mobeewan wrote:
bob213 wrote:
Element is easy to replace just make sure you buy the wrench to take it off.($5 or$6).
Watch this:
element
The video was good at showing the basics, but he didn't use any Teflon tape when installing the new element or reinstalling the anode plug. Nor did he clean the tank threads to remove the remnants of Teflon tape.
After he reconnected the leads for the heating element he should have refilled the water heater and turned on the element to test it and make sure it was going to heat and the element threads were not going to leak.
You never know for sure if the element threads or the anode plug threads are going to leak until the tank and the water are heated up. He put the cover back on the element access so he would never know it was leaking unless he found the floor was getting wet under the water heater.
After the element is successfully tested and there is no leakage then he should have continued to reinstall the element cover and the gas burner tube.
I'll give the video a B minus.
Thread sealant isn't necessary on the threads for the heating element, since they don't do any sealing. The rubber gasket is what seals the heating element, the threads are regular SAE, not NPT.
A little sealant on the anode rod can't hurt though.
