorthstar50 · 2 years ago (edited)

  Its a good idea to have a &nbsp;cap with you when you flush one, just in case you can&apos;t get the valve to close. Many times they won&apos;t close completely.

  41

• LB

  @LBCAndrew · 2 years ago

  You should also replace the anode rod every 4-5 years or so. The only difference between a water heater with a 5 year warranty and a 20 year warranty is the 20 year has multiple anode rods.

  12

• BI

  @BigSteve_Gaming187 · 6 months ago

  Another tip that you may like. For instances like this but mostly I use a pool water filter sock over my filter for my wet dry vac&apos;s. I&apos;m an autodetailer and there is nothing more annoying than going out to purchase filters after a couple of uses. My original filter still looks amazing despite the dozens of vehicles I take care of each year. Because it is a pool sock. It handles being wet too. Easy to soak and reclean for a years of use depending consistency in care.

  3

• BO

  @BobsYoureuncle · 2 years ago

  Looking forward to a <br> Full &nbsp;Maintenance video for &nbsp;Fire On Demand water heaters .

  5

• IT

  @itzNickyJayBeats · 2 years ago

  You technically never drained the tank, After you pressurise up the water heater with the hose connected onto it, let it run for a minute then cut the water valve off so all of the water inside of the tank drains, Then once completely drained shut off the drain valve and re open up the cold inlet valve to refill up the water heater. You could do it once or twice for a really sufficient clean

  42