Replacing a hot water heater yourself

[RunningBum]

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Originally Posted by SheitlQueen It isn't a matter of "bragging rights", it's a matter of self confidence that I can take care of things my husband used to do. I can't run to someone else every time something on the property needs fixing. Although it's tempting! I've done more than I ever thought I was capable of, just by being willing to try.

It sounds to me like much the same thing ("bragging rights" vs self confidence). Nobody is saying you need to get help for everything, but a wise person knows their limits and doesn't stubbornly go beyond them, just for bragging rights or self confidence or whatever you want to call it. Replacing a hot water heater might be beyond your reasonable limits. It's beyond what I'd want to take on. A friend of mine did this and I helped him haul the old water heater out, and that wasn't an easy task. He had the heavy end. I probably would've hurt my back had I been on that end.

Not sure what the price difference would be in getting some physical labor to help with the hauling vs having the job done. The advantage of the latter is that you can watch the job being done, and perhaps learn things about plumbing and maintenance of the heater that will help you later.

If you have to do this kind of thing every year, it makes sense to learn how to do it on your own. Once every 20 years? I'd take the few hundred dollar hit.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by John Galt III SQ, good for you fixing the leak yourself! On the handyman issue. Huge range of cost and abilities out there. One guy said he would charge me $100 just to show up at my house, to use a tall ladder to patch a small hole in the siding, with silicone. Plus materials and maybe another $20 for "labor". Of course I said no thanks. Luckily I got a referral from my church for an old handyman who was very cheap and good. I had to pay him and extra $20 for gas since he didn't get out my way very often. He said he would do the job for $20. I supplied the material. So he drove out with the tall ladder, went up and fixed the hole. Total cost was $40. Job well done. But I had to get lucky to find him.

Thank you for mentioning that! I completely forgot there is a gentleman at my congregation that might do it at a reasonable price. Only problem is he has shoulder problems and I'm not sure he can handle the work. I'll check with him though.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by ncbill Plastic or copper? The above is why I've always insisted on copper line to the dishwasher/fridge.

Unfortunately it's plastic. I should just probably disconnect the thing anyway, I never use ice.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by Koogie There are few sounds worse in this world than coming home, opening your front door and hearing the sound of running water !!

That's for sure! The sound of the floor squishing when walked on and water oozing up between the seams wasn't good either!

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The key is to get the moisture out of that subfloor. I would also wait more than a week before I laid down a new floor. It can take quite a while sometimes to get all that moisture out.

Should I remove the old sheet vinyl that was under the laminate? Might be difficult because if I remember correctly, it's glued down (I put it in, but it's been a long time and I don't remember).

[pb4uski]

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Originally Posted by SheitlQueen ...Should I remove the old sheet vinyl that was under the laminate? Might be difficult because if I remember correctly, it's glued down (I put it in, but it's been a long time and I don't remember).

Hard to tell. I would let it dry out for at least a few days with fans and running a de-humidifier if you have one (or perhaps borrow one from a friend or rent one for a few days). Then assess. I would take some Kleenex tissues and rub the vinyl floor... especially along the seams and the edges and corners... if they don't get damp/wet at all then you may be ok to leave the vinyl.

You might try taking up some of the vinyl to see if it is glued down or not... but usually it is fastened with adhesive.

[aja8888]

Is your fridge sitting on the wet flooring, or did you pull it out and remove it?

[Koogie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SheitlQueen Should I remove the old sheet vinyl that was under the laminate? Might be difficult because if I remember correctly, it's glued down (I put it in, but it's been a long time and I don't remember).

I agree with what pb4uski said. However, I would leave it for a lot longer than a few days or a week. Subfloors can be incredibly dry and when they get flooded they can soak it up like a sponge (plank subfloors being worse than OSB). Takes them a long time to dry out depending on current climate/humidity in the house.

If you can live with it the way it is better to err on the side of caution. Wait a couple of weeks and then try the kleenex idea.

[Walt34]

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Originally Posted by Koogie If you can live with it the way it is better to err on the side of caution. Wait a couple of weeks and then try the kleenex idea.

Depending on the normal humidity in your area perhaps a dehumidifier would not be overkill. Some come with a built-in pump that can dump the water into the sink. I'm not recommending this one, just using it as an example:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hisense-70-...-STAR/50134738

[Music Lover]

If the house is relatively dry and there is a basement, then the floor dries from both above and below. A few days to a week is probably enough in that case. Don't forget that houses under construction often get rained on repeatedly with little ill effect.

[Aerides]

I do applaud you for coloring outside the lines on this. Too often I think we women get intimidated by such repairs, when in reality, anything is just steps.

If you can follow a recipe, you can install a heater. Or hang a door, or a ceiling fan, etc. I'm quite handy and quite comfortable in any aisle in my home depot, but there are some rows where I get quite a few more "ma'am, can i help you?" inquiries than others.

