How do I Troubleshoot Water Heater Problems & Failures of the Dip Tube?

Listen for banging, popping or gurgling sounds from the water tank. A sediment build-up from hard water may be heating up and exploding in the tank. A local hardware store may sell a chemical that can be added to the tank to break down the sediment and then flush the water in the tank down a drain.

Turn the thermostat on the water heater up and listen to hear the burners ignite. If nothing happens, remove the cover plate and look to see if the pilot is lit.

Check to see if there is a bad smell coming from either the water source or the water heater. If the smell is present when you are using cold water then it is the source. If the smell only comes when you are using hot water then it time to replace the anode in the water heater.

To troubleshoot the dip tube, turn on the water at the faucet and wait for the hot water to come out. Record the amount of time that hot water comes out before going cold. Since the purpose of the dip tube is to allow the cold water entering the water heater to come out at the bottom of the tank, if the dip tube is broken, cold water will enter the tank higher up. This means that the hot water at the top of the tank traveling to the faucet becomes saturated with cold water instead of first receiving heat from the burners at the bottom, which allows for only a short of time for hot water.

Turn off the water to the water heater, open a faucet and then drain some water out the bottom of the tank. Remove the dip tube by cutting the cold water line and unscrewing the dip tube. Look to see if there are cracks or if the dip tube is too short or completely missing. The dip tube is plastic and sometimes when inexperienced technicians solder the cold water line they end up melting it off into the tank.