Everyone likes a nice warm shower after a long day at work or school. It is one of the easiest ways to relax and have a concert and reflect on everything that has happened throughout the day. If you’re a person that showers in a morning, it wakes you up and energizes you and gives you time to think about the day ahead. Hot showers are good for everyone. No one thinks about what happens if the hot water stops, or if it doesn’t last as long as it used to. Heaven forbid that the shower starts to spit out brown rusty water.

The truth is that no one thinks about their hot water heater until it stops working. When everything is going fine, we enjoy the luxury of a well functioning unit. When things go wrong as they sometimes will, we not only lose our sanctuary where we go to relax. We also pile on even more stress because now we have to fix it. This can be avoided though if we keep a couple things in mind.

Signs That Your Hot Water Heater Needs Repair

Hot Water Age

Unlike fine wine, hot water heaters don’t get better with age. As your hot water heater gets older it starts to break down. Wear and tear from use happens, corrosion happens, and sometimes the hot water heater itself cracks and gets damaged. Knowing the age of your hot water heater is essential to getting ahead of the tragedy.

Hot Water Supply

Of course, we can always feel when things are going wrong. You just know. This is probably because your hot water has started to feel colder than it once did. It also doesn’t last quite as long. You once could take a one hour steaming hot shower, but now you’re lucky to get fifteen good minutes. This isn’t because someone is flushing the toilet; your hot water heater is trying to warn you that it’s time.

This could be caused by a failing heating element. But it could also mean that mineral sediment has coated and hardened on the bottom of your tank, including on the heating element. This happens with age and it should be checked out by a licensed plumbing professional.

Rusty Water

No one wants to be washing their hair and look down and see brown water. First off, you’ll ask yourself is your hair really that dirty. It’s not. Then you’ll notice all of the brown water pouring on your body.

Routinely checking the anode rod and replacing it when necessary can save you from this heart attack. This rod attracts corrosive elements in your water, gradually rusting away so your water heater tank doesn’t have to. If you don’t change this rod when necessary, you risk your tank corroding and this leaves you with rust pouring through your shower.

Hot Water Tank Leaks

Another sign that you should look out for is leaks around your storage tank. When the leak is located around the lines, it can sometimes be fixed by tightening or replacing the affected part. Small leaks and cracks may seem like something that you can brush off, but over time a lot of water is wasted, bills are higher, and the tank increasingly becomes damaged. It’s wise to get it fixed when the small leaks and cracks are found initially.

Loud Banging Sound

Often, even if you don’t see any of the other symptoms, you can tell that your hot water heater is on the outs because you’ll hear a loud banging sound whenever hot water is heating in the tank. The sediment that collects in the tank and hardens causes the tank to have to work harder. Consequently the tank can rapidly expand.

Heaters can be repaired to give you a few more years of use, but there are some instances where it is just time to get a new water heater. A tank that is 15 to 20 years old and is doing anything like making weird noises, not producing hot water, or not maintaining hot water needs to be replaced. If you notice leaking water by your tank, call a professional immediately to prevent flooding or other damage it may cause.

If you are having issue with your water heater, always leave it to a professional. Both electric and gas heaters pose a strong threat to be dangerous so do not risk trying to fix the problem on your own.

If you live in the Montgomery, AL area and think you are in need of a water heater repair, you can call us for assistance.