Hot water was running out very quickly. I tested voltages, upper element looked good, on the lower the small protective plastic cover over the wires shocked me. I cut the breaker and found this loose wire. And obviously all this rust/mineral build up. If I were to fix I'd try to replace the element but I'm afraid that I won't be able to securely position the new one because of all the build up. Is that build up easy to clean off? For now, I disconnected the wires coming down from the top element and turned the breaker back on so that we at least have some hot water while we figure this out.
Any thoughts?
They sell water heaters that use a heat pump, cooling the air while heating the water. This saves money in the summer by reducing some of the load on your AC unit. In the winter you break even compared to a regular unit. If you're in a location that requires cooling your house for several months of the year, I'd take the opportunity to upgrade and save some money long term. You might need to run some numbers to see if the extra up front cost makes sense for your situation.