Water Heater Leaking

Water heater leaking is perhaps one of the most common water heater problems encountered by all users. Depending on the root cause of the leak, the problem can either be easily solved by tightening a few bolts that hold the pressure relief valve or may lead to the replacement of the water heater. Before attempting any repair or taking the replacement route, you first need to find out what is the real cause of the problem, and determine whether or not it is solvable with a few simple steps.

Water Heater Leaking: Most Common Causes

There are five possible causes for a leaking water heater; while two of these causes have practically nothing to do with the heater or the valve and therefore can be easily fixed without the need to repair or even replace the water heater, the other three problems can require repairs and in extreme cases the replacement of the electric or gas water heater.

The two problems that aren’t really related to the water heater are problems with the plumbing connections or the bolts or gaskets of the pressure relief valve. It is possible that the pipes that go in or come out of the heater may be causing the leak, and in that case there is nothing wrong with the heater. If this is the case, you can easily determine the source of the leak, and once you find out where the leaking water is coming from, you can either fix the pipe yourself or call a plumber to come and fix it for you. Considering the cost of a new water heater, this will be an actually lucky situation.

If the leak is caused by a weak connection at the relief valve due to some loose bolts or a worn gasket, you can easily solve the problem by either tightening the bolts or simply replacing the faulty gasket without the need for further water heater repairs or costs.

Water Heater Leaking: More Serious Problems

You may not always be lucky enough to get away with the two simple problems we summarized above. If you determine that the leak is not coming from the plumbing connections or gaskets, then the problem can be either due to a faulty or malfunctioning pressure relief valve, excessive water pressure coming out from the water heater or (in the worst case scenario) directly from the water tank.

A leak caused by a faulty relief valve is the lesser of two evils here, since it can be solved by simply replacing the pressure valve if all other repair options like decreasing the temperature setting of the thermostat to reduce the pressure on the valve are depleted. It won’t cost you a lot of money, and an authorized service can come in and replace the valve in a matter of minutes.

But if the problem is caused by a leak in the water tank, then you are in big trouble. You can determine
such a problem if the water heater leaking is coming directly from under the heater and if you can observe oxidation under the heater. The tank may leak due to a couple of reasons including corrosion, and in 99% of the cases repairing the water heater will not be an option and you won’t have much of a choice other than replacing the water heater with a new one.