Hot Water heater opinion on next steps

[ramsfan]

Model Number

AO Smith

Brand

Age

More than 10 years

Helo, two years ago, I bought a home out of foreclosure. It had many issues that needed to be resolved. One them was related to the water heaters. The home has an interesting system of two water heaters that work in tandem to supply hot water. When we bought the home, one of the heaters was literally spraying water out of the bottom of the tank. We had that one replaced, but not the other one.

We have also learned that the home's water softener was non functional for at least five years prior to our purchase, the home is on well water, and have seen continued evidence of hard water deposits in all appliances, faucet heads, etc... We have replaced many of the appliances that were beyond repair, etc...

Here is my question. The water heater that was not replaced is 12-13 years old. It makes a popping sound when it runs, and it seems to run very often. I did some basic research, and it appears this popping sound is due to sediment buildup (makes perfect sense). The recommendation online is to drain the hot water heater (and kind of flush it as well) to remove sentiment.

My question for the group is seeking an opinion. Given the history of the home and the water, and given the history of the other water heater which was installed at the same time (2005) and failed and leaked, do you think it is worth it to try and keep this one going by draining/flushing, or do you think it best to simply replace with a new one?

I am a newbie, so I am open all information, ideas, and opinions. Thank you!

 

[Jake]

Hi,

I'm on my own water well too, and I do have a water softener which works very good as the groundwater in Arizona is very hard too.

So, seeing that your water softener hasn't worked for 5 years, it best to replace your 12-13 year old water heater, then fix your water softener or buy a new water softener. I own a Whirlpool water softener that I bought at Lowes, they aren't that expensive.

Then you will have soft water for both new water heaters.

Jake

 

[ramsfan]

oh shoot, I may have been confusing. When we moved in, we learned the water softener wasn't working, and based on evidence of water scaling in faucets and some appliances, along with the one leaky hot water heater, it appeared the water softener had been non functional for many years. We replaced the water softener immediately with a very nice Hague system. So, we have had really nice soft water now since we moved in.

I think I am trying to determine if it is worth it to drain/flush the older hot water heater, in an effort to keep it going. Or, is does the evidence point to the best move being to replace it. I am wondering how efficiently the thing is running. It is not running efficiently now at all, as it seems to run many times more often than the new unit.

 

[Jake]

What I'm getting at is since the water softener was not working before you moved in, that old water heat tank its already caliciumated the inside tank liner, so It would be more wise to replace it, since your water softener is NOW working.

So even if you DID flush it, there will STILL be a lot of hard water sediment at the very bottom you won't be able to get to.

Jake

 

[ramsfan]

Thank you so much, this is wonderful advice, and I appreciate your time and expertise - thank you!

 

[Jake]

Glad to help.

Jake