Advice: Possible Water Heater Problem

[Ban Hammer 13,651]

Update on the enthralling saga of the water heater (I know you've all been on the edge of your seats!):

A plumber came to check out the problem last week before we moved in. Apparently, in addition to the sulfur smell, the water was green/gray. He said he ran the hot water into the bathtub for several minutes to see if clear water would eventually make its way through the pipes, but to no avail. He said that the old water heater was so full of gunk that the heating element had stopped working properly. The unit isn't that old, but he attributed the problem to the apartment being vacant for many months at a time over the last few years. I guess that can be hell on water heaters, particularly if you live in a hard-water area. I asked about the sacrificial anode (good band name?) and he said that likely contributed to the sulfur smell but not necessarily the gunk.

The long and short of it is that we now have a brand new water heater! Yay! Unfortunately, the chick at the property management company whose job it is to coordinate this stuff is an uninterested, incompetent thing and doesn't seem to get the concept of having problems addressed before move-in. So we actually didn't have hot water for three days (we moved in Friday and got the new water heater yesterday).

Anyhoo, the new place is great, and everything else seems to work.

i was wondering what happened with this.

[Empress of Groovy 373]

Update on the enthralling saga of the water heater (I know you've all been on the edge of your seats!):

A plumber came to check out the problem last week before we moved in. Apparently, in addition to the sulfur smell, the water was green/gray. He said he ran the hot water into the bathtub for several minutes to see if clear water would eventually make its way through the pipes, but to no avail. He said that the old water heater was so full of gunk that the heating element had stopped working properly. The unit isn't that old, but he attributed the problem to the apartment being vacant for many months at a time over the last few years. I guess that can be hell on water heaters, particularly if you live in a hard-water area. I asked about the sacrificial anode (good band name?) and he said that likely contributed to the sulfur smell but not necessarily the gunk.

The long and short of it is that we now have a brand new water heater! Yay! Unfortunately, the chick at the property management company whose job it is to coordinate this stuff is an uninterested, incompetent thing and doesn't seem to get the concept of having problems addressed before move-in. So we actually didn't have hot water for three days (we moved in Friday and got the new water heater yesterday).

Anyhoo, the new place is great, and everything else seems to work.

i was wondering what happened with this.

Ha! Well, some people really like appliances.

Sorry I don't have more detailed information about what actually went wrong with it. I was surprised to learn that water heaters (electric anyway) aren't all that expensive. I think the new unit was a few hundred dollars, and it took the plumbers less than an hour to install it and haul away the old one. I wonder why the owner didn't address the problem a while ago, while he was living here, given that it's been problematic for a couple of years. When he'd go away for a couple of weeks at a time for business, he'd come back to the same sulfur problem. When he moved out and his first tenant moved in (the person who lived here before we moved in), she had the same problem initially. This is consistent w/ what I've read about this type of problem. By the time we moved in, the gunk in the tank had started to cause some real damage to the heating element because by this time, the apartment had been vacant for a while. I'm thinking that if the owner had addressed the problem earlier, maintenance--replacing the anode rod and flushing/sanitizing the tank--would have solved the problem.

Oh well, new water heater for us!

[Ban Hammer 13,651]

Update on the enthralling saga of the water heater (I know you've all been on the edge of your seats!):

A plumber came to check out the problem last week before we moved in. Apparently, in addition to the sulfur smell, the water was green/gray. He said he ran the hot water into the bathtub for several minutes to see if clear water would eventually make its way through the pipes, but to no avail. He said that the old water heater was so full of gunk that the heating element had stopped working properly. The unit isn't that old, but he attributed the problem to the apartment being vacant for many months at a time over the last few years. I guess that can be hell on water heaters, particularly if you live in a hard-water area. I asked about the sacrificial anode (good band name?) and he said that likely contributed to the sulfur smell but not necessarily the gunk.

The long and short of it is that we now have a brand new water heater! Yay! Unfortunately, the chick at the property management company whose job it is to coordinate this stuff is an uninterested, incompetent thing and doesn't seem to get the concept of having problems addressed before move-in. So we actually didn't have hot water for three days (we moved in Friday and got the new water heater yesterday).

Anyhoo, the new place is great, and everything else seems to work.

i was wondering what happened with this.

Ha! Well, some people really like appliances.

