How to drain water from a water heater

1. Prepare materials and tools

Bucket or basin;
hose;
adjustable wrench;
screwdriver.

2. Reduce the water temperature

In order not to burn yourself during operation, turn off the heating of the boiler and drain some of the hot water: the tank will be filled with cold water and the temperature will drop. To save money, you can do this in advance, having spent water on something you need.

3. De-energize the boiler

For safety reasons, all manipulations with the water heater should be carried out only after being completely disconnected from the network. To do this, de-energize the corresponding circuit breaker in the electrical panel or unplug the power cord from the socket.

4. Shut off the water supply

The next mandatory step is to shut off the feed at the entrance. If there is a faucet on the cold water pipe next to the boiler, use it. If the piping is done without such a tap, turn off the main cold water valve at the entrance to the apartment or house.

Owners of dwellings with central hot water supply must additionally turn off the DHW tap at the entrance.

5. Drain the water heater

Simply opening hot water on the mixer and emptying the boiler will not work due to the fact that the tank fills at the same time when the water is consumed. Cold water pushes hot water out - that's how it works. It would seem that it is enough to turn off the tap at the entrance so that the boiler does not fill up, but no. It's a little more complicated.

The hot water intake tube is located at the very top of the tank, since when heated, the liquid rises up. The supply connection, on the contrary, is located at the bottom - so the layers of water do not mix. Therefore, when the supply is shut off, no more than a liter will drain from the mixer.

The water can be completely drained only through the supply tube. In this case, it is necessary to ensure the flow of air into the tank so that a vacuum is not created there and the water drains. Depending on the type of connection, this is done in different ways: from simply opening the tap to removing the fittings.

Connection with two tees

The most convenient scheme for draining. Thanks to the taps installed on the tees, it allows air to enter the tank and quickly empty it.

Make sure that the boiler inlet and outlet taps are closed. If they are not there, close the valves on the risers of cold and hot water supply.
Place a hose on the drain tap on the tee at the water heater inlet and lower it into a basin, bucket or toilet. Open the tap.
Now open the tap on the tee at the boiler outlet.
Drain all or part of the water. If you need to pause, turn off the tap at the water heater inlet and the water will stop flowing.

Connection with one tee

Not the worst connection option, which is still inferior in convenience to the previous one. A tee with a tap is installed only at the inlet, therefore, to drain, you will have to let air into the tank through the mixer or by removing the pipe from the outlet fitting.

How to drain water from a boiler: connection with one tee

There is a variation of such a scheme without a tap at the outlet of the boiler. In fact, it is no different: the air is started up in the same ways.

Check that the water heater inlet and outlet taps are closed. If they are absent, close the valves on the cold water and hot water supply risers.
Connect a hose to the drain cock and lower it into a bucket or basin. Open the tap.
Open hot water at the nearest mixer and wait until all or the required amount has been drained.
If the water flows poorly or does not flow at all, it means that the air flows through the mixer weakly. In this case, remove the hose at the outlet fitting.
To stop the water, you can turn off the drain valve or simply close the outlet with your finger.

Connection without tees

The most inconvenient piping scheme is when the water heater is connected directly without tees and taps. We have at our disposal only a safety valve with a drainage branch. Through it, albeit slowly, you can also drain the water. In extreme cases, the valve can be easily removed, and then the flow will be much higher.

Make sure hot and cold water pipes are shut off.
Close the boiler inlet tap and open hot water on the nearest mixer.
Put a hose on the valve spout and lower it into a bucket or basin. Raise the flag of the valve.
If the water drains very slowly or does not flow at all, remove the hose from the boiler outlet to ensure air flow.
If there is no flag on the valve or the water is still weak, disconnect the supply hose from the valve and insert a thin screwdriver into its body. This will lift the spring blocking the return flow of the water, and the jet will be significantly increased.
To speed up draining, you can simply remove the valve to completely empty the water heater inlet.