Water Heater Thermostat

Repalcing A Water Heater Thermostat You can imagine the scene. A man comes home from a hard day at work and is looking forward to a nice long soak in his bath tub. He gets himself ready and begins to run the bath water……only to find that the water is stone cold! It could be the water heater, that would be his first thought as his mind is troubleshooting the situation but it could also be the water heater thermostat. Changing the water heater thermostat may be the key and replacing it may not be as difficult as you think.

To begin with, the access panel will need to be removed to allow for the checking of the thermostats on the water heater. If you have an electric water heater, it will be fitted with an upper and lower thermostat which will allow the heater to control the upper heating element and the lower heating element. In this situation, both thermostats will need to be checked.

Before going any further, be sure to turn off the power at the main fuse box or circuit panel to the water heater. Then it is a case of disconnecting the wiring which you can see on the thermostat terminals.

Next, hold the thermostat and unscrew to remove it from its mounting. Now you have the thermostat in your hand, you can take it to one of the many home maintenance or electrical stores so you can match it for a new one.

To put on the new water heater thermostat, simply screw it on to the mounting and reconnect the wires. If you have two thermostats, repeat the process.

Unscrew the thermostat from its mounting, and remove. Replace thermostat with one of the same size and model you can purchase from any home improvement store or electrical supply outlet. Screw onto mounting, and connect wires to the terminals.

Put the access panel back onto the water heater and then put the power back on at the circuit or fuse box.

If needed, make adjustments to the water heater thermostats by following the instructions which came with the new thermostat.

Then all that is needed is to test it to make sure that normal service is resumed and hot water is flowing once more.