Bad dip tube on water heater?
 

My 6.5 year-old gas hot water heater (50 gallon A.O. Smith) has started running out of hot water after 15 minutes or so. A plumber told me it was probably a bad dip tube and it would be better to replace the whole hot water heater, rather than repair it.

Does this sound like an accurate diagnosis? What can I do to confirm the problem? And do you really replace rather than repair?

Thanks for any help,
Steve

how much water are you running out of the heater in that 15 min? In a lot of areas a wh will lime up buy the time it is 7 or 8 years old. When this happens, the extra fuel that it use's in a year will go a long ways in the price of replacing it. Any time you heat water all the lime and anything else that in the water drops out and start to plug it up. paul

Did he or has anyone ever connected a garden hose to the drain on the bottom of the tank and drain off the sedamant on the bottom of the tank?
It should be done at least once a year.
Have you ever noticed the tank making some strange pop and cracking noises. That's the first sign the tank is coated on the inside with lime.

I did drain the sediment a month or two ago and that seemed to resolve the problem for a short while, but it came right back.

I'm in NY and the water here is very soft. I've never heard any noises from the wh.

a new dip tube is only a couple of bucks. it is worth a try and if it fixes the problem then you saved hundreds of dollars for the time being.