No Hot Water? How To Fix Hot Water Cylinder Issues - Fast!
You have a household full of people all trying to get ready for the day and someone shouts out – there’s no hot water! In this article we look at what you can do before calling a electrician or a plumber and when you need to call the experts.
Diagnosing Your Hot Water Issue
Before picking up the phone, there are several things that you can check yourself that could be causing your loss of hot water.
Demand – Are There Lots Of People Using The Hot Water?
The water may need time to reheat. Allow this to happen and check again. This could take several hours if reheating from completely cold.
Did The Water Heater Fuse Trip?
If the water heater fuse has tripped it will stop the flow of electricity to your hot water tank to heat the element. Reset and allow your water to reheat. Monitor the fuse to see if it trips again. If it does call South Island Electrical (SIE) on 03 354 4504. If you are unsure about the situation with the fuse or are in an older house, call SIE & they can talk you through it or arrange an Electrician to visit. If the fuse stays on, then again it may take several hours to reheat the hot water cylinder, depending on its size.
Faulty Or Old Cabling That Has Deteriorated?
If your hot water cylinder has old cabling that has deteriorated, SIE can re-wire the circuit to ensure your power supply is safe and operating correctly.
Is It The Tempering Valve?
Some hot water cylinders have what’s called a temperature limiting valve. This is a safety valve used to pre-mix the hot water to a safe temperature before coming through the tap. If this valve is faulty, the hot pipe at the top of the hot water cylinder will be hot but your water from the tap maybe only warm or fluctuating between hot & cold. If this is the case call South Island Plumbing (SIP) to fix the valve (03 354 4504).
Alternatively, if the pipe at the top of your cylinder feels cold, or if the fuse trips again after resetting, you may have an issue with the element or the thermostat. If this is the case, call South Island Electrical to resolve for you (03 354 4504). Once they have diagnosed the problem, they will either replace the thermostat, fix the electrical problem or they can arrange SIP to replace the element. SIE will then return later to re connect the wiring & test. Again, this could take several hours to re heat the hot water.
No Water, Or Water On The Floor
Either of these situations would indicate a major plumbing issue, its time to call South Island Plumbing to get to the bottom of the issue.
Old Tank – Time To Upgrade?
Do you have an old, inefficient hot water tank, is it leaky or have low pressure? Are you wanting to upgrade to a mains pressure hot water system? Or perhaps you are looking to increase your hot water capacity or move to a more environmentally friendly & energy efficient heat pump hot water solution. If so, we can guide you through all the available upgrade options to select the best fit for your needs, contact South Island Plumbing for a free consultation to discuss the available options.
Electrician or Plumber?
Unsure whether you need a plumber or an electrician for your hot water issue? The South Island Group have specialist teams to help you with any of your plumbing, electrical, drainage and underground services – one call does it all. Talk to us about your concerns and we will keep the process simple for you, finding the right solution, quickly.
For further information about available hot water cylinder options, breakdown, repair, maintenance, upgrades & chlorinated water & water cylinders – click here.
For expert advice, repairs, replacement, and new hot water heating solution installations South Island wide, call the South Island Group (03 354 4504) today for the most suitable residential or commercial hot water solutions for your needs & budget.