Water flow from waterheater outlet

[Leakypipe]

Removed waterheater with house water on, waterheater inlet valve closed. With the outlet line removed from the water heater a small but steady stream of water continued until the main house valve was closed.

Trying to determine if water flowing thru waterheater outlet indicates a problem with one or more of the single handle valves in the house.

 

[Jamesplumbing06]

A price fister shower valve will go bad and allow the hot and cold to mix. Could also be just a single handle faucet going bad. But usually when water dribbles our hot side with cold water off. I find a price pfister shower valve somewhere in the house. It only becomes a “problem “ when you start getting hot from cold or cold from hot of the nearest faucet. Last one was actually a toilet. Started getting hot water in tank. Melted the rubber before anyone noticed.
If your going to worry about this. You can use your washing machine hook up to test from. No reason to remove heater again. Best way I have to diagnose is unhook washer hoses from washer. Lay them inside your washer tub.turn power source off to heater. Turn cold valve at heater off. Turn your hot washer box valve on to let it start dribbling. Then go around listening for a whisper sound. No sound? Start turning the shut offs in cabinet off. Once the dribble stops you found your faucet. Shower valves are tougher. You have to hear the water passing thru valve. Sometimes a glass cup helps. I hope this makes sense. Seen it many times. Most of the time it’s a shower valve. A few times it’s been these new pressure balance sink faucets. (Rare). So simply put. Do you have a price pfister shower valve? Order the pressure balance and volume control. They are 2 piece units. Oddly enough the pressure balance is introduced to water before the water even makes it to volume control. This allows them to mix thru.
Other plumbers will have other suggestion.

 

[Mr_David]

Other plumbers will have other suggestion.

James,
Don't run into many PP balanced valves but Old style Moens are notorious for cross over issue in multi unit buildings.
That's a good way to diagnose but often we find auto washer valves are not operational.
If you have any 2 handle faucets in the unit I do something similar.
Turn off the cold supply to water heater.
then turn on hot side of a 2 handle faucet or turn off the cold angle stop to a single handle faucet.
Then do the same thing. Listen to each fixture for water passing through it.