If your water isn’t hot enough there are a couple of problems that can cause that. Checking each of the following potential issues should allow you to identify what is wrong with your water system.
Hot water heater is too small
To check if your hot water heater is too small, ensure that the hot water heater has at least 75 percent of its capacity as hot water.
Another issue caused by a hot water heater that is too small is that you will run out of water too quickly. If you are forced to upgrade to a new hot water heater, definitely ensure the new one is big enough for your family.
Water connections are crossed
Checking for a crossed water connection is pretty easy. Turn off the water supply and then turn on a hot water faucet. If you are still able to get water flow, look for a crossed water connection somewhere.
A common way for this to occur would be a failed rubber valve inside a sink or tub faucet.
One of the elements have failed
After having checked that your hot water heater isn’t too small and that there aren’t any crossed connections it is time to look at the heating elements.
First, check that each of the elements are getting power, you can do this by turning the power back on and using a multimeter in AC mode to check the Voltage at each element.
If both elements are getting voltage it’s time to check for continuity. Turn the power to the hot water heater off and use a multi-meter to check each element for electrical continuity. If either element has infinite resistance it should be replaced.
Thermostat has gone bad
If both of your elements are working properly, your next suspect is the Thermostat. There should be an upper and lower thermostat that needs testing. Start your test with the upper thermostat and then check the lower. If either is bad, replace it and you should have a fully functioning hot water heater again!
