Hot water tank leak.

larryo · 08-14-2017, 05:00 PM

Our trailer is a 2011 with a Suburban hot water tank. Last weekend we noticed a little water on the floor. I took the cover off the inside of the trailer to see what I could see. There was water around the heater. All of the fittings were perfectly dry. I opened the outside cover and again everything is perfectly dry. I shut off the pump and release the hot water tank pressure and the leak stops. I bypass the hot water tank and turn the pump back on and there's no leak. If I don't bypass the tank and turn the pump back on I can hear it dripping but I can't see anything. I'm thinking that the tank is cracked. Opinions please. Thanks

Wattsworld · 08-14-2017, 06:00 PM

Years ago I didn't get my hot water tank winterized in time and the tank cracked on a seam. I took the water heater all apart and the tank was an aluminum tank. My neighbor was a welder by trade and took my tank and welded it up. I never had any problems with it after that. That was back in the late 70's so tanks might be different now. Still worth a shot if the tank is leaking because of a crack.
Others on here may have other idea's. First thing is to make sure it is the tank leaking. I had all my water valves shut off and every so often the water pump with run. There was water around the bottom of the heater. Next thing for me was to tear it down.
Good luck.

TheWolfPaq82 · 08-14-2017, 06:11 PM

Every spring the dealers start their Water Heat Scrap Pile. Couple years ago a local dealer that I buy parts from had a pile of at least 30-40 water heaters from just that spring. All were split from end to end from freezing.

larryo · 08-14-2017, 06:21 PM

It shouldn't be cracked from freezing. It's been used quite a lot this year. It didn't leak a week ago. All the fittings are dry and the leak stops when I bypass the tank so I'm thinking that it hasn't to be the tank.

UT_Grandpa · 08-15-2017, 01:48 PM

When you bypass the tank you have stopped pressurizing the tank. The tank will be at whatever pressure it had in it. If it is at full pressure when you switch the bypass valves (3) then it should continue to leak until the pressure drops.

The fittings between the bypass valves and the tank will be at the same pressure as the tank and if they are the culprit they will stop leaking when the tank has depressurized.

I would get a mirror on a stick and a good flashlight and look really hard for a leak. Water flows downhill so start from top down. Can you get a finger into the insulation to see if the tank is wet?

Have you pulled the anode rod/drain out? If the anode rod is missing then there is good chance the tank has rusted. Suburban heaters have an anode rod whereas the Dometic heaters are aluminum and generally will not corrode.

Keep us informed.

larryo · 08-15-2017, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UT_Grandpa

When you bypass the tank you have stopped pressurizing the tank. The tank will be at whatever pressure it had in it. If it is at full pressure when you switch the bypass valves (3) then it should continue to leak until the pressure drops.

The fittings between the bypass valves and the tank will be at the same pressure as the tank and if they are the culprit they will stop leaking when the tank has depressurized.

I would get a mirror on a stick and a good flashlight and look really hard for a leak. Water flows downhill so start from top down. Can you get a finger into the insulation to see if the tank is wet?

Have you pulled the anode rod/drain out? If the anode rod is missing then there is good chance the tank has rusted. Suburban heaters have an anode rod whereas the Dometic heaters are aluminum and generally will not corrode.

Keep us informed.

I will have time to look at it this weekend. It hasalways had an anode rod in it. The heater basically sites on a piece of plywood on the floor. Water seeps from under the tank, everything else feels dry. The confusing thing is that I can hear it dripping which indicates that water is leaking from a height. I'll have a closer look this weekend and let you know.

HerveVR · 08-15-2017, 08:46 PM

I had the same issue on my Suberban sw6de over the last week.
Today, I bypassed the tank, emptied it completely. Then using a plumbing adaptor and a winterizing blow out valve, I put air pressure (to 80psi) and found that the pressure went down indicating a leak. I sprayed a soapy solution on all the fittings (nada) and near the styrofoam jacket (eureka) to get a confirmation of the leak.
A new waterheather is coming.

waiter21 · 08-16-2017, 07:32 AM

If you can hear a drip - drip - drip, thats a pretty serious leak.

verify the tank connectors are tight, use a paper towel to wipe them then listen , fell for the water. also the bypass valves aren't leaking.

Other than that, it sounds like a bad tank.

**Flybob** · 08-16-2017, 07:53 AM

Another thought. The WH tank is surrounded by foam. Usually when the tank itself leaks, the water stays between the tank and the foam until it runs to the lowest point then comes out the foam. You say yous is sitting on a piece of wood. In this case, the water should run out of the foam onto the wood and no real drip that you can hear. You might want to look above the tank as you say you can hear a good dripping noise.