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Water Heater Installation: Don't Forget The Earthquake Straps

  
  
  

water heater earthquake strapsWhile repairing a water heater, I noticed that although the water heater was fairly new, it did not have earthquake straps on it. I remarked to the homeowner about this and he said he had replaced the old water heater with a new one. Since the old one didn't have straps, he didn't install them on his new water heater.

Water heater installations have changed over the years. One of the changes is the requirement of installing earthquake straps on water heaters, at least for Las Vegas water heaters. This job is easy but necessary. A 40 gallon water heater filled with water weighs over 400 pounds. If it is powered by natural gas, it is required to be elevated off of the floor. If an earthquake occurs, or a car bumps it, it could fall over and potentially cause serious damage or injury, not to mention filling the garage with natural gas. This can all be eliminated by installing earthquake straps.

The water heater should be strapped in 2 places. One strap should go around the tank in the top 1/3 of the tank, and the other strap needs to be secured in the lower 1/3 of the tank between two and four inches above the controls. You must install these straps into wall studs for holding power. The straps will come with lag bolts to secure them into the lumber. Use a stud finder to locate the studs and install the bolts into them.

Many water heaters are located in the corner of a room or garage, so shoot for the corner where there will be plenty of lumber.

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