What Causes the Reset Button to Trip on a Water Heater?

Your water heater reset button is a safety device that shuts off power to your water heater when the water temperature inside it exceeds 180 degrees fahrenheit. Yet, there are still other components that can trip the device. Electric water heaters have 2 thermostats and 2 heating elements. Both are paired together one on the upper section of the water heater, and the other on the lower section. The thermostat’s function is to monitor the temperature of the water in the tank and shut off the heating element when it reaches a set temperature. But when a thermostat malfunctions, it sometimes gets trapped and does not respond to the element it serves. This allows the element to continue heating the water until the reset button trips. If the trip is based on the thermostat misreading, a simple thermostat part change should solve the trip. Loose electrical connections are a hazard everywhere in the home or building. The high resistance created by a loose wire produces a large amount of heat that can eventually transform into a fire. If there are loose electrical connections in the water heater system, the reset button’s thermometer can trip (ignoring the temperature of the water) if it obtains the heat from any loose wiring. A short circuit in one of the heating elements allows power to travel through the element even after the thermometer turns the element’s power off. Meaning the heating element is still working and is raising the water temperature, activating and tripping the reset button. Just like the parts of many appliances, the water heater’s reset button will eventually suffer from regular wear and tear. This will have a negative impact on the reset button’s performance and cause continual trips regardless of water tank temperature. What makes this issue more troubling is that the reset button is actually part of your upper thermostat. To replace the reset button the whole thermostat has to be restored. Figuring out which item on the list is leading to the trip is the first step to dealing with it.

Should I replace my water heater before it fails?

When a water heater hits the 10 year mark, steps should be taken in preparation for a new one. By waiting until the water heater fails the owner is forced into an emergency water heater purchase. By giving yourself time to research and examine water heaters a smart buying decision can be made. You can decide on a natural gas heater, solar power heater, which heater will lower water cost, and which is more durable. There are many types of water heater fails, do you want to wait until a pipe blows and starts causing infrastructure water damage? This will result in double the cost; the cost to fix the home and the cost to buy a new water heater. A water heater explosion, equals a fail. Do you want to put the safety of your home and family at risk waiting for failure? Again preparation over emergency situations. Looking for a new water heater at the 10 year mark even when your water heater is still functioning is a great starting point.

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