Test Water Heater Element Thermostat

Remove the upper and the lower access panels with a phillips screwdriver.

Test water heater element thermostat.

If the water is cold the multimeter will point near zero. Both thermostats control two different heating elements for the heater to function. The access panels are on the side of. To look at the faults in the upper thermostat you need to turn off the lower one.

If the water is hot enough at appointed temperature the meter won t show reading. Common residential dual element water heaters are 240 volts. If the data tag is missing you can identify single element vs dual element by the number of access panels on the water heater. Now sometimes you use the hot water tap to only discover cold water coming out.

The upper thermostat controls both the upper and lower element. Test the water heater thermostat testing the water heater thermostat involves the checking of the heating element also. When it goes bad you don t have any hot water at all. You can find the voltage written on the end of the heating element.

Before you proceed further with the process of testing the heater thermostat take a screwdriver and the multimeter. You can find this information on the data tag on the side of the water heater. Start by checking the thermostat terminals for the supply of power. Testing water heater thermostats is important in locating water heater problems.

If you want to test a thermostat on an electric water heater you will also need to check the heating element. Turn the water heater circuit breaker off inside the main service panel. To look for faults you will need to use a screwdriver. You will also need to check the water heater thermostat with digital multimeter tools.

This is when the upper thermostat has a problem. Connect the multimeter pin ends on point 1 2 as shown in the picture below. When shopping for a water heater thermostat you need to know how many elements the water heater has and the voltage. How to test an electric hot water heater thermostat step 1.

This article deals with thermostats on electric water heaters. Pull away any insulation that is. This is important especially as open and grounded heating elements result in inaccurate tests. If the opposite thing happens that means your thermostat has defected.