Gas water heater troubleshooting & repair Q&A.

The articles at this website will answer most questions about all types of hot water heaters as well as many other building plumbing system inspection or defect topics.

Q&A on Inspection, Diagnostic, & Repair Guide Gas Hot Water Heaters

These FAQs on troubleshooting or fixing a Natural Gas or LP Gas-fired Water Heater (calorifier, geyser, cylinder) were posted originally at x - be sure to see the advice given there.

On 2018-11-27 by (mod) - Mi calentador de agua dejo de trabajar - my water heater stopped working

Jose

Qual forma de calentador usas: electrico, gas?

Si es electrico, cheque primero al panel por luz.

Si es gas, cheque que tienes suplico de gas,

y digme si el pilot se puede enciende

(o dime si la suya no usa piloto continuoso).

On 2018-11-27 by Jose

Mi calentador de agua dejo de trabajar. Como si se hubiera apagado de repente. Como trato de solucionarlo.

On 2018-05-03 by (mod) - is it OK to pressure wash my gas fired water heater vent from the rooftop?

Watch out: NO Amanda

You will risk flooding and damaging the water heater, making it unsafe.

You can, however, physically disconnect and remove the flue pipe for cleaning - that's what a service technician would do.

Watch out: a gas fired flue vent has no business being blocked whatsoever. If you are seeing soot, for example, then your gas-fueled heater installation is very unsafe, producing soot and thus most likely carbon monoxide - that can kill building occupants.

Be sure that your property has properly located and installed working CO detectors.

Watch out: your water heater has a "home made" draft hood comprised of aluminum foil. This water heater is improperly-installed, unreliably vented, and is unsafe. Ask your plumber or installer to install the proper draft hood for your water heater and to check that draft is adequate.

On 2018-05-02 y Amanda @ AZN Sandwich Bar

Q: Can i pressure wash from restaurant rooftop down the fluke of my gas water heater so that there is no blockage?

Gases are not exiting to rooftop.

Vent looks clean as far as i can see to 45° angle to inside.

Not sure if pipe parallel should connect together for ventilation or end should be capped.?

 

On 2017-12-09 by (mod) - how to restart my water heater

Kevin

For a gas water heater that uses an always on pilot light, the usual.proxedure is

Turn the control knob on the gas valve to PILOT

Push down the red gas button on the control top. Or on some valves, push in on the control knob,

Wait for air to purge from the gas line

Light the pilot

When the pilot flame stays on, turn the gas valve control from PILOT to ON

That's the general procedure

Since there are fire and safety concerns, be SURE to read and follow the instructions on how to turn on your water heater brand and model in your water heater users manual

If you don't have those instructions you can use ARTICLE INDEX to find our article on WATER HEATER MANUALS

On 2017-12-09 03:28:57.790735 by kevin

how to restart my water heater

On 2017-08-27 by Lukewarm Shower

Your site is the best, and I have it bookmarked for bedtime reading. I have a 3yr old State Select LP water heater with a White Rodgers gas valve.

Bought the house a year ago, no issues until now. Pilot is lit, but the thermostat sticks shut and won't heat automatically. If I turn the thermostat all the way up, I get a lot of resistance and then the valve will suddenly spring open and run one cycle to hit setpoint.

I had propane delivered by a new supplier just a few weeks ago. If the pilot is burning, I wouldn't think the thermocouple is a problem. Is my gas valve suspect? Should I call my propane supplier about contamination? Very reputable company used by half the community. Other thoughts? Thanks!

On 2017-03-05 by (mod) -

Lou

It should be easy enough to decide if the failure was age or a freezing event, as an age failure will show corrosion while a freezing event will show splits, tears, burst components. The break pattern is usually quite different.

On 2017-03-05 by Lou Sena

My water heater is located in an unheated garage along an outside wall. I discovered it leaking from the bottom of the tank. The volume of the leak had the force of a pressure washer or a garden hose with an attachment. The water was visibly coming out through the pilot/burner access plate. The burner/pilot were off. I turned off the cold-water inlet valve. When I use the cold-water side of an appliance, the water heater continues with a fast dripping leak, even though the cold water into the tank is shut off.

