You can’t be blamed in most cases for thinking the water heater has frozen but it probably hasn’t. In most cases just a pipe leading in or out of the water heater will be the problem and not the heater itself. The heater will have heat supplied either by its burner or, elements, which will prevent the tank from freezing. Even if the water heater stopped heating it would take quite a while for the insulated tank to cool down enough to freeze. It might happen after a long power outage or, if the house was vacated in the winter and the utilities were shut off without the home being properly winterized.

While either the pipe going in or, out of the water heater may freeze, especially if it is exposed to a cold draft many times the lines containing heated water may freeze before lines right along side them carrying cold water. This phenomenon is known as the “Mpemba Effect” which was discovered by a Tanzanian high school student Erasto Mpemba in 1963.

When troubleshooting a frozen water heater you will need to trace the pipes in and out of the water heater until you locate the area where it has frozen. Once you locate the frozen area apply heat carefully using a space heater, hair dryer or, heat gun, with a faucet open until the water starts to run again. When water freezes it expands which depending on where it freezes and in what order it freezes can exert a force in the area of 40,000-psi which can split virtually any material used in plumbing if it cannot expand enough to absorb that force without breaking. It is critical that you take action at the first sign of a frozen pipe to have a chance at avoiding damage.

Some of the things you should do when attempting to thaw frozen pipes is to turn up the heat. Many people may have thermostats set at a reduced setting to save energy, or, may have unused rooms turned down low to save energy. When you have frozen pipes it is time to turn up the heat in an effort to get the pipes warm and thawed. Open up areas where pipes run so the heat can get to them. If you have pipes in storerooms, closets, and cabinets, open the doors so the heat can get in there. If you have metal pipes you may be able to find a plumber that has an electric pipe-thawing machine. Electric pipe-thawing machines send a low voltage, high amperage electric current through the metal pipe, which can rapidly thaw the pipe. You don’t even need to know where it is frozen, all you need to do is clamp the cables on the pipe with the frozen spot between the clamps.

Once the pipes have been thawed and the water is flowing again you need to check carefully to make sure that none of the pipes have burst from the freezing and are now leaking. The pipes will not leak while they are frozen but as soon as they thaw will immediately leak if they have burst. Make sure that you know where to shut the water off to stop the flow beforehand.

After successfully thawing the pipes you will want to ensure that the pipes will not freeze again. The best solution really depends on the specifics of where the pipe froze. Sometimes blocking the path of the draft, and insulating will prevent future problems. Other times insulating the pipes will delay the effects of cold from reaching the pipes long enough that they will not freeze. Often electric heat tape such as Frostex can be installed which will keep the pipe warm enough to prevent freezing again.

A frozen water heater is something you want to avoid at any cost but it will only happen in a sustained outage with no heat and no energy supplied to the water heater. If you are experiencing an outage and a sufficient amount of time has gone by that the water heater is in danger of freezing you should shut of the electric and or, gas to the water heater and drain the water heater to prevent the tank from rupturing from the expansion of the water freezing. You should be able to drain the tank by shutting off the water supply to the water heater, opening the drain valve at the bottom of the tank, and then opening a hot faucet or the T&P valve to allow air to enter the tank so the water can flow out of the tank. This down and dirty draining of the water heater will save the water heater but you probably still face damage to the pipes from the effects of freezing. Having the water shut off to the home and opening everything up will possibly save some things from the effects of freezing. In an outage caused by a blizzard or, ice storm there is little chance of a proper winterization being done.

When a property is going to be vacated through the winter season and the utilities are being cut off the best option is to make sure that the property is winterized before the cold season or, as soon as it is vacated before the utilities are cut off. Weatherizing is not a precise science with a home that has not been designed for weatherizing such as a seasonal home. Even weatherized there still may be freeze damage but it should be less then it would be if weatherizing were not done. If you have allowed a frozen water heater to occur the best thing you can do is disconnect the water heater and get it outside before it thaws. This will prevent the ice from thawing in the home and leaking out of a ruptured water heater. There is no way a water heater can freeze and be used to produce hot water again.

Hi Redwood,

I have a Sears Bathtub Faucet and I need to repair it. It’s been in there since 1967 and Sears told me they no longer make anything I have in the plumbing of this house. I have attached a picture and the parts diagram.

