The dip tube — it has an odd sounding name, and many people aren’t aware of its existence in their water heater. But if you’ve been getting less hot water than you’d like, this little guy could possibly be the culprit.

If you’ve ever looked at a water heater, you’ll see that the cold-water inlet and hot-water outlet pipes are both located on the top of the tank. When a hot-water faucet is opened in the house, hot water sitting at the top of the tank exits through the hot-water outlet. Cold water flows into the tank to replace the hot water that’s leaving, providing both pressure to push the hot water out and a fresh supply of cold water for heating.

However, if the cold water simply entered the tank at the top, right next to the outgoing hot water, it would mix with the hot water and quickly cool it back down. To prevent that, water heaters utilize a dip tube, which is simply a long plastic tube inside the tank. It sits directly below the cold-water inlet pipe, and extends down to within a few inches of the tank’s bottom. Thanks to the dip tube, incoming cold water is directed to the very bottom of the tank, where it can push the hot water out without immediately mixing in with the hot water near the top of the tank.

Dip tube technology is not new, and it’s not complicated. However, things can occasionally go awry, as was the case with a huge number of water heaters manufactured between about 1993 and 1997. Many of these heaters had defective dip tubes, eventually leading to a class-action lawsuit. Water heaters manufactured after that time have a newer type of tube that is less likely to have problems, but they’re not always foolproof either.

If you’re not getting enough hot water, a defective dip tube could be one reason for the problem. This is especially true if your water heater was manufactured between the dates mentioned above.

First of all, look for common indicators that the dip tube might be bad. Perhaps the most obvious is a sudden shortage of hot water, even though you’ve made no other alterations in your water usage — in other words, where you might have had plenty of hot water for a shower before, now you run out quite quickly. Loss of hot-water pressure and low hot-water temperatures can also be indicators.

If you have any doubts about how to safely remove and replace the tube, how to relight the pilot light, or how to deal with any other issues concerning your water heater and a lack of hot water, contact a licensed plumbing contractor.

Remodeling and repair questions? E-mail Paul at paul2887@ykwc.net.

***

What’s your opinion? Leave your comments below or send a letter to the editor. To contact the writer, click the byline at the top of the story.

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