With the tank still in place and connected, a plumber inspected it and thinks that the either the inlet or outlet pipe froze and when it thawed, it split and burst inside the tank, also compromising the liner in the tank. We had a vicious cold night with wind chill temperature aggravation.

I filed a claim with my insurance company and their first blush was that the “cause of failure” is more likely age deterioration (I believe the unit to be 12 - 15 years old). The adjuster further stated that given the nature of the appliance having a heat source, a water heater freezing is not a likely scenario.

The plumber maintains that pipe freezing is a very likely scenario that led to the liner failure (not the water within the tank). He further states that hot water freezes much quicker than cold water. He states the adjuster is simply trying to avoid providing coverage.

I am neither a plumber nor an insurance adjuster and therefore, I am at a technical disadvantage. Because the water heater is a 75-gallon capacity, I am looking at a very substantial out of pocket if I can’t get a handle on what other “cause of failures” exist other than simple age deterioration.

I visited and thoroughly reviewed the articles on your website. I did not find any references to possible/potential causes for leaking coming from within the tank itself. Can you please tell me if you have any such articles and/or provide me with your assessment of external factors that could cause this kind of failure.

Thank you in advance for your expedient response and for sharing your much needed expertise.

E. L. Sena (Lou) 505-856-5570, email ocmalbuq@aol.com

On 2016-08-02 by Anonymous

If the shared flue at chimney top does not have a proper type of cap wind may be blowing down as you suspect; if that's the case, I'd expect other occupants in the same building to be having the same trouble, or at the very least, your neighbor whose water heater shares the same flue with your heater.

Check with that neighbor. If their heater is the same and its environment is the same, the the problem is probably something else in your case.

IN that event check for a failing thermocouple.

On 2016-08-02 by Melinda

Live in an 8 unit condo building. (4 units first floor, 4 units 2nd floor) 2 units share same roof stack totaling 4 roof stacks per building. Pilot light in gas water heater keeps blowing out on very windy days in my first floor condo. My HVAC son has thoroughly examined this water heater and other water heaters we had prior with same situation.

He feels the downdraft from stack is the culprit for blowing out pilot. The roof stacks are capped but stacks are over 30 years old. Suggestions, pls. Thank You.

On 2016-04-26 by GFW

Hi! You showed the improper way the heater was blocked in Mexico but didn't talk much about a solution for high winds. Living on the edge of the plains, wind is a weather (like snow or rain). I live in a trailer and have a new (year-old) water heater inside my trailer...accessed from outside.

My trailer is a '72 and way past its prime. Having the wind blow out the pilot doesn't cause a problem. It's having the wind blow out the gas ALL THE TIME that is maddening because I'm unsure how to properly box in the heater and still provide the necessary venting.

I should mention it has an electronic ignition. :)

If you were to construct something to safely house a water heater so it's properly vented AND safe from high winds, what would it look like? Because the heater is "inside" my trailer, it's safe from rain and snow and hail. So you don't need to consider those. But 45 mph winds? Yeah. That.

Any help would be awesome.

On 2016-02-18 by (mod) - What would cause the insulation at the top of the propane heater to burn?

Perhaps a flue gas leak

On 2016-02-18 by Paul R

What would cause the insulation at the top of the propane heater to burn?

Question: gas fired water heater pilot keeps going off

(Feb 18, 2013) Monarch B said:
Do you have any troubleshooting information about gas-fired water heater pilot light going off frequently, sometimes 3 times a day? (Also, soot was found building up on the gas stove burner that is located within 10 feet of the hot water heater.)

Reply:

Monarch: look for a bad thermocouple.

Question: gas water heater keeps running without stopping

(Mar 2, 2014) Matt G. said:
A problem just occured with my natural gas hot water heater. it seems to be constantly running/heating and the vent at the top and the vent pipe going out seems to be abnormally hotter than usual. Even the plastic pieces around the inlet/outlets and the cap for the anode have melted from the increased amount of heat. Worried about a potential for fire, i shut the tank and gas off to the tank. anyhow have any suggestions of what's going on and what i need to do..thanx.

