I recently read an account of a water heater that had a TPR valve issue. It effectively turned the water heater into a projectile missile, breaking through the wall and ricocheting down the street:
“The steam-powered tank hurtled across the busy intersection at First Avenue South and South 152nd Street — over at least six lanes of traffic — before landing more than 439 feet away in the parking lot of a Pizza Hut. …[the] water heater landed 70 feet from a Kannapolis, North Carolina, home and did an estimated $20,000 worth of damage when it exploded. According to the report, the heater lacked a TPR valve altogether.”
What is a TPR Valve?
Most home owners do not know what a TPR valve is or looks like, let alone the importance of having one. In any event, these little valves should never be capped, sealed shut, or left without having an extension pipe added. In case you aren’t familiar, a TPR valve stands for Temperature Pressure Release Valve. This valve is designed to release water from a water heater if either the temperature is too high or if the pressure is too high. The point is, if pressure builds up in a water heater, the valve releases the pressure by letting water out, as opposed to creating an unpredictable and dangerous exploding missile.
What is a TPR Valve Extension Pipe?
Codes require that an extension tailpipe be added onto the TPR valve so that if any pressure builds up and is forced out, then it will not spray accidentally into someone’s face, but will spray towards the floor. The TPR valves are installed either on the top of a unit or on the side of water heaters. The extension tailpipe, also called a discharge pipe, should terminate no more than six inches off of the floor, per building safety codes.
Photo of a combustion water heater with side TPR valve missing a tailpipe:
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