I can’t get the valve unit assembly out to replace the back O-Rings, part #’s S2497 and S2498 in the parts diagram. I pulled the handles, unscrewed the cap but I am afraid to force the assembly out. It appears to have a notch at the bottom and top of the #15105 housing where the valve unit fits. Should the assembly just pull straight out or is there a tool. My outside shower unit just pulls straight out not sure if this one does because I’m afraid to force it.

If I decide to replace everything with a newer unit can I still use the same housing? Everything is in rough shape.

If you can recommend a replacement and give me advice on getting it out I’d appreciate it.

Thank You,

Roger H.

Answer:

Hi,

Unfortunately the picture of the valve you sent was of too poor a quality to be sure of anything. To me it appears as though the #S2493 cap has not been removed yet, if that is the case it should unscrew and come off allowing the stem to pull straight out. The notch that I see in the picture looks like it is for a spanner socket to be used for unscrewing the cap. I for one do not have such a spanner socket in my tool kit and probably would not bother to buy one. I would simply grasp it with a good pair of curved jaw vice grips on the front section of the cap. The reason I say front section is that further back you would run the risk of squeezing it and the threaded portion of the #15106 body into an egg shape ruining it.

Once you manage to get the stem out you will face another obstacle and that is finding the replacement parts you need. As you noted Sears no longer supports this item but that does not mean it’s the end of getting parts. Sears does not make their own faucets, they buy them from other manufacturers and have their brand label on them. Unfortunately many of them were obscure manufacturers such as Milwaukee Faucet, Federal Huber, Universal Rundle, Elkay, and Bradley some of which no longer exist. You may be able to take the stem you pull out and match it to pictures of stems on on-line faucet parts suppliers such as New York Replacement Parts Corp. or, Alfano Plumbing Parts to find what you need.

You indicate that the trim parts are in bad condition and I doubt that you would be able to find any replacement parts for those items. The trim parts are not generic and only trim parts made specifically for your valve would work. In addition many times in a home there are no shut off valves that isolate just the tub so unless you are able to reassemble this valve and turn the water back on you home will be without water until the parts arrive if they ever do.

What I recommend is simply replacing the valve and staying mainstream with your selection to avoid parts procurement problems in the future. Moen Posi-Temp and the Delta R-10000 valves are a couple of excellent choices that are very popular and parts availability are ensured for long into the future. They also offer pressure balancing, which will ensure that your water temperature remains constant even when the water is used elsewhere in the home. Because your valve is relatively small in size you may even be able to install the new valve and have the trim plate of the new valve cover the existing hole. If the new valve’s trim is not able to completely cover the hole in the wall a Smitty Plate or, “Goof Plate” as they are sometimes called can be used. Most of the time I am able to open a wall on the opposite side of the tub wall and replace the valve from the backside without cutting the tile walls surrounding the tub. Many times it turns out bathroom closet is there.

Whether or not you can do the valve replacement I cannot say. I do not know what your plumbing skills are involving the sweating of copper pipe. The valve will be inside the wall and access will be difficult. The valve will have to be set square and plumb at a fairly precise depth so the trim and knobs will install and operate properly. It is not an easy job for the novice DIYer to take on.

I hope this adequately answers your questions,

Redwood

The water coming into your home has many dissolved gases in the water that normally cannot be seen. Many gases can be dissolved into water such as atmospheric gases like oxygen, nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and other gases. In addition to atmospheric gases there may also be gases introduced into the water from water treatment such as chlorine, ammonia, and hydrogen depending on what treatment techniques your water provider uses. Finally in your water heater there is an anode rod, which reacts with the water and can produce hydrogen gas. The anode rod liberates higher amounts of hydrogen in its first year of operation when the water heater is new. The aerator on the end of the faucet spout also introduces air bubbles into the water flowing out of the faucet to make the water stream soft and prevent splashing.

The optimum situation for water to hold the highest amount of dissolved gases is when water is cold and under pressure. When water is cold the molecules are contracted and there is more room between them for gases to dissolve into the solution. When water is heated the molecules expand and very little room is left for gases, this is evident as you start to heat water to a boil on the stove and as it heats you see bubbles form on the sides of the pan. The pressure holds the gases in the water very much like a bottle of soda or, Champaign where you don’t see any bubbles until the cap is opened.

