Hot water head scratcher

[stealthchef]

My friends, I am stumped beyond anything. There's like 5 minutes of hot water in the shower and then it's frigid. I'll admit that I suck at all things having to do with plumbing. So here's the story....

When it first started my Dad (equally not fond of plumbing) replaced the dip tube, thinking it was that. Nope. So then we replaced the whole hot water tank. Nope?!?!? From everything Google has to say we've covered everything. It's a gas heater, the pilot light is lit and it's cranked up pretty high. The only thing I haven't addressed yet is the thing you pull up to send the water to the shower head is kind of jacked up, so it doesn't close all the way. But it taps right from the faucet, so it doesn't seem like that would have anything to do with it.

So there's your mystery of the day. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[frodo]

i would like to say
your scald guard needs adjusting. . but, you said you have hot water for 5 minutes? then none?

do you have hot at sinks?

 

[ExtraMilePlumbing]

Maybe you have a cloged up hot water line.pull out the hot water valve and flush the line for about 30 seconds.also check for leaks in the crawl space

 

[ExtraMilePlumbing]

Also maybe replace the shower head .its probaly draining the whole tank in 5 min

 

[SHR]

Typical symptom of a bad pressure balance unit in shower faucet. If you have a pressure balance faucet, replace the cartridge.

 

[stealthchef]

Thanks very much for the advice. I'll go down the list and report back.

Much appreciated.