Water – causing the high limit switch to pop on the electric water heater

It sure looks like you are on the right track with you assessment. Most electric water heaters have two thermostats, one that controls the main tank element, and one that controls the quick recovery element. There are several very helpful test procedures available online or in the This Old House website. The basics of the test are very simple if you have knowledge of using a volt/ohm meter.(VOM) Be absolutely sure the breaker and power to the heater is off before attempting any OHM measurements on the elements. You will check for proper operation of the therostats. This is usually done with the power on (220VAC) , which can be dangerous if one is not competent in testing live circuits with a volt meter. Basically, you will first verify the 220 volt input at each thermostat. As you draw down the hot water in the tank,replacing it with cold water, the output relays(just a double pole switch for testing purposes) in the thermostats will close, putting 220VAC on the output terminals to the elements. You can also simply turn up the temp on the thermostats and check the outputs as you are now asking for hotter water. Assuming you verify proper operation of the thermostats, the next step will be checking the resistance of the elements with the ohm meter. BE SURE POWER IS OFF. Disconnect the output wires from the thermostats and measure the ohms of each element. Knowing the factory spec is very helpful, however a very high reading or a "0" reading will indicate a bad element. I will try to find a good link and post it in the comments section for you, but a good procedure is easy to find as stated above. http://homerepair.about.com/od/plumbingrepair/ss/element_replace.htm

A few things to check:

• First check the boiler - is it heating water? Does your hot water tank contain hot water? If not, it could be the heating element, a fuse or part of the heater circuit.

• If you have a timer controlling the boiler, check it is working- does the relay trigger as it should?

• If that is all working but you aren't getting hot water to your rooms, next check your zone valves to see whether they open and close correctly.

• Can you hear your water pump?

• Have you tried bleeding your radiators?

• Do you have thermostats in the house? Check they are working- usually a click as they trigger at the set temperature.