Hello,
I have a 50 gallon electric hot water heater. Last night we suddenly had no hot water. I put an electrical tester on the upper element and got a 245 volt reading. All of the upper panel nodes read the same. On the lower element Im getting a 120 reading off each side if I use the ground screw as one side of the test. Should the lower element read just like the top one by testing the 2 nodes simultaniously? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

No. Lower element will rear 120V until upper thermostat is satisfied. When upper thermostat is satisfied lower 240 between element terminals. Lower element will always read 120V between element and ground. Chances are that upper element is burned out.

See this post for water heater wiring diagram and element testing.

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/plumbi...ml#post2345234