The water in your water heater has all these gases and is under pressure, but as it comes out of the faucet spout it is no longer under pressure and immediately the gases in the water start to come out of solution giving the water a cloudy or, milky appearance which will start to clear at the bottom of the glass first and gradually clear all the way to the top. This can happen with cold water as well but is much more likely to occur with hot water.

This is simply the tiny air bubbles rising to the top and releasing into the atmosphere. There is no need to worry about this happening it is completely normal and at different times of the year may be worse than others. If the water does not clear after 5 minutes you should check with your water provider or, if you are on a well get your water quality checked.

The vessel sink faces two problems, the sinks do not have an overflow built into the sink and they are usually installed with a grid drain. In a sense venting causes the slow draining, but your plumbing can be vented correctly and still have the problem. Venting in plumbing is installed on the drain side of the trap and its function is to protect the trap seal from positive and negative pressures that can be generated in the drainage system. These pressures could cause the water in the trap to get sucked out of the trap and allow sewer gases to enter your home. In addition to the odors these sewer gases can cause diseases and were traced to causing an outbreak of SARS in china, in 2003.

The venting problem in a vessel sink is caused by air entrapped between the grid strainer and the water in the trap. This entrapped air blocks the flow of water down the drain slowing the flow of water leaving the sink. Often if you look down into a grid strainer drain you can see the air bubble moving around under the holes of the grid strainer, with the air trapped or, held down by the water on top of and coming through the holes in the grid strainer. The problem is this entrapped air is on the wrong side of the trap for a vent to have any effect allowing it to escape. In a sink with an overflow built into the sink, the air trapped under the sink drain can escape through the overflow allowing the sink to drain. The vessel sink without an overflow is doomed by design.

The best remedy is to avoid using a grid strainer type drain, instead opting for a lift and turn pop-up style drain. While you still may get air entrapped in the drain the problem will be greatly reduced and you probably will not end up with large amounts of water in the sink slowly draining. If you are going to keep the grid strainer drain you may be able to get better drainage by carefully drilling out the holes in the grid as large as possible without destroying the grid strainer. The larger holes may allow some of the air to escape faster before being blocked by the water on top and will allow more water to flow through the larger holes allowing better drainage from the sink. These are really the only two options that will work.

I have seen people go through great lengths attempting to solve this problem including adding Air Admittance Valves (AAV’s) also known as cheater vents on the drainpipes under the sink. This is not a solution because AAV’s are one-way valves, only allowing air to flow in, and not out. Don’t waste your time on this thinking it will solve your problem. Using a grid strainer on a sink drain that does not have an overflow is just a bad design. Some of the worst ideas in plumbing survive by being fashionable.

Shower Only

If your shower is a shower only, the first thing I would do is unscrew the showerhead from the shower arm. Once the showerhead is removed cross your fingers and hope for the easy fix. Turn on the shower and check the flow out of the shower arm, it should flow well and be similar to the flow from a garden hose or, slightly less. This would indicate a clogged showerhead, which is an easy fix. In the showerhead there is a restrictor, which limits the flow of the showerhead to 2.5 gallons per minute. Some newer water saving showerheads may have even less flow. This restrictor is a likely place for debris to be caught blocking the flow of water. After cleaning the debris out of the restrictor in many cases the flow is restored. In addition to the restrictor mineral deposits from hard water may also build up and restrict or, block the holes the water comes out of. Typically this would have appeared as differing flow out of the holes with some not flowing at all. Soaking the showerhead in CLR or, vinegar will typically remove the mineral deposits and restore flow in the showerhead. If there is not good flow from the shower arm shutting off the water and moving down to the mixer valve where defects such as debris blockages in the stem or cartridge area and possibly repairing the stems or, replacing the cartridge along with flushing out the valve. If there is no pressure/volume with the cartridge or stems removed while flushing you should probably consider the services of a plumber.

Tub/Shower

If you have a tub/shower you should consider the same fixes in the shower only but in addition you should examine if there is good pressure at the tub spout but not the showerhead. This can help isolate the problem. In addition you should also look at the diverter to make sure that the tub spout is almost completely shut off when the shower is running. Typically the tub spout should have a trickle when the shower is selected this allows the push or pull diverters to reset when the water is shut off. If the flow is still heavy when the shower is selected that can be the problem.

I hope this helps you with your problem and if you have any questions please leave a comment.

The odor of urine in a bathroom is never caused by a problem that a plumber can fix with the possible exception of a commercial men’s room with urinals and even then in most cases a plumber cannot help. The problem is with almost 100% certainty that you have some boys in the house with bad aim.

