No hot water, or a puddle under the tank
Water heater repair, a new tank, or a move to tankless. What each symptom means, and what your village asks for before the work starts.
Ask the age before anything else
Most water heater repair calls are decided by one number, and it is on the label.
Find the serial number on the sticker. Most makers hide the build date in the first four characters, so a plumber reads the age off it in seconds. A young heater with a dead part is worth fixing. An old heater leaking from the tank itself is not, because that leak is rust through steel.
Shut it down safely before you touch anything
Gas heater? Turn the control knob to off.
Not to pilot. Off. If you smell rotten eggs near the unit, leave the house and call 911 or the gas utility from outside. That smell is gas, not a heater fault.
Electric heater? Kill the breaker first.
Before draining anything. An element powered up in an empty tank burns out fast.
Close the cold inlet valve.
The handle on the pipe entering the top of the tank. It stops the tank refilling as it leaks.
Leave the relief valve alone.
If the pipe from the top of the tank drips or steams, stand clear and let it cool. Never cap or plug that pipe.
What the symptom usually means
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No hot water, gas.
Pilot or igniter, thermocouple, or gas control valve. All three are parts, not a new heater.
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No hot water, electric.
Usually a tripped high limit switch or a burnt upper element. That reset button trips for a reason.
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Hot water runs out fast.
A broken dip tube mixing cold into the top of the tank, a failed lower element, or a tank too small.
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Rumbling or popping.
Sediment on the tank floor boiling under the burner. A flush may clear it. Rusty or smelly water alongside it points at a spent anode rod, which is cheap, or a tank already rusting through, which is not.
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A puddle under the tank.
Trace it upward. A drip from a fitting or the relief line is a repair. Water weeping from the shell is not.
Repair, a new tank, or tankless
When a repair is the honest answer
Thermocouples, igniters, gas valves, elements, thermostats, dip tubes, anode rods, and relief valves are all replaceable. If the tank body is sound, fix the part.
When a new heater is the honest answer
Water coming through the shell. A tank that has been flooded. A failed flue, or a burner that will not stay lit once the parts are new. Past that, money spent on parts is money spent twice.
Tank against tankless
A tank is cheaper to install, simple to service, and takes floor space. It keeps forty or fifty gallons hot around the clock whether you use it or not, and it runs out.
Tankless heats water as it flows, so it never runs out and wastes nothing standing by. The catch is the install. Most units want a larger gas line and a different vent, which is why a tank to tankless swap costs far more than tank to tank. With one bathroom the payback is slow. With two showers at once it makes more sense.
What changes the price
Gas line size and venting. Whether the heater sits in a tight closet or an open basement. Whether the old one has to come up stairs. The permit and inspection your village wants. Whether the shut-off valve and connectors get replaced while the pipe is open.
What is different about this in Lake County
- Your village decides whether this is a permit job
Buffalo Grove is explicit: a permit is required to install or replace a water heater, repair is not, the fee is $65, and a final inspection follows. Waukegan requires one too. Vernon Hills issues it over the counter with a plan review fee of $0.00. Source for Your village decides whether this is a permit job
- A permit usually needs a plumber's name on it
Villages here ask for a letter of intent from a licensed plumber. Highland Park goes further: a homeowner pulling their own plumbing permit sits a city test and must score at least 75 percent. Source for A permit usually needs a plumber's name on it
- The water here is moderately hard, not brutal
The regional supplier puts Lake Michigan water at about 8 grains per gallon and says it does not typically clog pipes. Lake Forest publishes 7.5 grains. Lake Zurich, still on deep wells, treats water that ran 14 to 18 grains down to 6 to 8. Scale here is a slow problem, which matters most to a tankless heat exchanger. Source for The water here is moderately hard, not brutal
- Grayslake wants the heat traps left in
Its replacement form must be signed by both the owner and the installing plumber, and states that heat traps must not be removed. Source for Grayslake wants the heat traps left in
Permit rules by town
Each town page names the permit office and what that village asks for.
Questions people ask about water heaters
What is the average cost to fix a water heater?
We do not quote, so a number here would be invented. A thermocouple or an element is a small part and a short visit. A gas control valve costs more. A new heater is a different order of money.
Can a plumber repair a hot water heater?
Yes, for anything that is a part rather than the tank. Igniters, gas valves, elements, thermostats, dip tubes, anode rods, and relief valves are normal repairs. A tank leaking through its own shell is the one thing nobody can repair.
How can I fix my water heater myself?
Safely, you can relight a pilot, reset the high limit switch once, check the breaker, and flush sediment from the drain valve. Past that you are into gas or line voltage, and a replacement is permit work in most villages here.
Do I need a permit to replace a water heater here?
In most of these towns, yes, and your village sets the rule, not the county. Buffalo Grove, Waukegan, Lake Zurich, Grayslake, Gurnee, Libertyville, Lake Forest, and Vernon Hills all treat a replacement as permit work. Repairs usually do not.
What to put in the form for a heater job
- Gas or electric, how old, and what it is doing. Read the serial number off the label if you can.
- Where the heater sits, and whether you are open to tankless. Basement, garage, closet, or attic, and whether stairs are involved. Say so on tankless even if you are undecided.
North Shore Plumbing connects Lake County homeowners with a licensed local plumber. We are not a plumbing contractor.
Cold shower this morning?
Send the make, the age, and what it is doing. A person reads every request. If we cannot place yours with a licensed plumber who covers your town, we tell you. See how it works.