A hot water system almost always warns you before it dies. The trouble is the warnings are easy to ignore, right up until someone is standing in a cold shower on a Monday morning.
I repair and replace hot water systems across Castle Hill and the Hills District.
The warnings worth acting on
- Hot water running out faster than it used to
- Rusty or discoloured water from the hot tap but not the cold
- Water pooling underneath the unit, or rust creeping up from the base
- Banging or rumbling while it heats
- A pilot light that keeps going out
- Anything past about ten years old
Repair or replace
Not every fault means a new unit. A failed thermostat, element or valve is a repair, and on a system under about eight years old a repair is usually the sensible call.
Once the tank itself has rusted through, though, no repair holds. Replacing it before it lets go costs a lot less than replacing it plus the flooring, and I would rather tell you that in advance than after.
I will tell you which of the two you are looking at and why. If a repair buys you another few years, that is what I will quote.
Gas, electric and continuous flow
I am a licensed gas fitter as well as a plumber, so gas storage, electric storage and continuous flow are all in scope on the one visit. That matters if you are switching from one type to the other, because it is not purely a plumbing job. Getting two trades in to do one job costs you more and takes longer.
The sizing question nobody asks
Plenty of undersized systems were sized for the household that lived there two owners ago. If you are running out of hot water with the family you have now, the unit may be working perfectly and simply be too small. Worth checking before you replace it like for like and inherit the same problem.
If it is leaking, not just cold
A unit that has gone cold is uncomfortable. A unit that is dumping water onto the floor is doing damage while you read this, and that one is an emergency plumbing job rather than something to book in for Tuesday.
Licensed and local
Based in Baulkham Hills, covering Castle Hill, Kellyville, Bella Vista, Rouse Hill, Winston Hills, Northmead, Seven Hills and nearby. Licence 397982C, fully insured, and a straight 5.0 on Google. I quote before I start.
