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Plumbing in the Home/Hot water tank
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Question
After we run a bath, we use all the hot water. My question is how long should it take for the tank to reheat the water. It seems like we have to wait 6 hours before the tank has reheated. Could something be wrong? We have a 52 gallon electric water heater.
Hi Paul, You have a lower element that has burned out. The lower element is the hardest working one. It heats the incoming cold water untill it's hot enough to raise to the top where the top element keeps it hot. If the lower element is burned out you will have just the top layer of water to draw from. Also it will take much longer to bring the water back up to temperture. To repair this problem you will have to shut the power off at the breaker box and drain the heater. You will need a meter that measures resistance and a element plus regular tools. If you plan on doing this yourself and would like detailed instructions just click on back. Hope this helps and thank you for rating my reply. Tom
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Answers by Expert:
speedball1
Expertise
About me: My Plumbing Expertise: I retired from plumbing after a lifetime in the trade. all phases from service and upkeep to construction, both residential and commercial. I am qualified to do anything in plumbing from fixing a leaky faucet to drafting a set of plans for a commercial shopping center and supervising the construction. My last five years were spent as a trouble shooter for a large plumbing company. I took on all my companys complaints. I have been a expert on the plumbing page at Askme.com. In a field of 200 experts my rating was number one. You may also find me at Answerway.com and AskMe Help Desk.com. This is fun for me and if I can help anybody out that`s iceing on the cake. Degrees & Certifications: As for degrees, I don`t have any. Just a Journeymans ticket, but hey! How about fifty years experience?
Experience
Life Experience? Hmmmmmmm! Ran away at 15 and joined a carnival, Navy at 17 Merchant marine at 19 I've had a hellava life.
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