FAQs
The Turbo Tank Cleaner has a clear polycarbonate plastic housing to allow the user to view and monitor the cleaning process. The inner parts are steel and the agitator is made from half inch drain auger.
It is engineered to clean any type or size tank type water heater, gas or electric, with the standard ¾ inch NPT drain valve hole.
- Length: 30”
- Width: 2 ¼”
- Height: 3 ½”
- Agitator: 21”
- Grinding Chamber: 1 5/8”
- Inlet Threads Male NPT: ¾”
- Outlet Thread Male Garden Hose Thread (GHT): ¾”
- Shaft Diameter: 3/8”
The Turbo Tank Cleaner is installed through the water heaters drain valve hole. The agitator is spun stirring up the sediment. The flowing water will sweep it into the mouth of the tool ware an auger pulls it inside preventing plugging. Finally it is ground up with the water to produce a fine slurry that is discharged out the back of the tool through a garden hose.
The spring agitator is the same spring found in plumbing drain augers. This has a smooth outer texture and is fairly light weight. Using a spring helps absorb any force applied to it while spinning. If you are worried you can always set your drill to a slower setting. Fast speeds aren't required for the tool to work effectively. We also recommend using the tool without draining the tank (although not required). This is to save you time, but it also adds additional absorption of the energy force.
An interior lining is added to water heaters to prevent the outer steel tank from corroding. These linings are made from several different variant materials. One common question is if it's okay to use with a glass lined tank. Glass lined tanks are actually a porcelain enamel which is a fusion of powdered glass and metal, created to be durable from physical damage. You can think of the lining as extra tough pottery. Once a year use of the tool just isn't going to cause any damage.
We assure you we've already sold over 10,000 units and never had one complain of the lining or the element getting damaged.
It depends on many factors, but even in extreme cases it generally doesn’t take over thirty minutes.
There is still about a quart or so of sediment left after cleaning but this is OK and will not hurt anything.
The seal nut and seal may be replaced with a common faucet tailpiece nut and seal. These are available in most hardware stores along with the “O” ring.
It is not necessary to spin at high speeds. If your drill has different speed ranges, choose the slowest one. If there is an extremely large amount of sediment in your tank, start off by spinning slowly in the reverse direction. This will help keep the slurry thinned out enough to prevent any plug ups. To remove the sediment faster switch to the forward direction and increase the speed. Near the end of the cleaning, increase the speed a little more and alternate between forward and reverse to sweep the agitator back and forth across the bottom of the tank. Don’t worry to much about getting the last little bit out. Leave a little for next time.
The length of the hose doesn’t seem to matter much as long as it doesn’t have any kinks or restrictions in it. Expandable hoses are more likely to plug because they have small holes in their ends that restrict the flow of the water.
It is not recommended. Large amounts of sediment may plug up drain lines. If it is not possible to dispose of it outside, a good way to trap the sediment indoors is to place a large garbage can in your shower or bath tub and run the slurry into it and let the overflow go down the drain.
It varies from place to place, but if it has been over five years it is probably about time.
Sediment will accumulate in them just as it does in an electric one. It will reduce your volume of hot water, decrease its efficiency and shorten its life span. When your heater is popping and hissing at you, it is actually crying and begging to be cleaned.