Moved into a different house, when taking a shower i have to keep turning the k**b to hotter to keep the showe

Question

what is the deal? if i run hot water by itself it is almost scalding, its too hot but then in the shower after about 3 to 5 minutes it get lukewarm then i have to turn the k**b over a notch then again in another minute, i thin my water heater is a 40 gallon. it seems to have two seperate tanks becuase theres two thermostats they are both set to 130 degrees.

Answer 1

Do NOT change the temperature settings on the water heater; 130 degrees is more than hot enough.  I presume that this is an electric water heater.  It may have two separate circuit breakers; determine whether this is so, and whether one has tripped.  Attach a garden hose to the boiler c**k at the bottom of the heater; lead it to a convenient drain (or out of doors) and open the valve wide to blow off about five gallons of water: this is to get rid of sediment that may be in the tank.  Back to electrical: if you are adept at things electrical, verify if both heating elements are operating after your shower (these can burn out).  Other possibilities: calcium deposits in the plumbing, or in the shower valve assembly.

Answer 2

you've gotten some good suggestions so far, except for the one telling you to turn up the water heater more, mine is set to 120 and works fine. before you tear into the w/h, do you have the same problem with all the other faucets in the house, or is it just the shower? if all the others work fine, then the problem is with the shower valve. it could be one of two things. 1) the rubber parts are swelling due to the heat of the water, restricting the flow of the hot water. turning down the thermostat to 120 may help, but you may have to replace the parts anyways because they are just worn out. depending on how old the valve is, it may be a simple repair once you shut the water off. if it's real old though, it can be a nightmare due to corrosion of the metal parts. or, 2) the water heater could be full of sediment in the bottom of it, even to the point where the lower heating element is covered, so the w/h can't recover fast enough. basicly that means the w/h is on it's last legs, even if you do manage to flush out most of the sediment, the damage to the lining of the tank is done already, it's rusty, and will likely spring a leak shortly after you've flushed it out.

you didn't say how your shower faucet turns on, but if it's the type that pulls out to turn on, or if you lift the k**b up to turn it on, try this next time and see if you get a better shower out of it; after you pull or lift the k**b, push it in or down to reduce the pressure just a bit. i have the pull out style and find that if i push the k**b back in to just 3/4 pressure, we have plenty of hot water for for both of us to have hot showers in the morning. it also works with the lift up style on the place at the beach. and you won't find that the reduction is that great once you're used to it. good luck, hope this helps you get a hot shower again.  

Answer 3

OH check to see how old the water heater is and yes it might just be the element and you can buy that at your local hardware store. Also look into the care of a water heater. Draining it will also tell you if rust has built up in it.Water heaters will be hot because the water is sitting inside and when you use it to shower you are taking the gallons that were hot so when more water is waiting to heat up.

Try putting the shower a little slow start with the cold I mean slow then in crease the hot water. For right now you can't put it full blast. Or your normal way of taking a shower it will last a little longer.

Answer 4

The main service,from the street, is probably too small-i.e. 1/2" V's 3/4" or 1" and other people ,when they flush the toilet,run the sink,etc interrupt the harmonic flow of water pressures. Beyond that, I doubt that it is merely the water heater though it may be. It would seem, since you get some hot water at times, to be a water pressure issue. Check the age of the water heater and the size of the service from the street.

Answer 5

   One of the elements is burned out and needs to be replaced and then turn down to 120 degrees.

Answer 6

you have to mess with the water heater

Answer 7

Change the temp on the water heater. Or the water heater could be too small.

Answer 8

Some component - like a washer - is probably swelling as it gets hotter resulting in decreased hot water flow. To figure out if this is the cause, turn on ONLY the hot water. If the amount of water decreases the longer it's left running then this is the reason for your problem.