Help please - Immersion heater element problem

erb

My immersion heater element blow the fuse the other night and now although it comes on, as I can here it working, it does not warm the water up much.

Anybody know what may have happened and what to do about it.

fto

Hi,
if you can hear it working, the problem must be with the stat (thats in side the heater).If it has blown a fuse......theres a fault which needs sorting.

LTJ

You need a new heating stat, easy to fit just turn off the power, saying it again, ensure the power IS off and remove the cap, undo the screws to the stat (stat installed in the middle of the element) and just pull it out, some are different lenghts I think 8" 10 " etc but a long time since I changed one. It might be that the element has caused this problem, it might be worth changing this, but a lot more work involved, draining the tank, and you need a big spanner to remove the element, these can be very hard to undo.
But please what ever you do, double check the power is off before touching any electrics, please be safe.

Sorry just editing my bad spelling.

erb

Sorry should have said I have already replaced the stat as that was the first thing I thought of as well.

It appears that the element is not working at full heating power. Is that possible?

keith969

It could be possible, whatever it is though you will need to replace the element. If you try to do this yourself be warned: the copper of the tank is not that thick and its easy to damage it.

LTJ

It has got to be the element then, there are no other parts that heat the water. Unless you have another stat that is usually strapped around the middle of the tank, but these were only fitted to old tanks that have not got the inslation stuck to them.

LTJ

erb wrote: »

Sorry should have said I have already replaced the stat as that was the first thing I thought of as well.

It appears that the element is not working at full heating power. Is that possible?

You obviously know what you are doing; so I would change the element, also I don’t want to teach you to suck eggs. But after draining the tank, removing the electrics, if the big nut won’t budge, you may find a little heat on the thread with a blowtorch will help to undo the big nut, also a piece of pipe over the wrench will add extra leverage, but just take it easy.

vaio

I'm struggling to see how an element could half work.

Is it a double element heater?

fto

If its just a bog standard tank, with one heater........the element either works or not.Have you turned up the stat ????.
Btw, I must have changed hundreds of Immersion heaters & I`ve never drained the tank.

vaio

I though it was a good idea to leave water in the tank to help it keep its shape and be stable while the force is applied to the heater

fto

vaio wrote: »

I though it was a good idea to leave water in the tank to help it keep its shape and be stable while the force is applied to the heater

Exactly....If its at the top of course.