Water Heater Myths, Dispelled
Laying them on their side will not hurt them.
The damaged ones at Lowes have usually been slid off a tailgate on their side which damages the jacket (which is 1-1/2 to 2" from the inner tank, they would still work just fine they just look like hell.
The long fill tube is simply a piece of copper tubing, flared to keep it from falling down in there. Many of them are plastic now; you can stick a finger down in them, bend it and come out with the tube.
The annode rod is a piece of metal that is there to sacrifice itself in protection of the water heater; they are usually eaten up by the end of the first year.
The "glass lining" is simply a special paint sprayed on the inside of the inner tank. Think of the old fashioned porcelain cook ware.
If the water is hot it doesn't need heating; therefore, we call it a water heater rather than a hot water heater.
The biggest enemy of the water heater is the sediment that collects in the bottom; a gas water heater that is rumbling is the water bubbling up through the sediment. In an electric water heater it simply shorts out the lower element, or in the case of a "Sand-Hog" element it continues to heat the sediment which heats the water. Heat rises. A new water heater may weigh 60 pounds or so, while the one it is replacing weighs 160 pounds; that's the sediment.
If your water heater temperature is set too high, you are heating water in the incoming lines. All water heaters should have a temperature/pressure relief valve (commonly called a T & P valve) with the relief line terminated 2" above a concrete floor that has a floor drain, OR if it is piped outside, it should terminate 4" above the ground. These terminations will prevent scalding.
Some municipalities require a backflow preventer on the water main (usually at the water meter) now which means the water heater must have an expansion tank added to the incoming line.
If there is anyone I have not throughly confused; just post back and I will try again.
Glenn
A widow had been a nag all her life. When her huband died she bought a marker and had it engraved, "May you rest in peace my dear Walter, until we meet again.