What Is Causing My Electric Hot Water Heater Breaker To Keep Flipping Off

Are you frustrated considering your circuit billow keeps tripping? If so, the problem could be your h2o heater. In that location are two types of h2o heaters. The get-go is called a gas h2o heater. The second is called an electric water heater. At that place is a chance that your gas h2o heater may still require electricity to operate, so both types of water heaters are capable of tripping your circuit breaker.

If your water heater keeps tripping your circuit breaker, at that place are several areas y'all have to check. Y'all need to accept a expect at the thermostat, the heating element, the internal wiring, and the electrical organization every bit a whole. Y'all should also take a wait at other appliances that could be responsible for the circuit breaker.

You need your hot water heater to work properly, and it tin can exist frustrating when it is not behaving. Even though you might exist nether a lot of stress, we have done a pregnant corporeality of research to figure out the nigh common reasons why water heater trip circuit breakers. Accept a look at our research, and see if you can figure out why your h2o heater keeps tripping the breaker.

Are y'all ready to have a closer await at your electric water heater? If so, go on reading, and let's see if nosotros can figure out why your electric water heater is not working equally it should.

Why Does a Circuit Breaker Trip?

Now, you might be wondering, why is your circuit billow tripping? Your circuit breaker has been specifically designed to prevent an electric water heater from overloading one or more of your appliances. If the excursion breaker detects there is something unsafe happening in your electrical system, information technology is going to shut off the power to that part of the house.

You might think you tin solve the problem by just holding the excursion breaker open; however, you should never do this under any circumstances. There is a reason why your circuit breaker is closing, and you lot need to figure out what it is. If y'all determine to hold your circuit billow open, you lot could overload one or more of your appliances, leading to a serious problem. Information technology could even atomic number 82 to an electrical fire.

For these reasons, you need to gather the right materials to accept a closer look at your h2o heater. That way, yous can effigy out what is happening and set up it.

Materials Needed To Fix an Electric H2o Heater

There are a few important materials yous will demand if you would like to gear up your electrical water heater. Some of the materials you lot require include:

You volition need to accept admission to your electric water heater. This is usually placed in the garage or a utility cupboard.
You volition besides need a flashlight so you can clearly encounter behind the electric water heater.
You lot should have access to the manual so yous can figure out where all of the individual parts are located.
You volition probably also need a bones toolbox if you need to accept autonomously some of the water heater.
You should have plenty of towels with you in instance you need to make clean up water that spills effectually the h2o heater.
You too need to take a multimeter with you to test the individual components of the water heater.

Later on you lot have gathered all of the necessary materials, you can motion to your water heater and figure out what is going on. What are a few of the steps yous demand to follow?

Man repairing gas water heater — Water heaters can malfunction and trip the circuit breaker in a number of ways, but thankfully, many of these ways are entirely fixable.

Fix an Electric Water Heater in 5 Steps

If you would similar to figure out why your water heater keeps tripping the excursion breaker, at that place are several steps you need to follow. These include:

Step i: Look at the Other Appliances

First, you need to take a look at the excursion billow and see what other appliances are on the same excursion as your water heater. For example, there may be other appliances that are plugged into nearby outlets that could be responsible for the circuit breaker tripping. Or, somebody could have plugged in another appliance on the same circuit without you knowing.

Accept a look at everything that is continued on the aforementioned circuit. Then, see if something has been hooked upwardly that should not exist there. If you lot place something else that was recently added to the circuit, this is probably the reason why the excursion breaker keeps tripping.

Consider removing the new appliance from the excursion. Then, run across if the circuit breaker behaves equally information technology should. If and then, the problem was not with your water heater, but with another appliance.

Step 2: In that location Might Be a Bad Thermostat

If you recall the problem is actually with your water heater, the first matter you need to do is take a look at that thermostat. Water heaters typically take a limit switch that prevents the h2o from exceeding 180 degrees Fahrenheit. If the water gets too hot, there is a limit switch that trips, stopping the water from getting whatever hotter. This is important for preventing you from getting burned.

A lot of water heaters have ii thermostats and ii heating elements. One thermostat goes with each heating element. Usually, the thermostats talk to each other to make certain merely one element of the water heater is heating at a time.

If the thermostat gets stuck in the on position, then the water heater may mistakenly showtime to rut both elements at the same time. This tin crusade a significant draw of power on the electric circuit, causing the circuit breaker to trip.

To accept a closer look at the thermostat, yous will demand a multimeter. Use the multimeter to examination each individual thermostat to brand certain they are working accordingly. If y'all get markedly different readings for each thermostat, then i of them is probably broken. The thermostat that does not have a lot of resistance or current flowing through it is probably broken. It might take to be replaced.

Pace 3: A Bad Heating Element

In improver to a broken thermostat, there may also exist a problem with the heating element. Similar to the problem with the thermostats higher up, you as well need to accept a look at the individual heating elements.

If your h2o heater has 2 separate heating elements, you need to bank check each of them to see if they are working appropriately. For example, an older heating element may have a problem with the casing. If the casing on the heating element begins to carve up, then the electrical portion of the water heater is exposed. As a result, the heating element could short-circuit, causing a limit switch to trip. This will trip the circuit billow, shutting off the water heater.

There is also a situation where the element could stay on when it is not supposed to. As a result, the water volition become besides hot, causing the limit switch to trip. This could also trip the excursion breaker, shutting off the water heater.

You will need to employ your multimeter to exam the individual heating elements. If you practise not get the right resistance reading, then this is a sign that the heating element is bad and it needs to be replaced.

Step 4: Bank check for a Water Leak

Of course, y'all also need to take a look at the water heater to brand sure in that location is no water leaking from the heater. A lot of older water heaters can develop leaks. If that is the instance, water may offset to pull around to all the electrical elements.

This is why you always need to put safety at the top of your priority listing when you lot are working on your h2o heater. If there is water pooling around the water heater, it could come into contact with one of the electric elements. This could cause a serious electrical daze and short the entire system.

If you lot are noticing a leak in the water heater, yous need to plough off the circuit breaker. Make sure you disconnect all power flowing to the h2o heater. And so, yous can take a closer look at the water heater and see what yous need to do to fix the issue. You lot may even need to phone call a professional to help you with this.

Water heater leaking from bottom — If yous notice water pooling at the bottom of the water heater, turn off the cirtcuit breaker before taking a closer look.

Step 5: Look at the Internal Wiring

Finally, there could also be a problem with the internal wiring of the water heater. If yous are non an electrician, and so you may want to call an electrician to help you with this step. Before you exercise annihilation with the internal wiring of the water heater, y'all need to shut off the circuit breaker and disconnect power.

When you lot take a look at the internal wiring, you are looking for any signs of bad wires. At that place might be a sign of corrosion somewhere in the water heater. Or, you lot may odour fume coming from some of the wires. If that is the case, there might be a significant problem with the internal components of the h2o heater. Y'all need to talk to a professional to see if it is worth information technology to repair these wires or to have the entire thing replaced.

Solve the Mystery of Your H2o Heater

Ultimately, these are just a few of the many reasons why your electric water heater might keep tripping your circuit breaker. It is like shooting fish in a barrel to get frustrated with your electric water heater if it is not behaving as it should, remember that in that location is also a reason why the circuit breaker keeps tripping.

Under no circumstances should y'all ever forcefulness your excursion billow to stay open. This could exist a serious rubber concern. If you lot go through all of these steps and you still cannot effigy out why your electric water heater is not behaving appropriately, you should reach out to a professional who can help y'all. Y'all might need a plumber or an electrician to figure out what is going on with your electric water heater.