OK - so I have a Rheem Performance 50 gal gas-heated water heater that is 6 years old. A few days ago I found the T&P valve dripping consistently. I drained & flushed the tank (hadn't been done in a few years) and some silty/sandy-looking sediment came out but water ran clear after a few flushes. I replaced the T&P valve (it is a side-mounted one) with as close to duplicate of the original as I could find in shank and probe length. Then put water pressure gauge on the tank drain after re-fill and found out that our house's water pressure was at 110 PSI, both at the heater drain and outside spigots. On town water supply. Had plumber come in and installed a new Pressure Reduction Valve and it is set at @ 58 PSI. I also replaced the 2 gallon expansion tank on top of the water heater with a new one because the old one had failed (prob. due to the elevated pressure) and was completely full of water. Set the pre-charge on the new expansion tank to 55 PSI (plumber said it should be a few PSI less than water supply PSI). The T&P valve didn't drip or release any water for 36 hours and then this morning (during peak shower use by family) it released a tablespoon of water. I have the pressure gauge connected to the water heater overnight and the second "peak" needle shows tank pressure hasn't gone above 61-62 PSI. Water temp at the was reading at 115 deg F at LOW and so I turned it up to "HOT" last night and water out of nearest sink was at 135 deg. F after I noticed the small amount of water that was released. (our heater has "VAC", "LOW", "HOT" and then "A", "B", "C", "VERY HOT" settings in order of increasing temp). I've since turned it down to "LOW" again. I tested the T&P valve (flipped open for a moment and it snapped back down after releasing water). I know T&P valves are supposed to release at either 150 PSI or 210 deg F. If my tank isn't reaching those markers, and it's a new T&P valve that I'm pretty sure is working - why would it still release a bit of water? Should I be concerned? Thank you for any thoughts/suggestions.
Help - T&P releasing some water
- Thread starter Nelsonch
- Start date
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Once you open the T & P, you are prone to continual leakage. I'd recommend you purchase a new T & P, install it, and then don't touch it at all. To confirm you do not have an excessive pressure build up, I will close with contacting a professional for verification, so my advise does not cause your house to blow up!
The labels on T&P say to test regularly, so tripping it should not have anything to do with this issue.
Afraid new T & P might be the only way to eliminate defective unit possibility. We like to use a flex connection to make swapping out T & P so easy.
Afraid new T & P might be the only way to eliminate defective unit possibility. We like to use a flex connection to make swapping out T & P so easy.