The reason that the smell of urine cannot be caused by a toilet is that whatever amount of urine goes into a toilet it is diluted with anywhere from 1 to 5 gallons of water when the toilet is flushed. If the wax ring under the toilet were leaking the smell from the liquid waste would be non-existent although the smell from the sewer gases leaking would probably be quite strong. Urine smell is bad aim!

To fix the smell you need to be able to effectively clean the floor, the toilet and quite possibly the floor under the toilet. You probably want to use a product used for removing pet urine odors for cleaning. You may want to hire a plumber to remove the toilet from the floor so the floor under the toilet can be cleaned as well and to reinstall it after cleaning. The plumber should also caulk around the toilet to prevent water and urine from getting under the toilet again. In the worst cases the flooring may have to be replaced.

Sump pumps are used to pump relatively clean water such as storm water, or ground water that enters the sump pump pit. The pit may have a cover or it may be left uncovered. In most cases a sump pump will not smell or, may only have a somewhat musty smell. Sump pumps may discharge outside on the ground, into a storm sewer in most cases.

Sewage ejector pits are used to pump dirty water such as wastewater from sinks, tubs, showers, toilets and laundry lines that are located too low in a home to drain by a gravity drain up to a sewer line. The sewage ejector pits although they handle smelly waster still should not smell when properly installed and maintained. The pit should have a cover that is tightly sealed to the pit, with all pipes and wires coming up through the cover sealed to prevent sewer gases from leaking out of the pit and into your home. The sewage ejector pit should be vented through the roof and the waste from a sewage ejector only goes only to a sanitary sewer.

By now you have probably discovered that what you were calling a sump pump is indeed a sewage ejector pump. The things you want to look at when confronting an odor problem on a sewage ejector pit is the sealing of the cover and all the pipes and wires coming through the cover. The integrity of the cover and pit should also be examined. Sometimes older pits and covers were constructed out of steel, which has corroded and no longer is airtight. Other times gaskets are missing or, not properly installed. A vent through the roof is essential because the sewage ejector pit is so tightly sealed the air needs to be able to escape when waste enters the pit. A vent is required which goes out through the roof to allow the free flow of air in and out of the pit. Air admittance valves also known as Studor Vents or, cheater vents will not work in this application because they only allow the flow of air to go into the pit but not escape. The improperly vented ejector pit almost always smells as it is filled the pit pressurizes and air under pressure forces its way past seals that would not normally leak. Every thing on a sewage ejector pit needs to function properly to prevent odors from sewer gases from entering your home. If you have sewer gases from an ejector pit entering your home I would give a high priority to getting this problem addressed out of concern for the health of your family.

If you have a sump pump in many cases they are odor free with a good circulation of ground water and or, storm water that stays fresh via the circulation. In some cases during low water conditions the water in the pit may become stagnant. Sometimes it is as simple as running a hose into the pit for a little while to allow the pump to run a few cycles while other times you may want to put a loose cover on the pit. In most cases this is adequate for odor control. If you have water entering the pit that smells you want to examine if you have leakage in your sewer lines or, septic system if you have one which is allowing sewage water to enter the ground water reaching your sump pump pit. One of the ways that may check for sewage water to be entering a sump pump pit is to use dye to test the sewer lines. If the dye shows up in the pit you have leakage but it may not always show. Another way is to watch for water to suddenly start entering the pit when you drain water. If you have sewage leaking into the ground the leaking sewers should be addressed for the health and safety of your family and others in your neighborhood. In the worst case scenario you have smelly ground water entering the pit in which case you may just go to a sealed lid on the sump pump pit with venting to the outside.