Reply:

Matt I'd turn the heater off; it sounds as if a limit control switch has failed; it's unusual for a thermostatic switch to fail in the ON mode but possible.

Question: soot formed at gas water heater vent

(Dec 9, 2014) George Davis said:
REFERENCE:
Reader Question: soot formed at gas fired water heater vent or chimney

4/19/2014 (at WATER HEATERS - home) Dan said:

I have a propane water heater. It builds up a very thick layer of carbon.....
There is a good possibility that another mechanical device is creating the problem. An attic fan, exhaust fan, clothes dryer, power attic vent or similar device can create enough negative pressure in the room where the hot water heater is located to actually draw in outside air through the vent for the water heater. This could cause near stagnant air in the combustion chamber leading to a lack of oxygen for proper combustion. This situation might occur only intermittently but have cumulative results leading to the sooting of the water heater. By the same token, if the water heater is in a closet, when the service tech opens the closet door, then the problem no longer exists until he closes the door again.

Reply:

George,

Watch out: Sooting on gas fired heaters is quite dangerous, risking fatal carbon monoxide poisoning. Id ask for help from a plumbing and heating service company with expertise in gas fired equipment.

Question: no hot water from LP gas heater - I keep re-lighting it

(Feb 28, 2015) RIMA W LANE said:
Hello, I have an LP water heater. I discovered I had no hot water the other day. I lit the pilot and when i turned the burner on it did fine for a few seconds and then caught in the burner. I tried this 2 more times with same result.Can you tell me what the proplem might be please? Whirlpool, about 6 years old, with sealed burner

Reply:

Rima I'm not sure what's going on with your heater. But it does sound unsafe enough to ask for help from a plumber or service tech experienced with LPG hookups. It may be a bad thermocouple or something else.

Question: function of the thermal switch on a natural gas hot water heater

(Mar 25, 2015) Dan said:
what is the function of the thermal switch on a natural gas hot water heater

Reply:

Dan

I think you're asking about the reset switch that trips on excessive temperature - a safety device to avoid overheating, possible scalding, heater damage, or an unsafe heater.

Question: water heater chimney gets too hot

(May 5, 2015) Joel Stonebraker said:
We have a gas water heater in the basement. The chimney it is exhausting into was a 5 inch that run up the wall in between the main bathroom and a bedroom.

My local plumber suggested and installed a 3 inch flex lines in the 5 inch chimney as our furnace no longer co uses this route as it is a high efficient unit and vents out the side of the house.

The problem is that if we use a lot of hot water the wall in the upstairs bathroom where the chimney runs get very hot to the touch. The top of the hot water tank does show evidence of back-drafting( melted plastic rings around water inlets).Is this normal?

Reply:

Joel this sounds dangerous to me - not just the heat question but as you note, the backdrafting that can be a potentially fatal carbon monoxide hazard. Inadequate exhaust draft increases the production of carbon monxide - combined with backdrafting that could kill someone.

I would shut off the heater right away and I'd have the chimney inspected by a chimney professional such as a certified member of the Chimney Sweeps Guild.

keep us posted

be sure your CO detectors and fire alarms are properly installed, located, and working.

Daniel

Question: change to a side-vented water heater

(July 9, 2015) Stephanie said:
Looking to update my hot water heater to one that can be side vented. How do I know if a water heater can be side vented? Natural gas or electric. It's currently vented through the chimney but the chimney top is in disrepair, needing removed.

Thanks,
Stephanie.

Reply:

Stephane

The water heater manufacturer's installation specifications will list the venting options for the water heater. There are add-on direct vent kits that can work for many gas an oil fired water heaters but I'd be careful about doing such a conversion without also checking with the heater manufacturer.

...

Continue reading  at GAS WATER HEATERS, HIGH EFFICIENCY or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

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• GAS FIRED WATER HEATERS
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Suggested citation for this web page

GAS FIRED WATER HEATER FAQs at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

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INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to WATER HEATERS

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