Test Water Heater Element Thermostat

If you want to test a thermostat on an electric water heater you will also need to check the heating element.

Test water heater element thermostat.

If you get the reading of 240v on terminal 1 and terminal 3 then the power is on but if you get no readings then the power is off. You can find this information on the data tag on the side of the water heater. This article deals with thermostats on electric water heaters. How to test an electric hot water heater thermostat step 1.

Test the water heater thermostat testing the water heater thermostat involves the checking of the heating element also. Turn the water heater circuit breaker off inside the main service panel. When shopping for a water heater thermostat you need to know how many elements the water heater has and the voltage. Testing water heater thermostats is important in locating water heater problems.

Both thermostats control two different heating elements for the heater to function. If the data tag is missing you can identify single element vs dual element by the number of access panels on the water heater. If the water is hot enough at appointed temperature the meter won t show reading. If the opposite thing happens that means your thermostat has defected.

Remove the upper and the lower access panels with a phillips screwdriver. Before you proceed further with the process of testing the heater thermostat take a screwdriver and the multimeter. To look for faults you will need to use a screwdriver. When it goes bad you don t have any hot water at all.

To look at the faults in the upper thermostat you need to turn off the lower one. If the water is cold the multimeter will point near zero. This is when the upper thermostat has a problem. Connect the multimeter pin ends on point 1 2 as shown in the picture below.

Start by checking the thermostat terminals for the supply of power. You will also need to check the water heater thermostat with digital multimeter tools. Check the power supply of the thermostat. Now sometimes you use the hot water tap to only discover cold water coming out.

This is important especially as open and grounded heating elements result in inaccurate tests. Common residential dual element water heaters are 240 volts. The upper thermostat controls both the upper and lower element. Pull away any insulation that is.