One of the first checks that should be made on a constantly running sump pump is if the pump is indeed pumping water and operating close to its full capacity. There are sometimes things that can happen which can affect the pumping ability of a sump pump and it should be checked for proper operation. Often sand and silt flows into a sump pit carried in by the water, which then erodes the impeller vanes as it is pumped out with the water causing the pump to become ineffective. Sometimes impellers are made out of a metal that may corrode, which results in an impeller that has no vanes left to pump the water. A discharge pipe or hose can become clogged, broken underground or, in cold areas if it doesn’t drain dry after each pump cycle can freeze. When the discharge is blocked the sump pump deadheads and runs constantly usually with the water in the pit becoming warm or, even hot. Another common cause is the discharge pipe or hose coming loose from the pump in this case you will see water circulating in the pit. One of the requirements for installing a sump pump with many pumps is a 3/16” hole to be drilled in the discharge pipe a short distance above the pump before the check valve. When a sump pump pit goes dry during a period of drought it may dry out. When the pit refills with water the hole is needed to allow the air to get out of the pump allowing the pump to prime. If the pump is air bound because of water above the check valve holding air in the pump, water cannot reach the impeller so the pump will run constantly without pumping. In any case if you can see the water discharging from the pump it is a good indicator that the pump is operating properly.

If your sump pump is constantly running and you have found that the pump is pumping correctly you next should consider the ground water level, the ground water volume, and the pumping capacity. Sometimes the best thing to do is add pumping capacity and or, back up pumps, while other times simply raising the pump a few inches can allow the ground water to reach its own level without constant pumping being needed. During the dry period of the year is a good time to play with the pump level if the pump is running constantly even then. Shut off the pump and see how high the water gets in the pit. Naturally if the water comes up and is going to overflow into the basement, you have a very high water level and the pump is needed. However, frequently the water will rise to a certain level in the pit without flooding the basement or even reaching the bottom of the concrete slab. If the water level stops rising you should consider raising the level at which the pump turns on and allow the water level to remain at that level in the pit with the pump only turning on when it gets higher. You can also stretch this check into wetter periods of the year to fine tune the point at which the pump turns on. Sometimes people find that the pump was just set too deep into the water table causing it to pump water that didn’t really need to be pumped and when the pump was raised the running became infrequent and almost never ran constantly.

If your pump is running constantly and any time the pump is shut off the pit overflows then additional capacity and backup is something that you should strongly consider. The volume of ground water is too closely matched to your pumping capacity and any increase in ground water volume or, a pump failure as virtually guaranteed to cause a flooded basement. Back up pumps and power is strongly recommended, and the capacity of the back up pumping should be high enough to meet your needs.

You may want to consider other basement water proofing options as well such as curtain drains, regrading your property to divert water away from your home and installing drains for gutters and storm water to carry the water away from your home. Passive measures are always better than relying on a pump to get rid of the water.

Damage from a flooded basement can be very costly especially when appliances such as boilers, furnaces, HVAC air handlers, and water heaters can be severely damaged and often require replacement from flooding. The costs of using the services of an expert are trivial when you consider the cost of damage from flooding.

Problems in the faucet after the water is mixed may include things like debris in the aerator, a bad cartridge on single lever or, handle faucets, side sprayer diverters on kitchen sink faucets, and on tub/shower mixers loose washers on the shower diverter valve or, debris caught in the restrictor for the showerhead. Basically troubleshooting would involve taking things apart and looking for the problem and sometimes flushing the faucet out with things like the aerator or, showerhead removed.

When the sound is on a single temperature in most cases you can eliminate the area where water is mixed. Instead you can concentrate on the side where the problem exists. On faucets where a single lever or, handle is used the problem can still be a bad cartridge, while on faucets with two handles you can go right to the side causing the problem. Shut off the water and remove the stem. Look for things like a loose or, deteriorated washer or, a badly worn stem. If the problem is on the hot side and your water is extremely hot sometimes the extreme heat can soften a faucet washer. Extreme heat can also affect rubber parts down stream from where the water mixes such as the diverter on a kitchen faucet. You may also have to chase single temperature noise problems further down the supply side including the stop valves and their washers and the supply lines and pipes.

Unusually high velocities can also make a whistling noise. This can be caused by high pressure being supplied to your home. The pressure should be less than 80-psi and can often be measured with an inexpensive gauge, which can screw onto a hose bibb. I like to use gauges that have a lazy hand, which will record the highest pressure reached as long at it is attached and water is turned on to the gauge. If the pressure is over 80-psi a pressure-reducing valve should be installed and in most cases thermal expansion tank would be required to be installed on your water heater too. Sometimes pipes may have restrictions, which can cause noise such as a build up of scale or, rust in the case of galvanized pipes.

Finding the source of your whistling noise in the faucet is not always an easy task and in some cases like with the cartridges may require replacement without even knowing for sure that it is the problem. It often comes down to I’ve checked every thing else lets try this.

