Water Heater Repair in Salt Lake City, UT
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Cold water most of the year means longer burner cycles
Homes here need heat from October through May, and that same stretch is when the water coming into your tank runs coldest. Every shower or load of laundry during those months means a longer burner cycle to bring that water up to temperature. On winter nights that average 22°F from December through February, the incoming water is at its coldest and the tank works hardest to keep up.
About 7 percent of households in Utah went at least 24 hours without power last year. A standing pilot will relight itself once power is back, but most newer systems will not, so a water heater that went cold during an outage may need someone to reset it by hand. If yours never came back on its own, or it is not keeping up the way it used to, that is worth a look.
- 22°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 8 months
- October through May, the months homes here need heat
- 7%
- of Utah households lost power for a day or more in 2024, and a heater with an electric element or electric ignition stops without it
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new water heater would cut about $80 a year off hot water for a typical Utah home.
Estimates for a typical Utah home, compared with an older unit built to the federal minimum, from EIA household energy data and Utah fuel prices. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when an element, thermostat or gas valve has failed.
Replacement makes sense when the tank itself is leaking.
- Why is my water heater leaking from the bottom?
- Most of the time this means the tank itself has rusted through and is failing. Sediment builds up on the bottom of the tank over years, and it traps moisture against the metal until it corrodes and opens a hole. A leak could also come from a loose drain valve or a fitting on the bottom of the tank, which a contractor can tighten or replace, but a leak from the tank itself means the water heater needs to be replaced. Shut off the water supply and power to the unit until someone can look at it.
- Why won't the pilot light on my water heater stay lit?
- The most common cause is a worn out thermocouple, the small sensor that sits next to the pilot flame and tells the gas valve the flame is lit. When it wears out or gets coated in soot, it fails to send that signal and the gas valve shuts off the pilot for safety. A weak pilot flame, a draft blowing across it, or a clogged pilot tube can cause the same problem. A contractor can test the thermocouple and replace it if it is bad.
- Can a tankless water heater be repaired?
- Yes. Most problems, like a failed igniter, a bad flow sensor, or a heat exchanger fouled with mineral scale, can be repaired without replacing the unit. Tankless units have no tank to rust out, so a repair is usually the answer rather than a full replacement. A contractor can flush the system to clear scale or replace the specific part that failed.