Water heaters have a protective switch like a circuit breaker that sometimes needs resetting.
Electric water heaters use electrical protection devices for each heating element. The protection device acts like a small circuit breaker or re-settable fuse. Most modern water heaters use two separate heating elements. One element is at the top of the heater tank and the other is near the bottom. When resetting a heating element you will have to gain access to both sets of reset devices. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Shut off the electrical power to the water heater by either switching off the circuit breaker or pulling the fuses that supply power to the appliance.
2. Locate the protective covers for the heating elements.
3. Remove the screws that hold the cover to the water heater metal jacket. Some water heater units may only have a single screw located near the top of the cover. Pull the cover from the jacket.
4. Pull the insulation from the water heater to expose the heating element and reset button. The insulation may be a piece of styrofoam or a single flap of fiberglass. The reset button is a red button approximately three-eighths of an inch in diameter.
5. Push the red button as hard as you can, the button can be stiff to push inward. You will hear an audible "click" when the button is properly reset. Reset both the upper and lower protection devices.
6. Reinstall the insulation. Replace the outer covers. Turn the circuit breaker back on or replace the fuses. You should hear the water heater activating. The sound will be faint clicks or the faint sound of boiling water coming from inside the tank.
Tags: circuit breaker, water heater, heating element, heating elements, protection devices, reset button