When faced with not enough hot water you need to first examine whether there is a sufficient capacity of hot water available to meet your needs. A tank storage type water heater can be expected to deliver about 70% of the volume of the storage tank before the incoming cold water dilutes the outgoing hot water dropping the temperature 20-degrees F. Add to this figure the recovery rate at which your water heater can heat the incoming cold water and you will have an idea of your capacity. Tankless coils heat the water as you use it and they are rated in gallons per minute with what they can provide. Tankless coils can deliver their rated capacity endlessly but cannot exceed that capacity without a drop in temperature. Naturally both will be working harder in the winter when incoming water temperatures are much colder. An easy to determine method is that if the system has met your needs in the past and your hot water demand has not changed then something has gone wrong and needs to be fixed. If you are a new home owner then sizing may be part of the problem and should be looked at as well as possible problems that may be mechanical or, electrical. If you have a system which normally meets your needs but you have an unusual situation such as a large number of house guests you will need to determine if you should modify usage during that time or, go to a larger system to cover your needs during the unusually high usage.

Not enough hot water with tank type water heaters can be caused by a number of problems. A thermostat not functioning properly could be causing the temperature of the stored water in the tank to be lower than it should be. Typically the thermostat has a temperature, which it turns on the heating, and a temperature at which it turns off. This is called the differential and sometimes when a thermostat ages and fails when the tank slowly cools the thermostat does not always turn on when it should. People will often figure this problem out when they find if they just jump in the shower they run out of hot water, but if they use water first causing the water heater to reheat then shower they have enough. With electric water heaters a frequent cause of not enough hot water is a burned out lower element due to a build up of sediment in the bottom of the tank, which causes only the top half of the water heater to have hot water. Older gas water heaters may have a similar layer of sediment, which insulates the bottom of the tank from the flame slowing the recovery rate. Another problem that many older water heaters face that were built between August 1993 and October 1996 is they were built with a defective dip tube. Almost all the manufacturers used the dip tubes that had the defect and this resulted in a class action lawsuit, which is now past the settlement date. The dip tube in these water heaters disintegrated often showing up as a white-grey debris, which clogged aerators, the dip tubes function is to direct incoming cold water to the bottom of the tank. With a disintegrated dip tube incoming cold water mixes with and dilutes the outgoing hot water causing the water heater to provide cold water before its storage capacity should have been exhausted.

Tankless coils in boilers may provide not enough hot water as they age and become clogged with minerals from the water. With hard water the buildup is usually faster and you may be able to have the coil cleaned by a plumber who will flush the coil with a acid which breaks down the minerals. Sometimes the coil is beyond repair and in these cases installing an indirect water heater on a separate zone from your boiler is a great idea. Indirect water heaters can provide abundant amounts of hot water sometime several times the amount of a similar sized gas or, electric water heater.

Problems on the distribution side can also make it so you do not have enough hot water. Sometimes water heaters and tankless coils may have a tempering valve on them, which mixes cold water with the outgoing hot water to maintain a safe temperature and prevent scalding. This tempering valve can make it seem as though the hot water has run out. A failure that often happens with the tempering valve is that you have hot water when you run a kitchen or, lavatory faucet but when you use a larger flow fixture like a bath tub or, a clothes washer the water rapidly changes to cold or, never gets hot. Sometimes a defective cartridge on a faucet can cause the hot water and cold water to have a cross connection which can cause temperature problems. Moen and Mixet are two of the better-known valves which can cause a cross connection. Any faucet where both the hot and cold water can be turned on allowing a connection and have the outlet turned off can cause this problem. Sometimes too the problem can be as simple as a hot limit stop on a tub/shower mixer that was set when higher cold-water temperatures were present and with the change of seasons the limit needs to be reset. In homes that have slab construction sometimes there may be a leak under the slab that is always flowing hot water. This constant leakage may make you not have enough hot water. Symptoms of a slab leak can be a water heater running almost constantly or, a hot spot on the floor.

As you can see by the many possible causes this is a problem that requires a careful logical approach to the troubleshooting and often there are symptoms, which you can give the plumber, which can aid in the diagnosis of the problem. Sometimes too you may be able to find the problem yourself. In any case not enough hot water requires careful methodical troubleshooting to determine the exact cause and misdiagnosis can be quite costly. There is a big difference in cost between turning a screw on a hot limit stop and installing a new water heater or, repairing a leak under the slab.