Rinnia Cleaning

[Tmag]

Finally got around to doing a clean out on our Rinnai water heater. The cut back on hot water has gotten pretty evident lately and when it affected the Jacuzzi tub my wife said "enough." Pictures included so this project is "for dummies" certified.
1 - Locate pump.


2 - Locate circulating tank.


3 - Hook up hose.


4 - Read directions


5 - Hook up hoses the right way


6 - Mix fluid and begin circulating


7- Tweak it as needed


Circulate at least an hour.

[Tmag]

Waiting time is a killer.

[the-butcher]

Mine is an attic mount. I have done mine only once. What did you use to clean. I used white vinegar

[Tmag]

Mine is an attic mount. I have done mine only once. What did you use to clean. I used white vinegar

CLR, plumber friend told me it works great. Sure bringing some color out of the piping.

[wdtorque]

I've got the same "tweak" handbook!

[Booner Sooner]

Ymag, how often should this be done?

[Todd-ty729]

Ymag, how often should this be done?

Varies depending on water quality but annually is a safe time frame.

[Tmag]

Ymag, how often should this be done?

Varies depending on water quality but annually is a safe time frame.

Manual calls for annual cleaning. I waited 4 years, too long, and will do it annually from here on out. Also, it recommends 4 gal white vinegar and I will use it next time. Seems like the CLR left a funny smell in the water even after flushing for the recommended 5 minutes. We have flushed it some more and the smell is gone now.
Don't forget to clean the filter, mine had a good bit of trash in it. It is easy to remove and clean, will probably do it on a quarterly basis.

[courtatlawjudge]

I used CLR, but they recommend vinegar. I got the 10% acidity the next time. Afraid clr may be hard on copper. Glad you posted this because I had forgotten time to do mine again.

[Tmag]

I used CLR, but they recommend vinegar. I got the 10% acidity the next time. Afraid clr may be hard on copper. Glad you posted this because I had forgotten time to do mine again.

Yeah, 4 gallons of vinager isn't very expensive. I think I will redo mine in a few weeks just to see if it will clean any more.

I believe the problem I have is that my big tub has a monster sized faucet that puts out more water than the heater can heat. It comes out luke warm to barely hot and my wife is not a fan of that. When I cut the faucet back to half the water will start steaming, but it takes a while to fill the tub then.