I recently bought a house in Pflugerville that was built in 1985. The Bradford White water heater in the house was manufactured in 2012 and is still under warranty. The gas to the house is serviced by Atmos Energy.

Since moving in, the pilot light has been going out on the water heater about every 24 hours, a couple of times more frequent than that. It's got an electric start Honeywell thermostat that I've been told has had a recall on it. I finally got someone out tonight to take a look at it, and he tells me that the water heater is liquid propane, and I need to verify with my gas company that natural gas is servicing the house. I'm 98% sure that natural gas is servicing the house, but I'll verify when they are open in the morning so I can speak to a live person.

I have 4 questions.
1) How is it possible that my water heater has been working at all if it's using the wrong type of fuel?
2) Is the only option to install a new water heater?
3) I was quoted just under $1300 for the new 40 Gallon natural gas water heater, installation, all the lines and couplings, and to drill through a wall to route the drain pipe out of the garage. Is this reasonable?
4) On my picture below, does the part where it says "Gas: LP" indeed mean that it is liquid propane?


Apologies for the large image

Plumber should be able to tell if the unit was converted to burn natural gas which is possible. Pilot light going out could be the thermocouple failing and shutting off the gas supply.

Well the plumber never mentioned anything about conversion kits, but I did discover they exist last night. I wonder who I could call that would be knowledgeable enough to know if one has been put on already or not.

Conversion Kit

LP refers to liquified petroleum gas...not liquid propane. although LPG is either propane/butane.

i don't know that i've ever heard of an LPG service being run to a house, so it's probably natural gas. if it were LPG you'd have a propane tank or something outside that got filled.

Well, I do know that when you go to buy a gas water heater at say, Home Depot, the two options are Propane water heaters, and Natural Gas water heaters.

I'm wondering if I should simply try to replace the thermocouple before attempting to buy a $300 conversion kit or a whole new water heater.

Technician here is telling me that if the gas company found out that I had this water heater, they would shut off my gas.

i only meant to clarify the acronym, that's all

if it truly is set up on LP, then it probably isn't functioning properly and may be at risk for a flame out or something. the tech might be right.

i would do the conversion ASAP then figure out if there's another problem.

Conversion kit is about $300

New equivalent water heater is less than $400

looks like i'll just go ahead and bite the bullet

If you recently bought the house, surprised your inspection didn't reveal this issue.

I actually just emailed the inspector to bring this to his attention.

Former HVAC tech here. The only thing needed to convert a piece of equipment from one fuel to another is the correct size orifice and a plumber to install.

If your pilot light keeps going out, it sounds like you have a bad thermocouple.

LP = LPG = Propane or Butane.

Natural gas is always preferable (IMO) compared to LPG for numerous reasons... Safety is one. Maintenance is the other. LPG when gaseous is heavier than air, meaning it will accumulate in low areas if there is a leak.

LPG leaves soot on burners and heat exchangers after a while, requiring cleaning to maintain operation and efficiency. There's also maintenance required for the regulator associated with your LPG tank.

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Former HVAC tech here. The only thing needed to convert a piece of equipment from one fuel to another is the correct size orifice and a plumber to install.

If your pilot light keeps going out, it sounds like you have a bad thermocouple.

LP = LPG = Propane or Butane.

Natural gas is always preferable (IMO) compared to LPG for numerous reasons... Safety is one. Maintenance is the other. LPG when gaseous is heavier than air, meaning it will accumulate in low areas if there is a leak.

LPG leaves soot on burners and heat exchangers after a while, requiring cleaning to maintain operation and efficiency. There's also maintenance required for the regulator associated with your LPG tank.

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No. Propane doesn't leave soot, if you buy from a reputable supplier. The propane regulator and natural gas regulator are manufactured from the same companies. The only difference is a spring. There is no maintenance difference. It may seem like it cause historically 2 things happen 1. People run out of gas in their tank requiring a pressure check and 2. Insurance requirements for propane are stiffer because the industry as a whole is fractured compared to the monopoly of nat gas.

