Water heaters are indispensable helpers in the home, but the operation of these devices is not eternal, as well as all household appliances. The causes of failure can be very different: clogging of the water heater with deposits due to water hardness, burnout of the heating element and others. You can solve the problem in the service center, but many are interested in the question, how to repair a broken water heater at home?
Household appliances for water heating
About a third of Russia's population uses various types of boilers as the main water heater - they include not only residents of the private sector, but also homeowners of country cottages, as well as simple tenants in urban high-rise buildings. The water heater is considered to be the simplest device for fast water heating: catering is used to quickly obtain large volumes of hot water for a variety of needs in the range 60-900C. This allows you to wash dishes properly, vegetables, fruits, carry out preventive treatment of workplaces for the treatment of meat products and various ancillary facilities.
- By design, the water heater can be table and floor, fasten to the wall of the room.
- According to the operating cycle, they are divided into units of continuous or intermittent action.
- The heating elements in them can be electric heaters, gas burners or steam.
In many city apartments, the source of hot water is a gas water heater, by means of which inhabitants quickly heat water and use it for the needs. Due to the poor operation of the central hot water supply, many tenants install a large-capacity electric water heater - a boiler at least on 80 liters, which is quite enough for a small family. This boiler is equipped with quite powerful heating elements, heating water and maintaining the optimum temperature, installed by users.
There are no super-reliable household appliances in the world - repair of water heaters is considered by experts to be an integral part of their operation.. There are problems, which each user can eliminate independently, but there are some, when without the participation of an experienced master you simply can not cope. Minor repairs of boilers and water heaters can be carried out at home, in more complex cases it is better to turn to a professional.
Accumulative boiler
Before you start minor repairs of various brands of boilers, the home craftsman must know the device of the installed device. Usually, the storage boiler consists of such elements:
- The temperature sensor shows the amount of water and its temperature. Running arrow and scale - these are the main elements of the simplest device, but modern expensive units can have a digital panel. If this part breaks, the functionality of the device is not violated.
- The thermal insulation layer provides a constant temperature inside the product
- Selection pipe - with its help heated water enters the home pipeline system.
- The outer casing can be made of metal or plastic.
- Tank - stainless steel tank, wall thickness not less 2 mm
- TEN - electric heating element.
- Supply pipe - through it the tank is filled with cold water.
- Magnesium anode, which protects the skin from possible corrosion.
- Thermostat or thermostat. It is with its help that water is automatically heated, two such devices are used in budget models, more expensive models use three thermostats. These parts are not repairable and must be replaced with similar parts for all characteristics.
- Sealing gaskets are installed at the joint, responsible for tightness, when worn, change to new ones.
- Electronic boards control water heating, control all functions of the water heater.
Flow-type heaters have a similar device, but they do not have a tank, and the Shadows are more powerful, to heat water quickly. Therefore, the repair of such water heaters will be easy to do with your own hands.
Flowing water heater
Problems and methods of their localization
When the smell of smoke, when a loud clap or a crack uncharacteristic of the quiet operation of the product was heard, immediately disconnect the water heater from the mains and start a methodical troubleshooting. Probably, it is a blown heating element - it needs to be replaced, will not be repaired. How to clean the heater from scale at home is a detailed video:
Little hot water
Sometimes when you first turn on the boiler there is not enough hot water. This is why it happens, confused the pipes of water supply and drainage. It is very easy to repair such a fault: swap them, and the flow of heated water will increase.
The indicator is not lit.
If the machine is connected to a network, but the light is off, and the boiler does not heat water, then check with the help of a special device the presence of voltage of the heating element. You need to connect an ohmmeter to the wires, if the TEN does not react, then it must be changed.
When there is voltage, but still the heater does not work - then replace the thermostat, because it is not repaired. If it is working, we warm up its case - the relay will open a chain, the connected tester will fix it.
In this video, an experienced master shows the phased repair of a Polaris boiler:
Leaking tank
Experts attribute this boiler failure to common failures. Repairs are not carried out - it depends on objective reasons:
- it is not possible to separate the tank from the outer shell;
- it is impossible to weld a leak on two covers - the external enamel covering and welding will spoil it.
If your model does not provide for tank replacement, and he flowed, then you need to buy a new boiler.
When water leaks at the bottom of the connecting flange, a working boiler can be resuscitated by replacing the gasket, but you need to buy exactly the same, to reliably locate the leak.
The plug is heated
To the question, why the plug heats up, there is a simple answer: it is a very powerful product, and the outlet may have less power. The plug is heated by loose contacts, which is easy to check visually, removing the cover.
Water supply pipes are heated
This is the first signal - the non-return valve is not working, although even by name it should delay the flow of hot water. Perhaps, during installation it was installed on the wrong side. Try turning the valve over - if the device is working properly, leave it at that, if you refuse to replace.
Gas water heaters
To repair any gas water heater at home, you need to know, of which parts it consists, and the principle of its operation. These devices look like a kitchen cabinet, only made of iron and covered with enamel. Inside are gas burners and a heat exchanger, below is the supply of water and gas, as well as a hot water drain pipe. The water is heated after opening the tap in the bathroom or kitchen: the gas supply valve on the burners opens, the piezoelectric element ignites it. Burning, gas heats water, which circulates through copper pipes outside the heat exchanger. All combustion products are excreted through the chimney.
All similar devices are divided by the type of ignition:
- manual control - are less common, mostly in the houses of ancient buildings;
- with piezo element - is activated by means of the button;
- electronic.
The first option is a deep antiquity. First, turn on the gas, then manually ignite the igniter, open the water and move the handle to regulate the flow of gas or a special rotary valve in the desired position. To use such a column, you need to know the order of switching on and off - otherwise you can burn the heat exchanger.
Today the population uses speakers of safe design, made according to the second option or fully automated, when the user has enough to open in the faucet, faucet with hot water.
Electronic control performs all actions without user intervention. Automation detects pressure drop in the product: gives the command to supply gas to the burner with the simultaneous formation of a spark, the ignition device is triggered, and then the process is similar, as in devices with manual control. Shutdown occurs automatically, you only need to shut off the hot water supply - the pressure inside the heat exchanger is restored, the gas supply is stopped and the electronics put the column in standby mode.
In products with manual control according to the second option, the igniter works constantly, therefore, re-activation will already be in automatic mode, but before that you need to set the desired mode, turning the rotary mechanism to the desired division. Preventive repair and cleaning of the heat exchanger can be done independently, but if the electronics fail, it is better to call a wizard to repair gas columns - it will be cheaper, than buying new appliances.
