Service
Gas Water Heater Repair
Repair of gas-fired water heaters, including pilot and thermocouple faults, gas control valves, burner problems and venting issues.
- Licensed and insured
- Price agreed before work
- A plumber who works your area
Safety items come before performance
With a gas appliance the first checks are not about hot water.
Venting, combustion air and any sign that exhaust is spilling back into the room are looked at before the fault the visit was booked for. A heater that is not venting properly is a carbon monoxide question, and it takes priority over whether the water is hot enough.
The visible clues are worth knowing: a flame that burns yellow rather than blue, soot marks or scorching around the burner opening, or a smell of combustion in the room. Any of those is a reason to call rather than wait.
The pilot problem is usually one small part
A pilot that will not stay lit is the most common gas water heater fault and it is rarely expensive.
A thermocouple sits in the pilot flame and generates a small electrical signal. That signal is what holds the gas valve open. As the thermocouple ages its output falls, the valve stops being satisfied, and it shuts the gas off, which extinguishes the pilot.
The part is inexpensive and the replacement is quick. If a new one does not solve it, the gas control valve itself is the next thing to test, and that is a larger but still entirely ordinary repair.
Does this sound familiar?
Problems this service solves
- A pilot light that will not stay lit
- A burner that will not ignite
- Soot or scorching around the burner area
- Water that never gets properly hot
- A rumbling tank with a gas burner underneath
Signs you need gas water heater repair
If more than one of these is true, the problem is usually past the point a plunger or a store-bought cleaner will fix.
- The pilot goes out repeatedly
- There is a smell of combustion in the room
- The burner flame is yellow rather than blue
- The tank makes loud noises as the burner runs
What to expect
How the visit works
Check the safety items first
Venting, combustion air and any sign of spillage are checked before anything else, because a gas appliance that is not venting properly is a safety issue rather than a performance one.
Test the thermocouple and valve
A pilot that will not stay lit is usually a thermocouple that is no longer generating enough signal, or a gas control valve that is not holding.
Inspect the burner
A dirty or partly blocked burner gives a yellow, sooty flame and poor heat transfer. Cleaning it is often the whole repair.
Address sediment
A rumbling tank has sediment insulating the burner from the water, which wastes gas and overheats the tank bottom. Flushing deals with it.
What's included
What you get on every job, whoever we send.
- Venting and combustion checked before performance
- Thermocouple and valve tested rather than swapped speculatively
- Burner cleaning treated as a repair in its own right
- Sediment addressed, since it is what makes the burner work harder
Questions
Gas Water Heater Repair questions
Why does my pilot light keep going out?
Most often the thermocouple. It is a small sensor sitting in the pilot flame that generates a tiny electrical signal, and that signal is what tells the gas valve it is safe to stay open. As it ages the output drops and the valve begins shutting the gas off, which puts the pilot out. It is an inexpensive part and a straightforward replacement. If a new thermocouple does not fix it, the gas control valve itself is the next candidate.
The flame is yellow instead of blue. Does that matter?
Yes. A clean gas flame burns blue. Yellow indicates incomplete combustion, usually from a dirty burner, restricted combustion air, or a venting problem, and incomplete combustion produces carbon monoxide. Alongside soot marks or scorching around the burner area, it should be looked at promptly rather than tolerated as a quirk. It is also making the heater less efficient in the meantime.
Is a rumbling noise from a gas heater serious?
It is a warning rather than an emergency. The noise is steam forming underneath a layer of sediment on the tank bottom and forcing its way out. Because the burner sits below, that layer acts as insulation, so the burner has to drive heat through it and the tank bottom overheats. It wastes gas and shortens the tank's life. Flushing clears it while the sediment is loose; left long enough it hardens and will not flush out.
Related services
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Diagnosis and repair of gas, electric and tankless water heaters, including no-hot-water calls, leaks, pilot problems and sediment flushing.
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Annual servicing that extends water heater life: flushing sediment, checking the anode rod, testing the relief valve and verifying the venting.
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Get it fixed
Gas Water Heater Repair, handled locally
Call with your ZIP code and what you are seeing. We route you to a licensed plumber in your area who does gas water heater repair every week.
- Licensed and insured
- Answered 24/7
- Price before work