DIYQuestionGuy
Member
Trying to troubleshoot why my kitchen sink on 1st floor now takes forever to get hot water after water heater was replaced. I have 2 story house, water heater in basement. A return line is plumbed into drain valve of water heater. I'm the original home owner (19 years). After having water heater replaced it seems that something has changed. Previously, we seemed to receive hot water pretty quick at kitchen faucet. Now it takes several minutes. Huge waste of water, especially first thing in morning. Bathrooms on 2nd floor get hot water pretty quick, and they're farthest away from water heater.
The return loop appears to be passive, no pump in system (I've looked under all vanities). There does not appear to be a check valve in the loop on return line coming into water heater. Should there be? Would this cause the return loop to not work effectively, i.e. improper circulation? That's my theory, but I'm not a plumber. I'm hopeful, wondering if installing a check valve would fix my kitchen sink issue. It used to be work fine. Picture included.
The return loop appears to be passive, no pump in system (I've looked under all vanities). There does not appear to be a check valve in the loop on return line coming into water heater. Should there be? Would this cause the return loop to not work effectively, i.e. improper circulation? That's my theory, but I'm not a plumber. I'm hopeful, wondering if installing a check valve would fix my kitchen sink issue. It used to be work fine. Picture included.