Leaking water heater or no hot water

A water heater leaking at the base almost always has a tank pierced by internal corrosion, and at that point there's no repair, only a replacement. A leak higher up, at the inlet or outlet fitting, or at the pressure relief valve, can sometimes be fixed without replacing the unit.

A puddle around the water heater isn't always a tank leak: the pressure relief valve releasing a bit of water after a pressure spike, condensation on a cold tank in summer, or a loose drain fitting can all mimic a tank leak without being one. The real tell is the source: if water is clearly coming from the bottom of the tank itself rather than a fitting or a pipe connected to it, that's internal corrosion, and there's no repairing it.

While you wait for the plumber, close the cold-water supply valve to the heater (usually just above the tank), and on an electric unit, switch off the matching breaker at the panel. Never do it the other way around: don't shut the water to a live electric heater while it keeps trying to heat a tank that's draining.

A complete loss of hot water with no visible leak usually points to the heating element or the thermocouple instead. Replacing a standard water heater is normally a single visit, same-day if the model is in stock.

In a Montreal triplex basement, the water heater is often installed near the main shut-off, in the same narrow corner the three units sometimes have to share, which makes it harder to get an old tank out and a new one in down a tight outside or interior staircase. A water heater sitting directly on a wood floor rather than in a drain pan also adds extra risk to the floor and the ceiling below if the leak runs for a while.

Price mostly comes down to repair versus replacement: a relief valve or a fitting is a fraction of the cost of a new tank. For a replacement, access matters too, a heater that's easy to reach gets swapped faster than one wedged behind a partition or at the back of a storage space, along with the hour of the call and whether a matching model is in stock for a same-day install.

Before you call, note whether you're seeing active water or just a puddle that's already there, the heater's approximate age if you know it, whether it's electric or gas, and its capacity in gallons if it's visible on the label. Those details let us confirm over the phone whether a matching replacement is in stock before the plumber even arrives.

A residential water heater's typical lifespan runs around ten to fifteen years, depending on water hardness and the condition of the sacrificial anode rod inside the tank, the one that protects the metal from corrosion until it wears out itself. A relief valve that's discharging more often than it used to can also point to house water pressure running too high rather than a problem with the heater itself, a distinction a plumber confirms quickly by checking pressure at a tap.

On a gas water heater, a total failure with no leak usually points to a pilot light that's gone out or a bad thermocouple, both of which are normally fixed without replacing the unit. On an electric model, the same symptom almost always comes down to one or two burned-out heating elements, replaced one at a time once it's confirmed which one failed.