Tureks Plumbing Services Blog: Posts Tagged ‘water heater repair appleton wi’

Spring Maintenance With Water Heaters

Tuesday, March 29th, 2022

Spring Maintenance With Water Heaters

Is spring cleaning nearing the top of your to-do list? At Tureks Plumbing, our Appleton WI Plumber encourages you to include water heater maintenance in your to-do list.

Despite being one of the most crucial pieces of equipment in the home, the water heater is frequently overlooked. We tend to forget this simple appliance that works silently in the nooks and crannies of a garage or closet. That is until there is no hot water.

Why Get Spring Maintenance On Your Water Heater

The good news is that it only takes a few minutes of simple, low-cost maintenance. Additionally, regular maintenance can extend the life of the appliance, saving you the trouble and expense of replacing it prematurely.

Below, our water heater repair Appleton WI shares five quick fixes to keep the hot showers flowing.

Organize

Is your water heater in a utility closet, laundry room, or other location that also serves as a storage area? Depending on what you keep near or around the water heater, this could pose a fire or safety concern. To keep everything clean and safe, follow these steps:

First, our Fox Valley WI Plumber recommends that you clear the area around your water heater. This will allow enough ventilation and an unobstructed view of the unit. If any argument is obscured, you may fail to detect that your water heater is leaking until it is too late. Install shelving and hooks to store laundry detergents and other household objects away from the water heater. Flammable things should be kept at least 18 inches away from the water heater. Also, avoid storing goods prone to moisture damage near the water heater, such as books, papers, or periodicals.

Clean the Vents

Many water heaters feature a vent on the bottom that allows oxygen to enter the heater and aid in heating. Over a year, this vent can collect dust and other debris. To clean, suck up the material with a vacuum and empty up the flue. Vacuum the ducts as part of your spring and fall cleaning routines.

Test TPR

A temperature and pressure relief (TPR) valve is a safety feature in water heaters. It automatically opens to release pressure by detecting harmful pressure accumulation or an abnormally high temperature inside the water heater tank. A water heater is at risk of exploding if the TPR valve is not operating. The TPR valve on a water heater should be tested once a year.

To conduct the test, place a bucket beneath the pipe attached to the TPR. Next, pull the valve’s lever. You should notice a little surge of air or see some water and vapor depart the TPR. If you don’t, the valve will need to be replaced.

Empty the Tank

Sediment buildup in the tank can lower the energy efficiency of your water heater and block your water lines. We recommend you empty the tank in your water heater once a year.

Change the Temperature

Adjust the temperature dial on the water heater tank to 120 degrees. You will save up to 5% on energy bills for every 10 degrees you reduce the temperature. If you will be away from home for more than three days, turn off the water heater or set the thermostat to the lowest level.

You may relax and enjoy the excellent hot water that will be flowing and heating more efficiently — and safely — after just a few minutes of simple labor.

Make a Service Call


If you’re concerned that your attempts at water heater maintenance may backfire and cause more problems than they solve, don’t just disregard the work. Schedule a service call from a plumber near me instead.

At Tureks Plumbing, our terrific people are proud to offer terrific service to our customers. Contact our team today to schedule your water heater maintenance appointment.

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Signs to Replace Your Water Heater

Wednesday, January 5th, 2022

Signs to Replace Your Water Heater

Signs to Replace Your Water Heater

We’re guessing you spend at least 30 minutes a day worrying about your water heater. Wrong—we hope you’ve got more important things on your mind. Most of us don’t give our water heater a second thought until we turn on the shower or sink and there’s no hot water. The fact is that most hot water heater issues develop decades before the equipment breaks. So here are some signs to replace your water heater from you plumber Appleton Wisconsin.

How to Tell You Need a New Water Heater

Here are a few clear indicators that your hot water heater isn’t operating correctly and needs to be repaired–don’t worry. Tureks, water heater repair Appleton Wisconsin provides water heater repair services across the Appleton area.

Water of Poor Quality

You may learn a lot about your water heater’s functionality by checking the hot water as it flows out of the faucet. Minerals, silt, and other debris may build-up at the bottom of your water heater’s tank over time, resulting in rusty, muddy water. Water heater replacement Appleton WI states, you may also notice unpleasant smells or metallic tastes in your water.

