Hi,

I have a Rheem 2-element water heater (installed 1999). Recently I am not getting any hot water at all. This is my fault - because to fix a water leak at a tub faucet, I had shut off the main water supply, left it shut overnight and fixed the leak in the morning. This could have damaged something in the water heater. I had done this (shutting off the water supply overnight) couple of times before, but never had the problem with the water heater though.

Anyway, since turning on the water supply, there has been no hot water. I tried resetting the water heater supply at the main circuit. The reset button on the water heater is also not popped - I still tried pressing the reset button - but none of this worked. Finally, I got this water heater checker probe at the Home Depot which tells where the problem lies. It is a alligator clip with a probe which I have to connect to the different terminals in the heater and watch for the diode on the probe to light up - all this is to be done when the heater is turned off.

Based on the instructions on the probe, it seems both the heating elements are fine, but both the thermostats are damaged, since the diode does not light up when I am testing the thermostats. Can someone confirm if my analysis is correct? If yes, can someone guide me as how to change the thermostats. Is it fairly simple, or do I need professional help. Any advice/suggestions to get me hot water is welcome.

Thanks in advance!

Changing a thermostat is as easy as drawing a diagram of the wiring and connecting each wire back to where it was placed before. Good luck, Tom