Sorry I don't have more detailed information about what actually went wrong with it. I was surprised to learn that water heaters (electric anyway) aren't all that expensive. I think the new unit was a few hundred dollars, and it took the plumbers less than an hour to install it and haul away the old one. I wonder why the owner didn't address the problem a while ago, while he was living here, given that it's been problematic for a couple of years. When he'd go away for a couple of weeks at a time for business, he'd come back to the same sulfur problem. When he moved out and his first tenant moved in (the person who lived here before we moved in), she had the same problem initially. This is consistent w/ what I've read about this type of problem. By the time we moved in, the gunk in the tank had started to cause some real damage to the heating element because by this time, the apartment had been vacant for a while. I'm thinking that if the owner had addressed the problem earlier, maintenance--replacing the anode rod and flushing/sanitizing the tank--would have solved the problem.

Oh well, new water heater for us!

it's always good to have an interest in them when one is a homeowner

and it's great you got a new heater, newer = more savings on your electric bill

[Empress of Groovy 373]

Update on the enthralling saga of the water heater (I know you've all been on the edge of your seats!):

A plumber came to check out the problem last week before we moved in. Apparently, in addition to the sulfur smell, the water was green/gray. He said he ran the hot water into the bathtub for several minutes to see if clear water would eventually make its way through the pipes, but to no avail. He said that the old water heater was so full of gunk that the heating element had stopped working properly. The unit isn't that old, but he attributed the problem to the apartment being vacant for many months at a time over the last few years. I guess that can be hell on water heaters, particularly if you live in a hard-water area. I asked about the sacrificial anode (good band name?) and he said that likely contributed to the sulfur smell but not necessarily the gunk.

The long and short of it is that we now have a brand new water heater! Yay! Unfortunately, the chick at the property management company whose job it is to coordinate this stuff is an uninterested, incompetent thing and doesn't seem to get the concept of having problems addressed before move-in. So we actually didn't have hot water for three days (we moved in Friday and got the new water heater yesterday).

Anyhoo, the new place is great, and everything else seems to work.

i was wondering what happened with this.

Ha! Well, some people really like appliances.

Sorry I don't have more detailed information about what actually went wrong with it. I was surprised to learn that water heaters (electric anyway) aren't all that expensive. I think the new unit was a few hundred dollars, and it took the plumbers less than an hour to install it and haul away the old one. I wonder why the owner didn't address the problem a while ago, while he was living here, given that it's been problematic for a couple of years. When he'd go away for a couple of weeks at a time for business, he'd come back to the same sulfur problem. When he moved out and his first tenant moved in (the person who lived here before we moved in), she had the same problem initially. This is consistent w/ what I've read about this type of problem. By the time we moved in, the gunk in the tank had started to cause some real damage to the heating element because by this time, the apartment had been vacant for a while. I'm thinking that if the owner had addressed the problem earlier, maintenance--replacing the anode rod and flushing/sanitizing the tank--would have solved the problem.

Oh well, new water heater for us!

it's always good to have an interest in them when one is a homeowner

and it's great you got a new heater, newer = more savings on your electric bill

Very true! I'm glad to learn about this stuff as a renter (i.e., not financially responsible for appliances) so that I'll be somewhat knowledgeable when we buy a place eventually.

[*julez* 124]

Alss well that ends well! Hooray for stink-free water!

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

not bathing for three days does wonders for the hair.

Daniel

[Mags 112]

not bathing for three days does wonders for the hair.

Daniel

I'm sure Joyce would have something to say about that were she in a situation such as this...

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

yes'm. and the body oil to the pantsuits! o mi dios!

Daniel

Edited April 2, 2008 by AnaAndDaniel

[Empress of Groovy 373]

not bathing for three days does wonders for the hair.

Daniel

I'm sure Joyce would have something to say about that were she in a situation such as this...

I suspect that Joyce would approve. I think that natural hair oils are a central component (one of dozens) of the optimal triple-perm-based Joyce helmet.

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

not bathing for three days does wonders for the hair.

Daniel

I'm sure Joyce would have something to say about that were she in a situation such as this...

I suspect that Joyce would approve. I think that natural hair oils are a central component (one of dozens) of the optimal triple-perm-based Joyce helmet.

eggzactly my reasoning sis. also, a little pepper to spice things up is just so happening.

Daniel