What to Do If Water Heater is Leaking

When your water heater is leaking, you must take action immediately. You might need to call a professional technician for their emergency service because the leak can lead to big damage if not taken care of right away. But before your help arrives, try doing these things first to prevent a disastrous fallout:

1.   Turn Off the Water Supply

The most logical thing to do first when the water heater is leaking is, of course, to stop the flow. Most water heaters have valves on their cold inlets, so it should be easy. If you can’t locate or turn off the valve, try turning off your entire home water supply instead. Prepare some water in buckets to use while your system is getting serviced.

2.   Turn Off the Power Supply

If your water heater is electric, you can shut it down by flipping the breaker on the circuit breaker box. If it is a gas water heater, you only need to switch off the gas line. Turning off the power will avoid a short circuit and prevent you from getting electrocuted when fixing the issue.

3.   Locate the Leak Point and Fix If Possible

If it is unclear where the water is leaking from, try wiping the wet unit and see where it starts getting wet again. Sometimes, the culprit is pretty simple that you can even fix it yourself.

If the leak is due to loose fittings on the cold inlets or hot outlets, then tightening them up should be effective to address the problem. Sometimes, a water heater is leaking or overflowing due to the wrong setting on the pressure relief valve.

4.   Call a Professional If You Can’t Fix It Yourself

Don’t gamble your luck by trying to fix your leaking water heater unless you know exactly what to do. Call a professional technician with the proper license to deal with it safely. When making the call, inform them with basic information about your water heater situation. Hence, they can bring along the necessary equipment while also giving you useful advice on what to do while waiting for the technicians to arrive.

5.   Drain the Tank If Needed

If your water heater is leaking badly, there are chances that it will cause flooding or even worse damage. Thus, safely emptying out the tank through the drain valve might help you save the day. Make sure to let the water flow to the proper line, such as gutter or sink.

It might be frustrating if your water heater is leaking, especially if it happens in the winter. Considering how essential it is to use water in our everyday life, even waiting for a few hours to get the system fixed can be very bothersome.

Fortunately, you can significantly lower the chances of it occurring by giving your system proper maintenance at least once every six months. A professional plumber will likely see the signs when something is a little bit off. They can handle the situation even before your water heater is leaking for real.