Hot water heater testing

[Airstreamr]

Am wondering if anyone out there can tell me how to test the electirc part of my hot water heater to see what repairs are needed. The water heats fine with gas, but not with electricity. I check the circuit breaker and that seems to be ok, but am not sure what to test on near the heater parts or what to look for. Any help will be much appreciated. Thanks...........Larry

[74Argosy24MH]

Check voltage at the heater.
Check continuity of the heater.
Check continuity of the thermostat.


John

[thenewkid64]

There is also a High Temp breaker that could have popped. It could be under the cover outside, or in the back by the power switch for the AC.

Are you sure you have a gas/120 Volt heater?

[AirConditioner]

Originally Posted by thenewkid64

There is also a High Temp breaker that could have popped. It could be under the cover outside, or in the back by the power switch for the AC.

Are you sure you have a gas/120 Volt heater?

Picking up on what "74Argosy24MH" was saying- assuming you have a dual gas/electric water heater, and that you are comfortable working on electrical devices - if the other tests show voltage present at the element (screws into the heater and has two heavy wires leading from it), disconnect the wires and use multimeter to check the heating element resistance. It's not unusual for an element to breakdown and open. If that's the case, you unscrew the element and replace it. Sometimes harder to do than it looks!

[Airstreamr]

Thanks for your help. Yes, it is a gas/120 volt heater and has worked fine up until this weekend. We usually leave it on elec, but this weekend, no go except with gas (refrig was the reverse this weekend, worked on elec but not on gas...go figure! ). I will test the voltage and take it from there. Will let you know what happens. Thanks again....Larry