When You Should Replace Your Water Heater.

Cold Showers, lack of heated water, water damage, these are things no one likes to deal with, and like any home device, water heaters can break down over time and need to be repaired or replaced.

5 “Signs” it’s time to replace your Water Heater:

1: Your Water Heater is too Old – A Standard Tank Water Heater on average lasts 8-12 years. Usually it’s at the 10 year mark you want to consider replacing unit. Even though your water heater is not showing symptoms of failure it’s better to replace the system as a precaution vs waiting for the unit to fail and cause possibly cause damage to your home.

2: Rusty Water – If you are seeing pieces of rust or the water is rust in color. It’s possible the water heater has failed. Most Water heaters have a device called anode rod. This Rod is used to prevent the walls of your water heater from rusting. When the anode rod fails and the walls of the tank star to rust away, rusted sediment collects in the bottom of the heater and can start to cause the heated water to discolor and rust flakes appear in the water stream. You can remove this rust yourself, but you’ll have to drain and possibly flush the tank frequently.

3: Noise from the heater – If you hear banging and rumbling from your water heater its time to consider replacing the unit. Sediment is building up and can cause the tank to leak.

4: Leaks – If your Water heater is leaking from any of it’s sides, bottom, or pressure relief valves (even the slightest) then it’s time to replace the unit. You do not want to take a chance that the small drip today will become a flood tomorrow.

5: Cold Water – If you turn the hot water tap on the faucet and the water stays cold. It’s possible your water heater has failed and needs to be replaced.