Hot Water

[Gigem085]

With the recent "Polar" I noticed a substantial decrease in Hot Water. My wife always complains that no hot to take her shower. I have a fairly new house and it's 40 gallon gas fired water heater. I just she was whining, but i noticed it first hand the other day. I had washed dishes (plenty of hot water), went to get my shower only luke warm water? I inspected the water tank and noticed that the outgoing line was only warm to the touch. Usually it is hot to the touch. Am I having water heater issues?

[HayZee518]

water tank

your water tank has to heat the whole tank before you notice any difference. if it were an electric tank, the top element would come on first, then switch to the bottom.
when you draw hot off the top, the cold goes to the bottom and the lower element comes on.
in a gas water heater, the water near the bottom heats up and rises through the cold water to the top. here it collects. it just keeps heating and rising until the thermostat cuts out the burner.
check your specs to see what the recovery time is.

[dfitz3390]

there may also be a tempering valve installed that needs to be adjusted, the thermostat on the tank may need adjusting also

[mbomgartner]

One of the things you should do is flush your water heater at least 2 times a year to clean out the sediment in the bottom. That can affect the water temperature. Also check your thermostat setting. You may want to adjust it.

[Gigem085]

hot water heater

One of the things you should do is flush your water heater at least 2 times a year to clean out the sediment in the bottom. That can affect the water temperature. Also check your thermostat setting. You may want to adjust it.

Good idea on flushing out the hot water heater, any tips? Do I just let about 2-5 gals of water?