I've been trying to drain my water heater, but it barely released any water from the drain valve. A little sediment came out, but soon it just stopped draining completely. Since I'm due for an anode rod replacement next year, I'm guessing it's mostly sediment clogging things up.
I thought about using a utility or submersible pump to push about 5 gallons (19L) of water back into the heater through the drain valve to help clear the blockage. Has anyone tried this method before? I'm worried about potentially damaging the water heater, though. Any tips?
3 Answers
One option is to just remove the entire drain valve and replace it with a brass ball valve. It can really help with future draining if it's clogged this time.
I’ve heard of a trick where you can use a special valve to hook up an air compressor to stir up the sediment while draining it. Not sure if it’s what you need, but it might help!
Do you have a link to that? I'd love to check it out!
If sediment is causing the clog, sometimes pushing a bit of air or water can loosen things up. Just gotta be careful with how you do it.
Right, I don't have anything to push with air. I was hoping using the utility pump wouldn’t damage the tank.
I thought about that, but it's a tight squeeze in the closet. I don't want to risk damaging anything of the tenant's.