Water heaters have made our lives much easier. We love the warmth of hot water, especially during the winter season. But have you ever come across a situation where your beloved water heater stopped working? Doing the dishes, laundry, and most importantly, taking showers with cold water in the winter feels like hell.
To make things easier for you, we have listed possible reasons why your water heater is not working along with the ways to fix them. Based on that, you can either try fixing the issue or call a professional if needed.
There could be either a single or multiple reasons for not working your water heater properly. When you notice the water is not hot enough or too hot, here are 10 possible things your water heater must be going through.
Once you have acknowledged the problem in your water heater, it is the right time to look for ways to fix it. Here, keep in mind that some problems may require the help of an expert, whereas others can be resolved by you.
Whenever you face a problem related to a water heater, the first thing to do is to look for a power supply. The water heater not receiving a power supply may be a reason behind it not working. This problem arises when the circuit breaker is tripped or the fuse goes off.
The power cut or blown fuse may happen due to excessive energy used. Also, having some defects in wires causes the fuse to go off, resulting in a power cut. Here, no power means no hot water.
Follow the given instructions to check the power supply:
Water leakage from the sides of the heater is a common problem. This also disrupts the functioning of the water heater. Water leakage usually happens when the heater is poorly installed or any physical damage to the heater during installation.
Another possibility for leakage could be corrosion, which damages the metals used in the heater. So, if you see any water leaking from the heater, know that this influences its functions.
Look for given guidance to fix the issue in your water heater:
When you don't know what to look for in not working heater, go and check its heating element. This element produces heat to turn cold water into hotter one.
When the heater has been used for years, there could be a build-up of limescale in the heating element. This burns out the element when not cleaned on time. As a result, the heating element can not perform its job and makes the water cold.
However, there is a way to check what went wrong with the heating element:
The main function of a thermostat is to maintain the temperature and allow the heating element to heat to make water hot. Here, you might be facing heating-related issues with your heater and the reason may be the thermostat is not in good condition.
One of the causes for this is a defect in the thermostat that occurs due to wear and tear after the use of the heater over time. Another thing responsible for thermostat failure is incorrect settings. When the temperature setting is not set in the correct way, it leads to either too hot or too cold water.
You can tackle this issue by following the given guidance:
In the case of a gas heater, the leakage of gas may be the reason why it is not working. The leakage of gas can be easily recognized through its smell.
Now this problem may occur due to defects in gas lines. The problem in gas lines or connections comes out when there's damage due to wear and tear. This is also possible because of the poor installation process.
Most importantly, failure in the gas valve also introduces the issue of gas leakage. The valve-related issue occurs when there's a deposit of sediment, physical damage, or lack of adequate maintenance. So, it is better you pay attention to this on time.
Once you smell the gas, immediately turn off the heater and call for a professional. Since gas related issues are a bit serious and can cause damage if not given needed priority.
To clean out the sediment on the gas valve, use vinegar and scrub it on the sediment. But before you do this it would be good to consult with professionals.
The moment you see browned or smelly water coming from the heater, note down that it is not a good condition. The main reason for water to be brown or smelly is because of the buildup of sediment and bacterial formation in the heater.
The formation of sediment and bacterial growth occurs when the heater is not cleaned and maintained on time.
With given guidance, you can turn tarnished or smelly water into a clean one:
This is an obvious heater that uses its heat to turn cold water into a hot one. The use of water plays the main role in building up the sediment.
As we all know water has a good amount of minerals which take the form of a deposit on the metals, tubes, or walls of the heater when used for a long time. That deposit also called sediment, when not cleaned on time, disrupts the functioning of the water heater.
So, generated and collected sediment might be the reason why your water heater not working.
You can clean out the build-up sediment all by yourself. For this, use vinegar to scrub out the sediment. But make sure the power is off and only clean this if the sediment deposited place is easily accessible to you.
If the sediment has built up in the parts that are not easy to clean, don't do it all by yourself. Here, you'll need to call an expert for this.
You may not believe but an anode rod is used in the heater to attract minerals from the water. Those minerals later turn into sediment and corrosive elements. Now, the reason for attracting the minerals is to prevent the build-up of sediment in the water heater tank.
You must have guessed by now what causes the anode rod to fail. Yes, the minerals are stored in the anode rode which takes the form of sediment and corrosive, hard deposits, in the anode rode. This results in the failure and affects the function of the water heater.
Here's how you can check the anode rod to see its failure and fix this:
It is recommended to get help from a professional before you decide to fix the rods yourself.
After several attempts, is the heater still not working? Hey, wait. Did you check the pressure relief valve in the heater? If you have not, just go and see if it is in good condition.
A pressure relief valve is built into any water heater to release excess pressure from the heater tank. Its failure may occur because of continuous water pressure in the heater. The valve tries to release the pressure but eventually fails to do so due to excess pressure than its capacity.
Additionally, the formation of hard deposits like sediment, poor installation, or high water temperature also causes the pressure valve to fail.
Here's the good news, you can replace this valve by yourself. Here's how you can do that:
In case, you can't perform these steps, it is best to call an expert.
Another factor that contributes to the heater not working is its age. Just like us human beings, when we reach a certain age, our body organs start to show signs of illness. The same thing happens with the heater when it gets older.
Over time, the components used in the heater start to tear or damage which results in its dysfunctioning. If proper priority is not given to the heater, it deteriorates.
What you can do to maintain the same functioning of the water heater even after years of use is regular repair and maintenance. This mostly requires the supervision of an expert for repairing components like heating elements, thermostats, Pressure relief valves, and anode rods.
From your side, you can do basic things like cleaning sediment, checking which part not working, ensuring proper use, disinfecting the tank, etc.
From the day of installation, the work to ensure the proper use of the water heater begins. Not following the suggestions in the manual and carelessly using the heater leads to its malfunctioning.
So, follow the given tips to extend the health of your water heater:
