Water Heater draining sediment

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C

Corbino

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So I have a 15+ year old water heater, bought the home recently and now the waterheater makes a "rock popping" sound inside the water heater after showering or using water for a period of time. I would like to know what exactly I need to do to drain it to get out the sediment in the unit? I have a State Select modelPR640NBRI Serial Number: 802408835 (cannot find any manual or instruction online at all) and when I bought the home obviously 15 + years later the manual and instructions are gone.

May I ask what I need to do step-by-step? I know the basics of needing to hook a gardening hose, shutting the COLD water valve off and (maybe shutting the gas off??? is that necessary?) I just need help if possible guys. Should I wait hours to drain it, etc.. and how would I reignite the pilot light once I'm finished if I need to turn the gas off. I am attempting to add some images to the post also but am quite unsure on this process. I just don't want to be scalded with water or water heater explosion while I'm using it :hide:

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Many professionals will tell you to leave it alone and not mess with it provided it currently runs. You are obviously on borrowed time and there is a chance that if you tinker with it at this point in time, you will be replacing the W/H sooner than you anticipated.
 
If you do decide to drain it, simply turn the knob on the top to the 'pilot' setting. This will keep your pilot on but the main burner will not come on causing potential damage or warping of an empty tank. Like the advice above, it may not give you much more time and often your drain will drip after draining it due to crud getting on the valve seat disc. Nothing a cap couldn't fix. I work for the gas utility and a lot of water heaters make that sound- it's not going to explode, the pressure relief valve should take care of over pressurization.
 
You're operating on at least 5 years of borrowed time on that water heater. I would keep an eye on it and turn your water off if you go away for a trip. Generally, they start with a small leak, but under pressure, you can get a lot of water on the floor before you notice it, especially if it is in a basement.

I would think about replacing it soon or at least budgeting to replace it. I just replaced a 9-year-old State direct vent gas water heater two weeks ago. DIY it cost me about $950. The water heater alone was about $830 with tax. Add a pan below your water heater when you replace it and an expansion tank on the cold water side. Direct vent water heaters are a bit more expensive than what you have. Since you have a vertical exhaust vent you can go with the less expensive ones. Mine vents directly out the side of my house.
 
You are not going to achieve any marginal advantage by draining the appliance.

The sound you are hearing is some of the calcium deposits in the bottom of the tank breaking loose because of the heating. Unfortunately, they are not small enough to remain suspended in the water or to fit through the drain faucet.

Larger water heaters, 100+ gallons, will have a removable plate that allows cleaning, yours is to small to warrant routine cleaning.
 
It wouldn't be a bad idea to put a water sensor alarm on the floor as well. Mine was fine when I went into the room to put away a bike, but I had a puddle on the floor 2 hours later when I went to grab some yard tools.
 
Why. It's time to replace it!
Wiling to risk a flood to save a few bucks?
Once replaced attach a hose to the drain at least once a year and allow it to run at least 10 min. no need to shut off anything, 0 need to drain all the water!
 
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