Home Improvement Tips for Summer 2024
Take the time now to get your home back on track before the summer season officially hits.
No one wants to deal with the stench of rotten eggs. Or exorbitant utility bills. Or you might have to pay thousands of dollars to replace a major appliance on a whim.
Also, regular maintenance on your home’s water heater, especially cleaning the tank, will eliminate the need for it.
Although it’s not the most glamorous part of homeownership, everyday tasks like taking a shower, doing laundry, and washing dishes rely on the hot water produced by your water heater. Therefore, it is important to keep it functioning properly so that it does not disrupt your lifestyle too much.
Why do I need to flush my water heater?
Sediment builds up inside your water heater over time. This is caused by mineral deposits in hard water, such as calcium and magnesium, which settle to the bottom of the tank during the heating process.
This deposit acts as an insulating layer. This can reduce the heating efficiency of your appliance, increase your utility bills, and lead to premature tank failure.
“Sediment buildup can make water heaters work harder, and most importantly, sediment buildup can promote the growth of waterborne bacteria, which can cause illnesses such as Legionnaires’ disease,” the New Jersey Department of Health guidance says.
How often should I flush my water heater?
Experts typically recommend cleaning your water heater once or twice a year, depending on water quality and whether you have a water softener. But Anthony Intile of Dr. Water Heater in Denville, N.J., said you can do it up to four times a year at the beginning of the season, especially if you have particularly hard water or use a lot of water.
“If you do this four times a year, you’ll extend the life of your water heater,” he says.
What should I do if I have never cleaned my water heater before?
If your water heater is a few years old and you’ve never flushed it, Intile says it’s actually best not to flush it.
“Get it checked by a professional. You don’t want to get it checked if it’s been more than three years, for example,” he says. “If you haven’t cleaned it in years, flushing it is the worst thing you can do. Then the sediment starts to move and that’s when the heater starts leaking.”
How do I flush my water heater?
Intile says if you have a tankless water heater, you should always contact a professional to have it cleaned. This is because the process involves circulating a chemical called a descaler through the equipment using a pump, which is then flushed out with fresh water.
However, if you have a conventional water heater with a storage tank, you can usually flush the water yourself as it is a simple process of flushing the water.
To do this, start by turning off the electricity, natural gas, or propane that powers your water heater. This usually needs to be done the night before to give the water in the tank enough time to cool down to avoid the risk of burning yourself during the process.
If you can’t leave your water heater off overnight, you can also open a nearby faucet to drain the hot water and replace the tank with cold water.
Next, turn off the water supply valve. The water supply valve is located at the top of the water heater where the cold water pipe enters the tank. Then, connect a garden hose to the drain valve at the bottom of the tank and run the other end of the hose to your lawn or garden, where you can safely drain the tank.
“Get a 5-gallon bucket or something similar and put it under the drain. Then open the bucket and fill it twice with water and then throw it away,” Intil said.
Repeat this as many times as necessary until the water is clear and free of sediment. Then, close the drain valve, disconnect the garden hose, and fill up the water heater to restore power to the appliance.
There is plenty of detailed guidance available online, including from the New Jersey Department of Health and Home Improvement. If you need further assistance, you can also consult a local plumber.
“A water heater requires no maintenance at all other than flushing it,” Intil says.
Maddie McGay is a real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering everything that’s worth celebrating about living in North Jersey. Find her on Instagram @maddiemcgay or X @maddiemcgayy and sign up for the North Jersey Living newsletter. Do you have any tips, trends, or great homes she should know about? Email MMcGay@gannett.com.
