I'm dealing with a brand new Rinnai RE160i tankless water heater that runs on natural gas, and it's been super cold here in Texas lately. It's only giving me cold water throughout the house, with maybe just a few drops of hot water at the faucets. I'm wondering what might be causing this and how I can fix it. Any ideas?
3 Answers
Yeah, if the hot water line is frozen, that's your culprit. In my experience, builders often overlook insulation for these pipes, especially in attics. Try leaving the taps running that are just dripping; this can help melt any ice that's formed. Also, warming the pipes up with a hairdryer works wonders!
Definitely check that the valve for the tank is open first! If that's fine, definitely try using a heat lamp near the pipes to get them thawed out. I found that the metal housing lamps with heat bulbs from hardware stores can get the job done. Just be careful where you place it!
Sounds like your hot water pipes might be frozen, especially with this chilly weather! This happened to me once, and I had to warm up the pipes with a hairdryer. You might want to check if the pipes feeding into your water heater are exposed to the cold. Insulating those areas could prevent this in the future.
That's interesting! How do I find out which pipes are feeding into my water heater? I'm new to all this.
Great tip! I'm definitely getting one of those bulbs to warm up the area.