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So I have a week old AO Smith 50 gallon hot water heater that I used to replace a 10 year old leaky hot water heater. Installed it last week but I am getting about 8 minutes of hot water. I have done the following… Replaced upper and lower elements (when I pulled the upper coil it was very hot and had a bronze finish to it, the lower coil was cold and looked brand new)Replaced upper and lower thermostatsChecked emptied water and sink filters for signs of a broken dip tubeEmptied the tank and verified that the lower 2/3 of the tank is carrying cool water, upper 1/3 is hotChecked that the wires on top of the heater are sending powerVerified that the unit is receiving 240 The old unit was connected with PEX which I cut and attached shark bite flex tube connection to the top of the new unit. So far, AO Smith have been a pain to deal with. I do have an appointment for a plumber to come out next week but it would be great if someone knew of anything else I am not testing. Thank you!
Found the problem. The red wire from the top thermostat to the bottom thermostat is severed. The disconnected section was really tucked in behind the insulation and hard to see. You can see a black section inside the insulation and against the thermostat where it has arced. I am still dealing with the manufacturer to get an RA for return. Probably will never purchase an AO Smith hot water heater ever again. Glad my house didn’t burn down :)
