Couldn’t have said it any better.

Sounds like you had a good idea of what you were doing. I suppose I was making too many assumptions after reading your initial post! As long as you got the job done.

With a 7 year old heater and that much sediment/deposit it’s definitely water quality. Where I am water heaters can run for 15 years on city water without a flush. I know there are many types of water treatment options for different scenarios, but that’s about the extent of my knowledge. Luckily, it sounds like that’s your area of expertise.

The 140°F setting is coming from memory so it’s possible that I’m off or that it isn’t a universal setting. I would tend to stick with the manufacturer’s recommendations. I know it’s possible to buy higher temperature rated thermostats then the ones we use though.

I don’t know how equipped I would’ve been, I’m still just a helper lol.

Congats and good luck with the new home too!

EDIT: Just checked the spec sheet of the water heater brand I install. The Canadian models are set to 140°F, but the American ones are set to 125°F. I wonder why there are different standards?

I’ve been working installing and servicing water heaters for the last 2 months, so I have a little knowledge to share. I’m still learning so I may get some things wrong.

We use a transfer pump to drain tanks because gravity draining is super slow and will become even less effective as the water level drops, especially when there is also sediment plugging things up. In both cases you need to let air into the tank so a vacuum isn’t created. You can do this by opening a hot water tap somewhere in the house or by flipping the lever on top of the pressure relief valve. You might have a vacuum breaker on the cold water line above the tank, but I’m not sure how well that can supply air to the top of the tank as the water level drops. I would use one of the other options instead of relying on that.

You say you’ve installed the new elements, but are still trying to remove the sediment through the drain valve? Why not get the water level down and use a shop vac through the element holes?

I’m assuming the tank is fairly old if it has sediment like you describe. Around here homeowners insurance will tell you to change them every 15 years. If an old tank leaks and the water destroys anything in your home it may not be covered. If your tank is in rough shape you’d probably want to change it proactively anyway, they will fail eventually.

A note on changing the temperature setting of the thermostats. You’re not supposed to tamper with them. The ones I install are set to 140°F. I’ve been told this is a WHO standard to ensure nothing can grow in the tank. Aside from that, by lowering the temperature you are just decreasing the amount of hot water that’s available and you will run out quicker.

I could probably go on, but this is already information overload lol.

EDIT: typo