Steps to Replace a Heater Gas Valve
When should you consider replacing your water heater gas valve? Usually, this is necessary if the heater is no longer heating enough water for your house or if the hot water is coming intermittently, however, replacing such a valve is not a type of project that everyone likes to do. Bellow you will find instruction of how to replace a water heater
gas valve.
What to Do First?
1 – Shut off the gas and water to the water heater.
The gas shut off valve should be located on the gas pipe that the valve is connected to and, the water shut off valve should be located on water supply line (cold side). 2 – Drain the water from the water heater. To drain the water from the water heater, you must connect a garden hose to the water heater faucet, run the hose to a floor drain, toilet or shower drain. Before draining the tank, open the hot side of a faucet located at the lowest compartment of the house and closest to the water heater, this will allow air to run through the pipe and push the water out of the heater faster.
Removing the Old Valve:
Once the tank has been empted completely, starts disconnecting the gas control valve. And to do that, do the following first:
1 – Disconnect the gas flex hose with a adjustable wrench. 2 – Disconnect the three tubes that enter the gas valve from the bottom. From left to right: the pilot tube, the burner tube and the thermocouple. Loosen the nut where each tube enters the gas valve and pull down on tubes to release them from the valve. 3 – Remove the gas valve form the tank. To remove the valve, use a pipe wrench or a large pair of channel locks to unscrew the valve from the tank. 4 – Once the valve has been removed from the tank, determine the length of the shank. The shank is the threaded nipple that comes out of the back of the valve and into the tank. The two length of the shank available are: 1 3/8” and 2 3/8”.
Installing the New Valve:Make sure that the new shank has the same length of the existing one, otherwise, the pilot tube, burner tube and thermocouple won’t match up.Install the new control gas valve by reversing the steps used to remove the old valve. Make sure to use Teflon tape and pipe dope to the threads and shank to prevent gas leaks.
Cheking for Gas Leaks:
Now that the new valve is installed, it is time to check for leaks and to do that; you will need to do the followings:
1 – Turn the water valve back on and wait until the tank is completely full. 2 – Turn the gas valve located on the gas pipe line back on. 3 – Use a special liquid to check for leaks or, just use kitchen detergent over the joints to see if creates any bubbles; if everything is ok and no smell detected, proceed to fire up the heater. 3 –Turn the control valve to the on position and then, turn the control to the pilot light position. 4 – If the water heater has a electric lighter, while hold the red button down, ignite the lighter until you see a lit light in the burner, keep holding the button for about a minute and then, release it. 5 – Turn the switch to the on position, the burner will light up, and then adjust the heater to the desired temperature.
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