# State water heater changeout.



## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

Nothing special, I just figured I’d post something for people to look at.
We had previously changed an element and installed a drain pan under the heater a few months back and good thin because the tank went shortly after. 

For the PEX bashers out there: Notice the pex water lines that have been there since 1999 with no problems.

Check out the speed draining technique is used with the sharkbite 90 and a roll of 3/4 pex. It drained her down quick.


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## ILPlumber (Jun 17, 2008)

Does a bottom fed WH get a vacuum relief valve in your state?


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

I was bored so I peeled the cover off and was surprised to find a giant hole in the foam insulation and at the very top of the heater no less, the worst place. Another thing that was bunk about this heater is that the anode isn't lined up with the knockout to access it. How would one change or inspect the anode like that? Based on what I'm seeing here I would have to give state water heaters a thumbs down:thumbdown:. 

I went ahead and pulled the anode and was surprised to find quite a bit of magnesium still left on it which is unusual for a 10 year old heater. For scale I have the old anode next to a spare off the truck of the same type.


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

Yes. This was a mobile home which are never up to code. You'll notice in the next post that I put in a top outlet.



ILPlumber said:


> Does a bottom fed WH get a vacuum relief valve in your state?


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

The new heater.


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## Nevada Plumber (Jan 3, 2009)

I'm confused by your pictures. 
Are you not allowed to extend the electrical line up to the top of the water heater and hook it up the way it was intended to be hooked up? Am I looking at the picture correctly and the new water heater is only setup as a single element model now? That is probably a piece of 12-2 Romex so you would still have to change the elements to 3500 watt ones, but it would have been a better solution.

Also, what is with the PEX going right into the water heater? That meets code in your area?


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## Ron (Jun 12, 2008)

Nevada Plumber said:


> Also, what is with the PEX going right into the water heater? That meets code in your area?


I see a permit on the heater so it must be code there. Why all the writing on the heater and the lines, is that a requirement?


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## WestCoastPlumber (Jun 17, 2008)

I vacuum lock my heaters and pull the boiler drain, even if they are plastic and break, I have enough time to slam a flat head in there ont he sweet spot and break it free to install me 3/4 nipple, ball valve with hose adpater, I drain a 50 gallon in about 10-15 minutes, compared to an hour or longer the other way, this is a great way to drain IMO

Ummm, our mobile homes and mobile home parks are regulated by state code, the local cities don't want anything ot do with them. I don't do alot of mobile home work, people out here never seem to have the $$ or they have weird material that I have no access too.


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## Plumber (Jan 18, 2009)

I like that sticker. I never got into that habit because of the "last one touches it, owns it" deal. That phobia goes back to 1st year paranoia.


Nevada Plumber said:


> I'm confused by your pictures.
> Are you not allowed to extend the electrical line up to the top of the water heater and hook it up the way it was intended to be hooked up? Am I looking at the picture correctly and the new water heater is only setup as a single element model now? That is probably a piece of 12-2 Romex so you would still have to change the elements to 3500 watt ones, but it would have been a better solution...


The writing says that the elements are 3500.

I have millions of mobile homes up here and you do what you have to sometimes to make the customer and the AA happy.


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## Plumber Jim (Jun 19, 2008)

Protech said:


> I was bored so I peeled the cover off and was surprised to find a giant hole in the foam insulation and at the very top of the heater no less, the worst place. Another thing that was bunk about this heater is that the anode isn't lined up with the knockout to access it. How would one change or inspect the anode like that? Based on what I'm seeing here I would have to give state water heaters a thumbs down:thumbdown:.
> 
> I went ahead and pulled the anode and was surprised to find quite a bit of magnesium still left on it which is unusual for a 10 year old heater. For scale I have the old anode next to a spare off the truck of the same type.


Did you Know that Premierplus water heaters are the same as a State water heaters?
PremierPlus which i think you bought from Barnett is made by American which is now part of A.O SMITH and STATE all three heaters the the same now.

Plumber Jim


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## Herk (Jun 12, 2008)

I've seen A.O. Smith water heaters with half the foam missing from the top. That, and I had a constant problem with the holes for the dielectric nipples not lining up with the case. I didn't use many of them before I went back to Rheem.


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## WestCoastPlumber (Jun 17, 2008)

IMO, state, american, ao smith suck.

:whistling2:


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## leak1 (Mar 25, 2009)

*amen!!!!!!!!!! leak 1*


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## user823 (Feb 3, 2009)

Regarding running pex to water heaters. For electric Wh's you can run pex right to the nipples. For gas wh's you have to run another material from the nipples out at least 6" and then you can go with pex, it's because of the flu.


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

You can run pex right onto electric heaters. I really can't think of a reason why you wouldn't want to as the only reason for the metallic nipples rule is to keep the pex away from the gas flue gases. No flue gases on an electric. What would metallic nipples do for you on an electric?

The reason I punched a new hole in the shell and hooked it up as single 3500W was that there is an inspector here that says that plumbers can't extend wires and change breakers. I never know if I'll get said D*** head inspector so I just hooked it up like the old heater.

I'm sad to hear that american was bought out by state. I stopped selling rheem because I kept getting heaters without anodes (which is proof that they don't test them) and I started doing allot of tank replacements on 5-7 years old rheems. Then I learned that rheem had been bought out by american standard (junk) and that explained the drastic change in quality. That's why I switched from rheem to american. I guess they all suck now:laughing:

As far as the writing goes, it was for the inspector. I'm not going to come back out to meet the inspector on such a small job so I figured I'd label everything. Plus it makes it easier for you guys to see what the heck is going on.



Ron The Plumber said:


> I see a permit on the heater so it must be code there. Why all the writing on the heater and the lines, is that a requirement?


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## Green Country (Mar 6, 2009)

Is it legal to run the t&p straight out like that? we have to have some sort of air break in the closet, and it can't run to the pan.


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

nope. not here.


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## Nevada Plumber (Jan 3, 2009)

That inspector sounds like a real pain. I can understand not wanting you to go into the panel, but not extending a wire? That's just stupid. Here I would just install a junction box at the wall, and run new wires up in a piece of flex pipe. Almost every water heater install out here is done with copper flex lines, I just did not give any thought into going PEX into the water heater.

How well do those PEX ball valves hold up for you? I've run into a few of them out here, and they always seem to have a problem. They either leak, or the valve doesn't turn easily and the handle breaks off.


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