How To Dispose Of An Old Water Heater

Later on 12 years of service, your water heater might have started to show signs of aging. It'south common for well-kept h2o heaters to concluding more than than 15 years. However, if you lot are spending more than coin on water heater repairs, information technology might be time to toss it out for a new and ameliorate model.

But depending on its working condition, here are some of the best things to do with an old water heater :

Donate it to a charity if the heater still works and claim a charitable tax donation

Give it abroad to someone else in need if all it needs is a minor touch up

Remove valuable metals such as copper and sell them

Scrap it as a whole

Recycle it into something you tin can apply at home, such as a smoker or solar water heater

Or simply dump it if it's past salvaging.

If you are gearing up to upgrade your sometime h2o heaters and are looking for ways to get rid of your one-time i, nosotros embrace the what, where, and how to brand the almost of your old water heater.

How Do You lot Go Rid Of An Old Water Heater?

H2o heaters are heavy units. Some weigh up to 150 pounds. Therefore getting rid of an old water heater tin be a challenge. Some professional removal companies provide water heater removal services for a fee. Some of those removal companies even offer post-removal cleanup.

However, an onetime water heater doesn't hateful it has zero value. It could still be in working status. Or it may be salvageable for a few parts.

1. Donate information technology to a Church or Charity

If your old water heater nonetheless works, consider donating it to a church or charitable organization. These charitable organizations sometimes take working units to expand the organization's capacity for providing conveniences like hot water.

Places like Goodwill, The Conservancy Regular army, and Habitat For Humanity are peachy places to look if you lot want to donate. They might accept limitations such every bit yous paying for transport to get the water heater to them. However, that is upwardly for give-and-take since yous are already giving them working equipment for gratis.

Bank check with local churches or schools to see if they may take an interest in using it. Many churches have elderly members who could benefit from a used water heater.

The best matter about donation is that you can merits it as tax-deductible when you file taxes.

2. Junk It At A Landfill

Later on long service, say 12-20 years, yous're likely to have gotten the virtually out of your water heater's initial value. At this point, junking it is well inside reason. However, not all landfills accept water heaters.

Water heaters are mostly empty spaces. The space tin can sometimes fill up up with hazardous gases. These gases can damage the landfill or harm the people that work at the landfill.

Therefore, y'all need to get the correct information to know whether your local landfills accept old water tanks as junk.

If a landfill is a non-option in your locality, you should check for municipal clean-up days. Clean-up days allow you to put out anything y'all want to dispose of. The city authorization authorized to collect the junk will take away your old water heater at no price. Over again, like landfills, cheque your city's policy to see if information technology's an option.

There'due south another option if the terminal 2 aren't available.

Majority waste collection is a service in some cities where residents put annihilation on the adjourn, and the waste product management authority picks it upwardly and does away with it.

However, due to the weight and size of water heaters, you might want to call and ask if at that place are whatever specific charges for disposing of an onetime water heater.

If you're tossing out the sometime water heater for a new ane, call your installation company and ask near their disposal policy for the onetime ones. Most installation companies volition remove the sometime water heaters and dispose of them. At that place might be an additional service charge, but near will do it for free as a professional courtesy.

three. Phone call Home Depot Or Lowes

If you plan on getting a new water heater from megastores such as Lowes and Dwelling house Depot, y'all tin can get them to become rid of your old water heater at naught toll. They will take your water heater and dispose of information technology for recycling. They'll probable have an easier time disposing of it for recycling because of their big-brand status.

This is more often than not the case merely if they are installing the new water heater.

4. Sell Your Old Water Heater Online

If your old water heater works, there's a chance someone volition want to purchase information technology. The initial investment of a water heater is high for some people. They would appreciate having hot h2o and only pay a lesser amount for the convenience of one.

Identify an advertisement on mass traffic sites such equally Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. Facebook has groups for 2nd-hand stuff. Craigslist and due east-commerce sites such every bit eBay get a ton of traffic of people looking for a bargain.

v. Buyback Programs do Exist if You lot Wait

Some programs buy back your old water heater heaters IF you are installing a new i. These programs have different weather.

