Dangerous Water Heater

[Bob Knauff]

Ran across this unit the other day. At least the house was vacant so no one was using it then. Note the melting plastic collar around the hose bib and soot particles all over the top of the heater. Hard to imagine that much heat escaping from a covered front type heater.

[Mark Reinmiller]

Ran across this unit the other day. At least the house was vacant so no one was using it then. Note the melting plastic collar around the hose bib and soot particles all over the top of the heater. Hard to imagine that much heat escaping from a covered front type heater.

Seeing the flex vent pipe makes me want to see how this is vented.

[Galen L. Beasley]

From the soot I’d say there is some serious incomplete combustion going on in addition to the backdrafting. Since that's a FVIR type heater and the burner cover and window appear intact, I wonder how the flames and/or heat could be escaping from there?

[Rick Cantrell]

From the soot I’d say there is some serious incomplete combustion going on in addition to the backdrafting. Since that's a FVIR type heater and the burner cover and window appear intact, I wonder how the flames and/or heat could be escaping from there?

I suspect this has been tampered with. Note the missing wire on the thermo switch
Likely the intake has restriction
This caused overheating in the chamber, which tripped the thermo switch.
They pulled the cover off trying to "fix it" and probably did not re-install (or installed incorrectly) the cover gasket
They did not find what was wrong so they disconnected the thermo switch.
If the thermo switch was working, it could not have gotten hot enough to melt the plastic.
Of course, I'm just speculating, but I'll bet I'm real close.

[Galen L. Beasley]

That makes sense Rick. I would be curious to see what kind of CO reading you would get at the flue.

[Corn Walker]

Seeing the flex vent pipe makes me want to see how this is vented.

Improperly.

[Jack Feldmann]

That vent might be just fine. There is at least one manufacturer that makes one that looks like a dryer vent, but is approved.

[Corn Walker]

That vent might be just fine. There is at least one manufacturer that makes one that looks like a dryer vent, but is approved.

It may be constructed of approved materials, but that vent is most certainly not fine.

[Jerry Peck]

... but that vent is most certainly not fine.

That vent may be fine in if the water heater is in an approved location for the use of that vent.