Lingo: Glossary of Water Heating Terms

Yes, lingo. As in "I don't speak the lingo," which is likely the case when it comes to water heaters. But to ask questions in The Tank, or directly regarding products, you need to be able to describe your problem in terms we can understand so that we can help you solve it. We've done this by simple descriptions, where possible, and pictures relating to the terms. Residential water heater -- They go from 20 to 100 gallons and up to about 75,000 Btu for gas or 6,000 watts for electric. Commercial water heater -- 40 to 400 gallons, and up over 1,000,000 Btu, or 9,000 watts and up.

Choose a term below to display the definition:

Anode Rod

Atmospheric-Vent Heater

Automatic Flue Damper

Backflow Preventer

Behavioral Waste

Boiler, Water Heater

Cheater

Clean-Out Hatch Combustion Chamber

Condensing Water Heater

Cover

Dead Leg

Decarbonization

Demand Pump

Dezincification

Dielectric Connections

Dip Tubes

Direct-Vent Heater

Dirt Leg

Draft Diverters

Drain Pan

Drain Valves

Drain-Water Heat Exchanger

Drip

Earthquake Strap

Energy Factor, EF, UEF

Expansion Tank

Flex Connectors

Flue

FVIR Systems

Half and Half

Heat-Pump Water Heaters

Heat Traps, Heat Trap Nipples

Labels

Manifold Plumbing

NAECA

PEX

Pipe Nipples

Plumbed in Parallel

Plumbed in Series

Plumbing/Piping

Power-Vent Heater

Pressure Reducers

Recirculation Line and Pump

Recirculation Line Thermostat

Reducers

Reducer Bushing

Sediment

Shell or Jacket

Shutoff Valves

Side-Plumbed

Sneft Hole

Soot

Spring Check Valve

Street Ell

Structural Waste

Structured Plumbing

Swing Check Valve

Tee

Temperature/Pressure Relief Valve

Temperature/Pressure Relief Valve Drain Line

Thermal Expansion

Thermocouple

Thermostats, Temperature Controls

Top-Plumbed

Vents

Water Alarm

Water Pressure Gauge