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The only thing needed to convert a piece of equipment from one fuel to another is the correct size orifice and a plumber to install.

If your pilot light keeps going out, it sounds like you have a bad thermocouple.

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You don't think that the pilot might might be going out because the orifice is the improper size to continuously burn natural gas?

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The only thing needed to convert a piece of equipment from one fuel to another is the correct size orifice and a plumber to install.

If your pilot light keeps going out, it sounds like you have a bad thermocouple.

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You don't think that the pilot might might be going out because the orifice is the improper size to continuously burn natural gas?

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not if the previous owners didn't complain or have a problem with it. LP orifices would just cause it to run more lean. Higher BTU LP mixes less gas with the same air than lower BTU natural gas.

(If I understand these correctly)

My iphone just lost the reply I had written. Sigh.

Greasen,

Yes it's a possibility.

Have you determined whether you have gas or LP to the house? I have seen propane distribution networks in rural neighborhoods before. You could try checking your gas meter to look for any identifying information. What about a home inspection report?

How does the heater operate while it's actually lit? Do you actually get hot water?

Orifice sizing for heaters depends on two things: fuel type (BTU content) and supply pressure (which varies with fuel). Your plumber should be smart enough to determine if the correct orifice is installed. The orifice size is usually stamped onto the part. It's also possible for an orifice to become clogged or obstructed.

My guess is that your plumber doesn't know you have access to the Power of Texags, thinking he can easily push some new equipment on you.

I think you have a bad t-couple or valve. I would get a second opinion.

Trash,

Sketchy propane suppliers? Really? This isn't like buying ice behind a 7-11 or freon in a Mexican border town.

LPG equipment can and does soot up. Period.

My gas bill from Atmos only mentions Natural Gas. Plus, I assumed that for houses supplied with propane, that they would have tanks in the yard that would have to be re-filled every so often. Maybe I'm wrong. I guess I should give Atmos a call to verify.

The water heater, and its Honeywell thermostat that is connected to the heating element/orifice both say that they are the parts for liquid propane.

The pilot light tends to stay lit for about 12-24 hours at a time. I get perfectly hot water after it is lit.

9 times out of 10 you would have a tank if you have propane. I have seen rural neighborhoods with a very large centralized propane tank and distribution piping to each house.

My money is on a thermocouple.

Home Depot sells what appears to be a universal thermocouple. Seems simple enough to install. I can pick one up tomorrow and try to put it on.

I just hope there isn't a Bradford White - specific thermocouple I need to find. BW parts tend to be sold through licensed plumbing companies.

A universal should be fine. Good luck. When installing the new one, make sure the positioning is correct, otherwise it won't be able to detect the heat/flame.

Moses,

Yes, sketchy propane dealers. There are different grades of propane and some suppliers will purchase the cheaper commercial grade and mix in with the refined gas. As a result, you can have by product. I've poured that gas out of propane tanks before and let it sit in a gallon jug for 24 hours or so before it eventually vaporized. I've watched a farmer continue to buy gas for a crap propane company and then have to pour that gas out of his carburetor and fix the thing again. It happens.

There is not soot on properly air adjusted appliances and refined propane gas. Look at unvented gas logs or Dearborn heaters. There are no soot on those appliances with the right air/gas mixture and some of those appliances have been used for over 20 years in some locations.

And lets not forget that the water heaters today have a screen over the air intake if it's a sealed burner. Those screens can become clogged and choke off air supply to the pilot making it flutter or lift off the pilot assembly and making the thermocouple not hit the right temperature.

And if you are getting a bill from atmos its natural gas and you need to change out the water heater.

I picked up the universal thermocouple this afternoon and removed the burner assembly tonight to install it.

Where I thought the thermocouple should be, instead is a similar looking thing that has 2 electric leads coming off of it. Upon research, it seems this is a thermopile instead. They are a bit more expensive, and something that I don't really feel like taking on myself. Looks like a new water heater this weekend.

The burner did have quite a bit of junk on it that I vacuumed out. Maybe that will help it stay lit longer..who knows.