Whats wrong with my hot water tank dip tube?
Between late 1992 and spring 1996, the plastics manufacturer that supplied 90% of the dip tubes used by most of the major hot water tank manufacturers in the United States used a defective plastic to make the tubes. It is estimated nearly 21 million hot water tanks made in this time period may have been built with these defective dip tubes. After a period of use, the defective tube breaks down inside the tank and disintegrates into thousands of tiny grains or flakes of white or bluish-white plastic. These tiny chips of plastic float, and when hot water is drawn from the tank, they flow with the water into the plumbing where they often clog up the fixtures and appliances attached to the system. The signs and symptoms that this has occurred in your hot water tank are: • White or bluish-white flakes floating in your bathtub when you fill it with bath water. • Suddenly reduced or low flow at your kitchen and bathroom taps. • Reduced warm or hot water flow at your washing machine. • Reduced
