How Often Should I Flush My Water Heater Tank?

P. Gagnon & Son helps you take care of your water heater

Day in, day out, your water heater is on the job to make sure you have hot water for your showers, bath, dishwasher, washing machine, handwashing, and cleaning.

To keep your water heater running smoothly and at peak energy efficiency, you should have your water heater serviced once a year by the trained, skilled service technicians at P. Gagnon & Son.

The tune-up allows our service technicians the chance to also thoroughly inspect your water heater so they can detect and fix potential problems before they get worse and lead to tank failure.
Regular, professional maintenance can also extend the life expectancy of your water heater and help to keep its warranty in effect.

When and how to flush a water heater tank

Your service technician will flush your water heater tank as part of your annual maintenance tune-up. However, your water heater should be flushed twice a year, especially if you have hard water.

When the water running in your house is hard, it can create sediment known as lime scale. This sediment settles at the bottom of your water heater and eventually leads to several issues. If you have a natural gas heater, the corrosion caused by lime scale can cause water tank leaks and tank failure. It can also cause uneven water heating. For electric heaters, the sediment buildup can burn out the lower heating element. Also, in both types of heaters, the drain valve can get clogged.

By the way, if you have a tankless water heater, you should regularly flush it as well.

Here’s how to flush a water heater with a tank.

1. If you have a gas water heater, turn off the gas. If you have an electric water heater, turn off the electricity.
2. Wait for the water heater to cool down. This helps prevent scalding injuries.
3. Turn off the water supply.
4. To make it easier to drain the tank, turn on the hot water on a nearby faucet to prevent a vacuum from forming.
5. Connect a hose to the drain valve and direct it towards an empty bucket or a drain.
6. To drain the water heater tank, open the drain valve and let the water flow out until it stops. If you are using a bucket, you might need to empty the bucket several times. Be cautious as the water can be hot unless you allow the water heater to cool down sufficiently.
7. Close the drain valve and reopen the cold water supply. Fill the tank, then let the tank drain again as before. Repeat this process a few times.
8. Shut off the drain valve when done.
9. Reopen the water supply valve and let the tank fill back up.
10. Turn on the water heater again.

If you don’t feel comfortable doing this, please contact us and we will be happy to do it for you.

With expert water heater installation and service, you can trust P. Gagnon & Son to keep your showers hot! Contact us today for service.