How To Determine If Hot Water Heater Thermostat Is Bad

As soon as you complete this task you can fix it.

How to determine if hot water heater thermostat is bad. One is that the water heater will stop producing hot water. Not sure if this is your problem. The thermostats are less likely to be at fault than the elements. Turn off the power for the furnace.

When the upper element works and the lower one does not you have a low supply of hot water. A bad thermostat electric water heaters have 2 thermostats an upper thermostat and a lower thermostat. However you will need to know how to test a water heater thermostat to find the faulty unit. An electric hot water heater has two thermostats controlling two separate heating elements one in the upper half of the tank one in the lower half.

If the top thermostat checks out you need to check the lower one. When internal parts are corroded or encased in a buildup of minerals the. Usually when the upper thermostat goes bad you will have no hot water at all while a bad lower thermostat makes itself known when there is only a small amount of hot water before the tap water goes cold. But if the water is hot that becomes later becomes cold then you have a damaged lower thermostat.

If it isn t then it is a bad thermostat. Test the terminal screws on the lower thermostat. Here s what we are doing to stay ahead of covid 19. However they do go bad and testing water heater thermostats is still required.

Turn the top thermostat all the way off and the lower one all the way on to ensure that the circuit between the two thermostats is open. The lower thermostat just controls the lower element. How to know if your water heater is bad. See troubleshooting electric hot water heaters or water heater element testing for other related topics.

If the water heater stops heating you may have a power bad component issue. The other is the water heater will leak water. Do you know what the signs are of a failing water heater. Find out how to tell before it s too late and what you can do about your failing water heater.

An electric water heater has two thermostats located under access panels on the side of the tank. If you turn the hot water tap and cold water runs out then the upper thermostat is damaged. Check that the thermostat is correctly set to heat or cool check that the main circuit breaker for the furnace or air conditioner is in the on position.