But I do agree this one has an element of size that requires two people, unless one of them is burly enough.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by aja8888 Is your fridge sitting on the wet flooring, or did you pull it out and remove it?

I moved the fridge and removed the flooring/padding, and then rolled it back into place.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by Koogie I agree with what pb4uski said. However, I would leave it for a lot longer than a few days or a week. Subfloors can be incredibly dry and when they get flooded they can soak it up like a sponge (plank subfloors being worse than OSB). Takes them a long time to dry out depending on current climate/humidity in the house. If you can live with it the way it is better to err on the side of caution. Wait a couple of weeks and then try the kleenex idea.

I've actually opted to not replace the floor. The old vinyl that now shows has a few stains and spots, but the kitchen looks much bigger (it's small) and brighter without the dark laminate.

Planning to get the wood floors in the house refinished or replaced in a year or two, so I think I deal with the kitchen floor then.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by Walt34 Depending on the normal humidity in your area perhaps a dehumidifier would not be overkill. Some come with a built-in pump that can dump the water into the sink. I'm not recommending this one, just using it as an example: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hisense-70-...-STAR/50134738

I have one I run in the basement, but I think I'll move it upstairs for a bit.

[Blue Collar Guy]

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Originally Posted by SheitlQueen Well, here is an example as to why I want to try to be self sufficient and improve my handyman (woman?) skills. Ran some errands today and got home to the sound of running water in the kitchen. Uh-oh. Water line from sink to ice maker in fridge had broken and was shooting out water at a pretty good pace and flooded the floor. Ruined the laminate floor (no loss, we had put it in as a temporary floor 15 years ago and just never did anything with it after that). I knew where the water shut off line was (thank G-d!) and stopped the flood. Went to Home Depot and asked them how to fix it. Got part, cut out damaged section of line and took care of that problem. Now an issue with the floor....floor damaged beyond saving, and afraid water underneath will cause mold or mildew. Just got done tearing out the old laminate floor and padding. Underneath was the old sheet vinyl that kept the water from going through into the ceiling in the basement. Going to let it dry out for a week (just to be sure!) and then put in a new floor. I've done it before, because I was willing to try. Actually pretty easy. So the water heater is temporarily on hold until I take care of this mess (got to spread the expenses out a little) but again this shows why I want to learn to take care of problems myself. When you own a house, seems like there is always something that needs doing. Oh, and if anyone has any suggestions about anything I need to do before I put in the new floor to prevent mold/mildew, please let me know

What caused the ice maker line to break?. I have an ice maker(we never had a fridge that did this before) is this something i have to worry about?

[travelover]

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Originally Posted by Blue Collar Guy What caused the ice maker line to break?. I have an ice maker(we never had a fridge that did this before) is this something i have to worry about?

Ice maker water lines and washing machine water lines are notorious for flooding.

[SheitlQueen]

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Originally Posted by Blue Collar Guy What caused the ice maker line to break?. I have an ice maker(we never had a fridge that did this before) is this something i have to worry about?

It was very old so I don't know if it got brittle over time, or if perhaps I cracked it when I moved it to clean behind the fridge, and it finally gave up the ghost after a few days.

It probably wouldn't hurt to look at the tubing once in awhile if you have the fridge pulled out for cleaning anyway. This tube was very discolored and old looking.

[jazz4cash]

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Originally Posted by SheitlQueen It was very old so I don't know if it got brittle over time, or if perhaps I cracked it when I moved it to clean behind the fridge, and it finally gave up the ghost after a few days. It probably wouldn't hurt to look at the tubing once in awhile if you have the fridge pulled out for cleaning anyway. This tube was very discolored and old looking.

That'll teach ya!
I only clean back there once/yr and our line is copper so I worry about it getting brittle and breaking.

[pjigar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blue Collar Guy What caused the ice maker line to break?. I have an ice maker(we never had a fridge that did this before) is this something i have to worry about?

I had a copper ice maker line break due to repeated moving of fridge which caused bending at the same point (over years). I had another ice maker line pop-out of the compression joint due to bad install. Always use hard nylon high pressure line for ice maker.

Another weak point in the house is washer water lines and more importantly water shutoff valves near the washer. These valves will leak spontaneously and splendidly between the moves when no one is in the house! I have experienced it twice in my short life!

[Koogie]

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Originally Posted by jazz4cash That'll teach ya! I only clean back there once/yr and our line is copper so I worry about it getting brittle and breaking.

Wait a minute, back up.. people clean behind their fridges ‽

In all the houses we've owned/rented over the last 20+ years I don't recall moving the fridge once. Ever.

What are you doing behind there that requires clean up after...

[mystang52]

Back to original question, I just saw OP's introduction post. It sure looks like affording the cost of install and removal is not an issue. And then there's this possibility:
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