Water Heater Problems

[beekaykay]

Hi All,

I have a condo and just had a leak fixed in my bathtub last week (they had to remove the bath to fix the leak) cost me 6000bt for this (well over the top in my estimates buy hey TIT), anyhow all leaks have been fixed and i am quite happy, however i went to take a bath the other day and there was no hot water! So I called the condo management team in again who said it could only be the water heater which is actually concealed above the ceiling so they would have to cut a whole in the ceiling to gain access to it, so i eventually agreed and they checked the water heater and said it would not reset, now i maybe a stupid falang but i just cant see this being a coincidence that i had hot water b4 they removed the bath to fix the leak (its actually a Jacuzzi) and now i do not have hot water and they are asking me to fork out 5k/10k (depending on model) for a new water heater.

A few questions for anybody knowledgeable in this field.

1 - Would removing a Bath/Jacuzzi to fix a leak interfere anyway with the water heater all of a sudden being faulty and needing to be replaced?

2 - Is there any 2nd hand cheaper water heaters out there to be had? (according to our condo engineers the whole of Bangkok do not have any 2nd hand units and just laughed at me:-)

3 - I know i can buy at Home pro etc, but are there any better value deals for new Water heaters around?

4 - Can my existing water heater be fixed? (they are just saying it wont reset)

5 - Are there any good falang plumbers out there who don't charge the Earth to do this job properly?

Thanks in advance for any replies

Edited August 3, 2009 by beekaykay

[trogers]

Whenever any of my electrical equipment stops working, the first thing I will check is the circuit breaker to see if it has been tripped to an Off position.

Edited August 3, 2009 by trogers

[RKASA]

You have to secure the power to the hot water heater before any shut off the water supply and draining the pipes to fix leaks or it may or normally can burn out the heaters elements.  Not a surprise that its not working after pumping repair.  Thats what often happens.  They had to cut a hole to get at it.  What kind of goof-ball build this place.?  Start looking for a new place.

[teletiger]

Unless your heater is made of gold, or can be traded on the markets, I'd look for a new forum too.

Regards.

[AlexLah]

Real men use cold water to shower and take a bath.

Next to that you will save money........

[trogers]

Real men use cold water to shower and take a bath.

Next to that you will save money........

And these real men will be rheumatic men in their middle ages...

[beach]

Hi Beekaykay

Your water heater can't be reset because the internal earth leakage "breaker" is detecting an electrical leak (which could kill you while having a hot shower).

The reason of the internal tripping is either a broken heating element or faulty cabling.

You have to most likely change your water heater or get it fixed. If you're talking about the 9-12k Baht range it's most likely a Stiebel-Eltron, they have warranty and service.

Don't bother to buy a good one again if you want to have your water heater replaced, it's worth the money.

Ceilings can be fixed cheapl, why bother???

[clickblade]

[

Thanks in advance for any replies

When they repaired the leaks they would have turned the water back on but should have turned the power off to the heater first. What has happened is that they have turned the water back on and opened the taps in the bath that has activated the pressure valve in the heater so it's turned it on but no water was in it at the time and blown the high limit temperature valve and yes it can be repaired and it's not difficult to repair.

[beekaykay]

You have to secure the power to the hot water heater before any shut off the water supply and draining the pipes to fix leaks or it may or normally can burn out the heaters elements. Not a surprise that its not working after pumping repair. Thats what often happens. They had to cut a hole to get at it. What kind of goof-ball build this place.? Start looking for a new place.

Thanks for the replies guys....

So i assume i have a case against the so called plumbers here in the condo, as they should have turned the power to the water heater off first ? they are totally to blame right?

[lopburi3]

Actually expect there view will be it was your property in your condo so you should have taken care of it. You had them fix a leak. As you seem to say they work at the condo they may have a clue - but most would not have any knowledge of a hidden water heater.

[beekaykay]

Actually expect there view will be it was your property in your condo so you should have taken care of it. You had them fix a leak. As you seem to say they work at the condo they may have a clue - but most would not have any knowledge of a hidden water heater.

So you are saying, I should have taken care of it! (I am NOT a plumber thats why I asked for them to fix it) I pay for 6k for a leak to be fixed and then i am to blame for a faulty water heater that they have obviously done as it was working fine b4 hand, they know there are water heaters on every tap and shower in my condo (all units have hot water heaters)

Thats like me taking my car in for a service and it comes out with a blown radiator who would you blame?

[lopburi3]

You for not cleaning the radiator fluid? I was trying to provide there rational and the fact most would have no idea about any need to turn off a water heater if that was not what they were working on. It appears the experts who checked later probably did not know either. Actually one should expect a water heater to be able to protect itself, and reset when the fault cleared.

A person with advanced knowledge is not going to be working for minimum wage and I expect less than a fraction of 1% of those who work as plumbers ever have seen such a heater. And if they have only know how to attache the pipes to it. And from personal experience at several hotels perhaps they should not even do that.

[beekaykay]

You for not cleaning the radiator fluid? I was trying to provide there rational and the fact most would have no idea about any need to turn off a water heater if that was not what they were working on. It appears the experts who checked later probably did not know either. Actually one should expect a water heater to be able to protect itself, and reset when the fault cleared.

A person with advanced knowledge is not going to be working for minimum wage and I expect less than a fraction of 1% of those who work as plumbers ever have seen such a heater. And if they have only know how to attache the pipes to it. And from personal experience at several hotels perhaps they should not even do that.

U live in a totally different World m8, u obviously like taking the blame for everything

[longball53098]

Hi All,

I have a condo and just had a leak fixed in my bathtub last week (they had to remove the bath to fix the leak) cost me 6000bt for this (well over the top in my estimates buy hey TIT), anyhow all leaks have been fixed and i am quite happy, however i went to take a bath the other day and there was no hot water! So I called the condo management team in again who said it could only be the water heater which is actually concealed above the ceiling so they would have to cut a whole in the ceiling to gain access to it, so i eventually agreed and they checked the water heater and said it would not reset, now i maybe a stupid falang but i just cant see this being a coincidence that i had hot water b4 they removed the bath to fix the leak (its actually a Jacuzzi) and now i do not have hot water and they are asking me to fork out 5k/10k (depending on model) for a new water heater.

A few questions for anybody knowledgeable in this field.

1 - Would removing a Bath/Jacuzzi to fix a leak interfere anyway with the water heater all of a sudden being faulty and needing to be replaced? The only relationship is water comes from the heater to fill you're tub. The heater should have a flow switch inside to prevent the heater from operating while the crew repaired the leaky tub.

2 - Is there any 2nd hand cheaper water heaters out there to be had? (according to our condo engineers the whole of Bangkok do not have any 2nd hand units and just laughed at me:-)

Don't waste you're time with trying to buy a 2nd hand unit.

3 - I know i can buy at Home pro etc, but are there any better value deals for new Water heaters around? There are other stores around like HomeWorks and Global House but the prices for these heaters are about the same in all stores

4 - Can my existing water heater be fixed? (they are just saying it wont reset) Most likey it can be repaired but it depends on the problem.I've had 2 units repaired in the past for less than 2k each time.

5 - Are there any good falang plumbers out there who don't charge the Earth to do this job properly? You will not find a farang plumber in Thailand. Possibly a Farang run company. A farang could never get a work permit to work here for this type of work.

Thanks in advance for any replies