Quote:
Originally Posted by mmuratet
Has hinges. Found the valves. Drains are petcocks. Not sure is parallel or perpendicular is correct, tried both. Nothing drains, I assume it left through the drains on the left midway. Hopefully heater tank is empty. Nothing left but installing antifreeze. Thanks for the help.
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You need to access the front of the water heater through the outside panel. Remove all sources of pressure, that is, turn off the pump and detatch city water hose then open a tap to release any pressure from the system.
Open the pressure release valve at the top of the water heater first. If you do this while the tank is pressurized, you'll get squirted or burned, hence the hint to open the tap first. If you don't open the valve, it will take much longer to drain. Next, unscrew the plug at the bottom of the heater. If there is an anode attached to the plug, replace it if it is badly eaten. Replace the plug when you are done so critters don't make a home in the tank.
The water heater will not drain through low point valves; only through the drain plug. If you leave the water heater full and it freezes, it will be destroyed.
A little water at the bottom won't hurt anything. While you are at this end of season task, it's a good time to flush out debris and mineral build-up, especially if the water is hard in your area. Look for a water heater flush wand at Walmart, Amazon, etc. They are cheap and work well.