Hot Water Cold? – Do You Need A Plumber Or Electrician?

Hot Water Cold? – Do You Need A Plumber Or Electrician?

by | Mar 10, 2014 | Common Repairs

Your hot water has gone cold – but should you call a plumber or an electrician?  You don’t want to pay for one to turn up if you really need the other, so how can you make an informed decision?  Here are a couple of tips to help you decide.

(If you’re still Not sure, give us a call on 6331 4711 and we’ll help you sort it out).

Is there water at the tap?
If there is plenty of cold or lukewarm water coming out of the hot taps you probably need an electrician.

If there is no water, or a reduced amount of water coming out of the tap, you probably need a plumber.

Has the fuse blown?
Has the circuit breaker tripped or fuse blown?   If so, you probably need an electrician, unless there are signs of water leaking around the cylinder in which case you probably need a plumber.

Any sign of of leaks?
Check for signs of water around the base of the cylinder and for signs of rust on the external casing of the cylinder.   A leaking cylinder usually has to be replaced.  There is no way to repair a rusted mains pressure cylinder.

Sometimes the cylinder can leak around the element, making the area rusty.

Water leaking around the element can also affect the electrical connections, causing a blown fuse or tripped circuit breaker.   Sometimes replacing the element can solve the problem but corrosion from a loose element can destroy an otherwise good cylinder.

A regular check for water leaks is a good idea.

Check the pressure relief valve 
There will be a pipe running from the pressure relief valve on the side of the cylinder to an outside drain.  Check the amount of water running out of this pipe.  A correctly operating valve will only let out a small amount of water.  Probably less than a cup each day.

If there is water constantly running out the pipe you have a problem with the pressure relief valve.  There is a lever on top of the valve that you can lift to let water out through the valve.  Sometimes lifting the lever will reset the valve and solve the problem.

If the valve is faulty it needs to be replaced by a plumber – unless the problem is caused by a stuck thermostat, in which case you need an electrician.

A faulty thermostat can keep the water heating until it’s almost boiling.  The pressure inside the cylinder builds up until the pressure relief valve does it’s job and lets some water out.

Replacing your cylinder
If your cylinder does need replacing, most of the work is plumbing work and some plumbers are authorised to disconnect and reconnect the wiring when replacing a cylinder.  However, it’s wise to have an electrician attend if the cylinder does need to be replaced, especially if you are going from a low pressure to mains pressure unit.

Most plumbers are pretty good, but they are not electricians and new cylinders are sometimes reconnected to old wiring which is too small to safely handle the load of the element in the new cylinder.   Fire, electric shock, insurance problems, warranty problems and running out of hot water are all possible in such circumstances.

All new hot water cylinders are physically larger than the older models as they are now required to have more insulation around them.  This can cause problems if your cylinder is presently located in a laundry cupboard for example.  Your new cylinder may have to be moved outside and that is definitely a job for both a plumber and an electrician.

Having hot water problems?  Got a question?

Give us a call and we’ll help you out with free advice over the phone.  

Need An Electrician In A Hurry?  Your hot water problem can be fixed today… 

Phone 6331 4711  email  admin@manceelectrical.com.au

 

 

How To Grow Deadly Bacteria In Your Home Hot Water System

by | Sep 30, 2013 | Dodgy Installations, Keep Your Family Safe, Reduce Your Power Bill

legionella

You’ve probably heard of Legionnaires’ Disease.  It’s a serious and sometimes fatal form of pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria, which lives in warm water storage systems, such as domestic and commercial hot water and air-conditioning.

A normally operating hot water cylinder is safe because the thermostat automatically heats the water to over 60 degrees, a temperature that kills off most of the bacteria.

However, problems can arise when some home owners bypass the automatic controls in an effort to save on power costs.  We have heard of timers being fitted to cylinders to restrict the operating hours and even clients turning off their cylinder for part of the day in order to cut the power usage.

Solar hot water systems are probably most at risk because the electrical back up element may be turned off completely for long periods, giving the unwanted bacteria plenty of time to multiply.

Sure, the water may still remain hot enough to use, but it may also fall below the hot temperature that kills the bacteria and into the warm zone where the bacteria thrives.

Infection can occur when you inhale fine droplets of  water that contains the bacteria, so your shower is the ideal place to contract the disease.

Infections are reasonably uncommon, but the results can be deadly, so this is one area where we recommend a safety first approach, rather than trying to save the most money.

If you have any queries, please feel free to give us a call.    Mance Electrical (03) 6331 4711  Launceston Tas

 

 

 

Elecricity And Water Don’t Mix

by | Jun 20, 2013 | Keep Your Family Safe

This is what happens when a small amount of water leaking from a hot water element gets into the electrical connections.   One of our staff was in the right place at the right time to capture the blow up.  The water caused a dead short which tripped the circuit breaker and cut the power, preventing a fire.  This cylinder was installed inside the roof space, which used to be quite common, but these days is not recommended, due to the damage that can be done when things go wrong.

If your hot water cylinder is located anywhere inside your house it’s a good idea to do a regular check for leaks as they usually start slowly and can go for a long time undetected, and rot out floors, ruin carpets and sometimes eventually fail suddenly causing a major flood.
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