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sharper11 · Dec 9, 2010, 10:30 PM

I drained my hot water heater today on recommendation from our home inspector. (Just moved in). I followed instruction given here and drained it. Afterwards, everything seemed fine. The hot water pressure in the kitchen was pretty low, so I turned the valve under the sink to see if was not open all of the way. . Then ALL of the water pressure in the entire house was lost. I am baffled. I check the HOT water heater to make sure the valve was open. It was.

Could the pipes be frozen? The water has a very slight drip... to be honest, I have no clue (first time home owner here)

**update**

I went to the bathroom, turned on the tub.. . It had pressure. I let it run. I check the aerators in the bathrooms, clogged. . And now they work. Did the same for every spicket. NOW the kitchen is the only room without pressure. (any clues)

And also, the water is "rusty" colored. Is this normal.. will it go away?

creahands · Dec 10, 2010, 12:26 AM

The valve or cartridge in kitchen sink is clogged. Needs to be removed and cleaned or replaced.

Did u drain water heater until water ran clear? U are picking up sediment stirred up by draining. This will clear in time but may clog other faucets again.

Chuck

speedball1 · Dec 10, 2010, 05:18 AM

I drained my hot water heater today. I followed instruction given here and drained it.

You didn't follow our instructions and that's where you made your mistake. To clear a water heater of mineral buildup you power flush your heater.
Here's the correction instructions.

For long life and fewer troubles you should keep your heater clear of mineral build-up by FLUSHING NOT DRAINING on a regular schedule. Attach a hose to the boiler drain at the bottom of the tank. With the pressure on, open the boiler drain and let it run until the water runs clear. You will see a spurt of red,(rust) followed by white or yellow grains,(lime or calcium carbonate). This shouldn't take more then a few minutes. Do this monthly to keep it clear. Now flush out your hot water lines on ALL fixtures that are affected . Now pull each aerator and clean the screens. Be sure you put them back together the same way you took them out. Don't forget to flush it out every month. Your heater will thank you for it. Hope this helps and thank you for rating my answer, Tom

sharper11 · Dec 10, 2010, 05:54 AM

Yeah speedball, you are correct. I didn't follow the correct instructions :/ I was in a panic last night. This morning, all is fine except for the clogged kitchen sink. You say "flush all hot waterlines," is there a method to that.

Funny, I drained it until it was empty ;) . I should have -flushed- it until it ran clear. But you are right. I think my dip tube went bad (it's a 95 waterheater). I think it is cloggin everything. This is assumed from what I read though :)

speedball1 · Dec 10, 2010, 06:02 AM

If they're working you don't have to flush the lines out. We can help[ with the kitchen faucet but we need more information. Ism the faucet one handled or two knobs. What brand is it? Back to you, Tom

sharper11 · Dec 10, 2010, 06:10 AM

It's MOEN. 1 handle. Picture should be there (I hope)

speedball1 · Dec 10, 2010, 06:22 AM

Your picture didn't make it, Is this your faucet? (see image).
Shut the water off under the sink and open up the valve. Pull the cartridge and check the inlet ports for trash. Now place a pan over the open valve and turn the hot water on to flush out the supply. Reassemble and test. Better now? Cheers, Tom

sharper11 · Dec 10, 2010, 06:31 AM

I'll give this a go after work tonight. (that image is pretty close to my faucet)

sharper11 · Dec 10, 2010, 04:46 PM

What can I say speedball... you are the man. Worked perfectly, MANY THANKS!! (we have our housewarming Sunday, and you bailed me out).

massplumber2008 · Apr 14, 2011, 06:34 PM

Bump

sharper11 · Apr 15, 2011, 06:08 AM

Just to follow up on this. After Power Flushing the Water Heater and clearing all of the aerators again, everything was fine (other than the lack of hot water time). We have since replaced the Water Heater. Everything is AWESOME Now. .

As far as maintenance on the New Water Heater:
It has an electronic temp. gauge. And I have it wrapped in insulation.

Should I be Power Flushing it? How Frequently?
Any other advice would be nice.

By the way, thanks for all of the advice.

sharper11 · Apr 15, 2011, 06:14 AM

The Faucet has been replaced also. Thanks to you all, I have a little more confidence to go in a do basic plumbing installs. Besides the faucet, I have replaced all of our gate valves with ball valves (washer/dryer had gate valves for each Hot/Cold water... not sure why, I installed a Ball Valve that includes both, I can turn them on/off with one little push of a lever). I have installed a Garbage Disposal and have a "looped" hose from the Dishwasher to the Disposal instead of an AirGap. Been pretty excited doing some minor DIY. :)

massplumber2008 · Apr 15, 2011, 07:28 AM

Power flush twice a year at a minimum. Here, just attach a hose to the drain at the base of the water heater and open the drain (leaving water on full flow).

By leaving the water on, the dip tube directs full pressure at the base of the tank disturbing sediment and helping to push it all out the drain.

After the power flush... say 5 minutes or so, you will want to CAP the drain at the water heater using a boiler drain cap (brass one is best) as sediment usually gets stuck in the drain mechanism and can leave the drain valve dripping.

You'll also want to purge the hot water from the closest faucet after the flush but be sure to remove the AERATOR before doing so to keep that aerator clean, OK?

Good luck with it all!

Mark