hot water tank life expectancy

[Daisy Holzmacher]

I just moved into a house with an oil-fired hot water tank that is 11 years old.

I know from a recent oil service inspection that there is some sediment and rust in the tank, although I don’t see any in the water coming out of the taps

Do you recommend replacing a hot water heater at a certain number of years old automatically, to prevent a situation where the tank rusts through and floods my basement, or do you feel that one should wait until there is a definite problem (small leak, discolored water) until replacing? If you would say automatically replace, at how many years old would you just replace a tank?

Just wanted an opinion from someone who wasn’t trying to directly sell me a new tank…

Thanks!

[Selgas]

With my tongue in my cheek I would suggest that an annual flushing down of the cylinder would assist in increasing it’s operational life, however one would not expect a cylinder these days to survive much past the 12 to 15 year period of use.
Hope this assists you in making your choice.

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Selgas Services Ltd
Craftsman Gasfitters, Plumbers, Electrical Service Technicians

[nicktheplumber]

I agree with Selgas. About 10 to 15 years is all that you can reasonably expect a water heater to last.

[Author]

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