For example, some programs volition give you a specified amount for your old water heater only if information technology is less than eight years one-time. The value depends on the assessment they do. This kind of arrangement is not pegged on the installation of a new water heater. Instead, they purchase water heaters that tin be fixed.

Some programs that buy one-time water heaters when installing a new one from them will even deduct the cost from your current purchase and installation fee.

6. Scrap it at a Local Metal Salvage Grand

Scraping old water heaters is a popular selection when people want to become rid of their water heaters. You tin either scrap the entire tank or take it apart and strip it of all the precious metals.

Water heaters typically have non-iron materials. Heater manufacturers extensively use copper and brass in water heaters. Remove the metals and sell those separately.

Ensure y'all take checked for any valuable metals, especially metals such as contumely that are more susceptible to corrosion. You lot'll demand to fleck away the corrosion with a flathead screwdriver to get the brass beneath.

Gas models have more than value at fleck yards. The gas regulator is a valuable asset to a chip yard if it is working.

More on that soon. Offset, let's consider some repurposing projects around the house.

Can I Repurpose My Old Water Heater?

Recycling a water heater is a cracking manner to reduce waste and get yourself a nice DIY project you tin use around the house. Once you remove the important bits, such as the brass fittings, copper wires, and aluminum anodes, y'all tin can nonetheless make useful products. These are some nice DIY projects y'all can become from an quondam h2o heater:

1. Plow An One-time H2o Heater Into A Horizontal Or Vertical Smoker

This DIY projection needs some elbow grease since you lot have to scrape out the insulation, fill out whatsoever holes left where fittings used to be, and and so prime within so information technology volition be food-safety.

Add doors and hinges, weld on some legs for back up, and add an adaptable grill. Voila! You have a smoker fix for weekend barbeques. Cheque out these guides on how to build DIY smokers from quondam water heaters.

2. Turn An Old Water Heater Into A Storage Tank

This is an easy DIY conversion project that uses your old h2o heater. Connect an inlet piping to the old h2o heater'southward inlet. Connect the outlet of the old heater to the new h2o heater's inlet. This way, the water that comes into the quondam h2o heaters gets to room temperature before it'south dispersed to the new unit.

Additionally, you have it as a storage tank for water you can use outside. Use the water in your old tank to water your yard, wash your car, or make full upwardly your inflatable pool during summer playtime.

iii. Turn An Old Water Heater Into A Solar H2o Heater

Simply because it'south an sometime water heater doesn't mean you can't turn it into a solar water heater. Information technology is fifty-fifty more effective in a household that has loftier utility costs because of heating. The solar water heater uses the sun'southward ability to preheat water before it gets to your home.

Remove the tank'south casing and strip down any insulation. Paint the surface with non-fade black paint to retain heat and reduce reflection.

Build a housing unit for the sometime water heater and line it with reflective material. Encompass the housing box with polycarbonate panels. Connect your DIY water heater to your domicile's central water system and examination it out.

Ensure the pressure valve is working the reduce the risk of an overheating accident.

Pro tip: This is an intensive DIY. You might need a solar free energy adept to do the water heater to solar heater conversion. If you lot consider information technology a worthy project, call a professional person.

4. Plow An Old H2o Heater Into An Outdoor Woods Stove

Outdoor wood stoves work nigh like a fire pit. The only difference is the wood stuff has targeted heat direction.

Typically, some water heaters are long, so y'all might need to cutting them down to a comfortable size. Weld legs or a stable stand at the bottom to raise it off the ground. Cutting off a section of the heater to make the air inlet. You can fashion the cut-out into a door and leave space at the bottom equally an ash collection point.

Attach a cylinder cut out on the contrary end as a chimney.

v. Create an Outdoor Planter Bed

Planter beds tin can be made from all sorts of things, fifty-fifty one-time water heaters. Information technology's better to repurpose old items rather than see them end up in a landfill or junkyard.

In that location is always room for fun planters in a home garden. One-time h2o heaters brand cute garden planters.

You lot can cut the h2o heaters vertically or horizontally in the middle. Utilise both halves to establish whatever you want. Tomatoes, bell peppers, chilies, and flowers can grow well in planters.

Horizontal planters that look like half-cylinder troughs have more space but less depth than vertical planters.

