Water Heater Repair in Greensboro, NC
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What Guilford County winters do to your water heater
Your water heater works harder from October through April. Incoming water runs colder those months, so the tank has to do more to get hot water out of the tap. On nights that average 31°F, the burner or the heating element cycles more often than it does in warmer weather. That extra cycling wears on the thermostat, the heating element on an electric tank, and the gas valve and burner on a gas one.
Guilford County has logged 12 winter storms and 166 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and storms here can knock out power. About a quarter of North Carolina households lost power for a full day or more in 2024. A gas water heater with a standing pilot keeps making hot water through an outage. One with an electronic ignition or an electric tank will not, but it will come back on by itself once power is restored.
- 31°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 7 months
- October through April, the months homes here need heat
- 25%
- of North Carolina 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 $300 a year off hot water for a typical North Carolina home.
Estimates for a typical North Carolina home, compared with an older unit built to the federal minimum, from EIA household energy data and North Carolina 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 from the inside and is starting to fail. Sediment builds up at the bottom of the tank over the years, and it traps moisture against the steel until it wears a hole. A leak could also come from a loose drain valve or a fitting where a pipe connects, and those can sometimes be tightened or replaced. But water pooling under the tank itself usually means the tank is done and needs to be replaced, not patched.
- Why won't the pilot light on my water heater stay lit?
- The most common cause is a worn thermocouple, the small sensor that sits in the pilot flame and tells the gas valve it's safe to keep the gas flowing. When it wears out, it can't hold that signal, so the valve shuts the gas off and the pilot goes out. A dirty pilot orifice or a draft pulling the flame away from the sensor can cause the same thing. A standing pilot runs on its own and doesn't need power, so if it keeps going out, the problem is with the flame or the sensor, not your electricity.
- Can a tankless water heater be repaired?
- Yes, most problems with a tankless unit are repairable. Mineral buildup on the heat exchanger is common and is cleared with a descaling flush. Ignition failures, error codes, and worn sensors can usually be diagnosed and the part replaced. A contractor can check the unit and tell you whether it's a repair or whether the heat exchanger itself has failed, which is less common but does happen.