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Ultimate Water Heater Maintenance Checklist

Water Heater Maintenance Checklist

Other than the seasonal heating and cooling required in the Atlanta area, heating water is your home’s single biggest consumer of energy. A newer, high-efficiency water heater can go a long way toward you keeping energy usage (and costs) at a reasonable level. However, replacing your water heater may not necessarily be in the budget. Other than upgrading to a new model, the best way to save energy and money is to properly maintain your water heater. See our water heater maintenance checklist below.

A dirty or poorly maintained water heater not only can drive up your energy costs but also may have a shorter usable life span than an appliance that receives the appropriate amount of care and maintenance. The good news is that there are several things you can do to keep your current water heater running efficiently, which will help drive down energy costs and increase the unit’s longevity.

Insulation

Wrapping a layer of insulation around your water heater is a cheap, relatively easy and very effective way to increase the efficiency of the appliance. Insulating the hot water pipes that leaving the unit can also improve efficiency. Done correctly, insulation can help to maintain your water heater’s temperature while using as much as 40 percent less energy to do so. This, in turn, can result in savings of nearly 10 percent on your water heating costs.

Maintain a constant temperature

Like insulation, setting your water heater’s temperature should be something you only need to do once. A setting of 120° F. should be warm enough to keep you comfortable in the shower but low enough to keep your energy costs down. If you go on vacation or leave the house for more than a long weekend, turn the thermostat on your water heater all the way down. There’s no point in paying to heat water you’re not there to use.

Flush your water heater

On a yearly basis, drain the water out of the heater and flush it with clean water. This helps get out sediment or any other debris that can accumulate in the bottom of the appliance. Flushing the tank will improve your heater’s ability to heat water while increasing its longevity.

Have the anode rod tested

A properly-working anode rod prevents your water heater from rusting. Have the anode rod checked out every year to make sure that it’s viable. If it needs to be replaced, an anode rod is a lot cheaper than a new water heater.

Call the plumbing pros at Reliable for more maintenance tips. Not only can we offer advice and years of combined knowledge, we are also happy to help you maintain your water heater so that it runs at its most efficient.