Cutting the water heater in half and removing the internal tank and insulation can be used for a raised planter bed. You may desire to weld a metal stand to the halves to prevent the rounded half from rolling around.

However, it'southward non really necessary. The weight of the soil will be sufficient to hold the water heater planter in identify.

How Much Is An Former Water Heater Worth For Bit?

Chip yards ordinarily toll scrap by ranking it every bit calorie-free fe, light steel, shred, or mixed steel. Selling the unabridged water heater can become you well-nigh $0.04 or $0.05/lb. If your old water heater weighs most 150lbs, you'll brand nigh $seven. Prices can go up to $30.

Factors such as your quondam water heater's size, your location, and the current bit price will bear on the amount you lot get.

Is It Worth Scrapping A H2o Heater?

Scrapping a water heater will prove worth it fifty-fifty if you lot're not getting much for it. After all, if you lot are going to dispose of it, y'all might every bit well make some coin. You lot tin make money from scrapping your erstwhile water heater if you take it apart and sell valuable $.25 of it.

How Do You lot Become More than From Scrapping An Former Water Heater?

Stripping your h2o heater off all its valuable metals earlier scraping will ensure you get more coin than taking it to the scrap yard. Additionally, yous tin can do the following:

Remove valuable non-ferrous metals

Water heaters are loaded with precious metals that would sell better as individual items. They have copper, zinc, magnesium, and contumely that fetch meliorate prices. Observe non-ferrous metals using a magnet. Run it from the tiptop of the heater. You are likely to observe precious metals that won't stick to the magnet.

The magnesium anode may not be worth anything, peculiarly if they've been eaten abroad by the corrosion. The anode is typically sacrificial for impurities that would otherwise erode the tank'south lining.

Sell the regulator

Gas tanks with the regulator are hot property at the fleck thou. Y'all might fifty-fifty get more than for the regulator than the water heater. Remove the regulator and sell it as a separate component.

How To Bit Your Old Water Heater

Before turning in your water heater to a scrap 1000, you lot might want to brand sure you evangelize information technology in prime number status. Follow these steps.

Step 1. Drain The heater

Scrap yards will weigh your tank and value it co-ordinate to the metal'southward weight. Therefore, they will either drain it or ask you to drain information technology. Bleed the tank earlier cleaning it.

Pace ii. Strip Any Precious Metals

If yous're looking for more value for your heater, this is the best approach. These parts are loaded with such metals.

For copper, look for heating elements in electric water heaters. The copper is either wound up or in pipes. In other models, cheque the pipes, tubes, and other fittings. You can get up to $2.50 for a pound of copper.

If you want to get brass, find the fittings, bleed valves, and protective caps. Gas tanks have brass in the control box knobs and burner assemblies. You can become up to $i.l per pound of brass.

Aluminum-rich drain pans, valves, and pipes volition fetch between 10 cents and $one.50. If you wonder why anode rods are not included hither, information technology's because they are more often than not not worth the trouble unless they accept only recently been put in.

Step 3. Find A Flake Yard

You might not have to go too far to become a scrapyard. Most places have local chip yards. Notwithstanding, if you have problem finding a scrap yard, sites such every bit Chip Monster and Scrap Spot are valuable resources. Y'all can besides employ apps to notice out near prices and yards.

Hint: Some flake yards need ID verification before they take flake. Behave yours. Have your documentation ready and check your state requirements about scrapping and recycling.

What Is The Lifespan Of A Water Heater?

Most h2o heaters accept an anticipated lifespan of between 8 and 12 years. However, some water heaters cantankerous that line depending on maintenance. These other factors tin as well affect your water heater's lifespan.

Water quality

Maintenance frequency

Initial installation quality

Your domicile's location

Information technology'south normal to want a new replacement if your quondam h2o heater is past its lifespan.

Final Thoughts

Old water heaters might be stubborn fixer-uppers. If it gets to that point, explore the best options, such equally recycling or selling them to a scrapyard. If you lot are unsure how to get rid of an old water heater, contact a h2o heater recycling eye and explore all your options.

Resources such as World 911 are valuable in finding recycling centers and sharing recycling tips.