Leakage

One of the most prevalent water heater issues is leakage. Your emergency plumber Fox Valley is here to help. If you observe a pool of standing water near your water heater, you should consider replacing it as soon as possible. A leaky water heater may signify an internal breakdown of the device that needs immediate care, depending on the cause of the leak. You risk floods and serious water damage to your property if you don’t.

Unpredictable Temperature

Do you find it difficult to regulate the temperature of your hot water? Even if you don’t touch the faucet handle, does the temperature change from hot to cold? Another clue that your hot water heater is on its way out is inconsistency in the temperature of your hot water.

You may be able to solve the problem by altering the water heater’s settings in certain circumstances. If this doesn’t work, it’s time to contact Tureks for a water heater repair or replacement.

It Takes a Long Time for Water to Heat Up

If your water takes a long time to heat up, it might be due to a problem with the thermostat or heating element. This might also suggest a silt buildup in the tank. It may be time to replace the unit if changing the thermostat or heating element, or flushing the tank, does not cure the issue.

Your Water Heater Is Making Strange Noises

A water heater is not uncommon to create noise, particularly when the burner unit is activated to heat the water. However, some noises, such as creaking, rattling, pounding, knocking, or whining, should be avoided since they might signify problems. You may try flushing the tank to remove any silt that’s generating the noise, but if it doesn’t help, the heating element will need to be replaced.

Age

Age isn’t simply a number when it comes to your water heater. Even a high-quality, well-maintained water heater, like any mechanical item, can not last indefinitely. So while an older water heater may not show indicators of difficulty, it is more likely to have a problem or fail completely.

Most water heaters have a lifetime of 10 to 15 years. If your unit is between these ages or older, Tureks can provide you with high-quality water replacement services right here! It doesn’t get much better than that–upgrading to a new unit will improve system efficiency while also potentially lowering your energy expenses.

How can you tell if your water heater is malfunctioning?

Call the experts at Tureks in Fox Valley, WI!

Contacting the experts at Tureks Plumbing Services is the best approach to find out whether your water heater is in good operating order. Our skilled experts can promptly identify the majority of common water heater issues and conduct excellent repairs or, if necessary, install a new water heater. Get in touch with us now to learn more about our water heater services!

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Slow Water Heater – How to Fix It

Sunday, June 10th, 2018

After a long day at work, the one thing that you want most is to take a long, hot shower.

But your water heater has other plans.

Instead of showering with warm water, you end up not showering at all because it took so long to get hot water.

Factors that cause slow hot water

Before you go to Google and type slow water heater – how to fix it, there are a few things that you need to know.

There are plenty of factors that may cause your slow hot water problem.

One of the most common reasons is the distance between the pipes and the fixture. If the shortest distance between points A and B is a straight line, that is rarely the case in residential homes. In most cases, hot water from the heater needs to travel 30, 40, or sometimes, even 50 feet to get to the fixture.

The water flow rate in the pipes and fixtures can also contribute greatly to this problem. The smaller the diameter of the pipes used in your home, the slower the speed of the hot water getting to the fixture will be.

And if you are using low flow faucets and/or showers in your home, the rate by which hot water flows out will be shaved by several seconds.

Water pipes can also absorb heat from the water, thus increasing your wait time. Some types of pipe materials and the temperature of the pipes themselves can translate to heat loss, slowing the flow of hot water.

Slow hot water is also a common problem in homes that use tankless water heaters. This is because the water has to travel through the inlet and outlet of the water heater with a cold temperature.

What can you do to fix a slow water heater?

There are two approaches to solve a slow water heater problem.

First, you can shift your focus on the water pipes to prevent these from cooling the water before it reaches the faucet or shower.

This will require the use of a small pump mounted on the fixture that is farthest from the water heater. This pump is used in conjunction with the water heater in order to ensure the circulation of hot water in the pipes, and that the cold water is circulated back to the heater.

However, the water heater will need to be turned on longer than it normally would be.

Another solution you might want to try also involves the use of a small pump in the faucet or shower farthest from the water heater. The main difference between this and the aforementioned method is that the water heater is only turned on when you are planning to use hot water.

Here, the primary purpose of the pump is not to circulate hot water. Instead, the small pump is used to increase the flow rate of hot water.

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