Water Heater Repair in Parkston, SD
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Cold winters mean longer recovery times
From October through May, incoming water runs cold, and your water heater has to work harder to bring it up to temperature. That extra runtime falls on the heating element or burner, and on the thermostat that controls it. Over time that is what wears them out.
Parkston has seen 38 winter storms and 65 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Either one can cut power mid-cycle, and a water heater that loses power partway through recovery has to start over once it comes back on. If the pilot light or ignition system does not relight on its own, you are left with no hot water until it does.
- 12°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 8 months
- October through May, the months homes here need heat
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- Why is my water heater leaking from the bottom?
- Most often the tank itself has rusted through from the inside and is starting to fail. Water heaters have a glass lining that protects the steel tank, and once that lining cracks, the tank corrodes and eventually leaks at the bottom or the seams. It can also be a loose drain valve or a fitting sweating with condensation, which a contractor can check without replacing anything. But once the tank itself is leaking, the unit needs to be replaced, not repaired, since there is no way to reseal the steel.
- Why won't the pilot light on my water heater stay lit?
- The most common cause is a thermocouple that has worn out and no longer senses the flame. The thermocouple is a small sensor that sits in the pilot flame and tells the gas valve it is safe to keep sending gas. When it weakens, the valve shuts the gas off as a safety measure even though the flame was lit a moment ago. A dirty pilot orifice or a draft blowing across the flame can cause the same thing, so a contractor will check both before replacing any parts.
- Can a tankless water heater be repaired?
- Yes, most tankless water heater problems can be fixed without replacing the unit. Common repairs include descaling the heat exchanger of mineral buildup, replacing an igniter, or clearing a blocked vent. The exchanger itself can fail from years of hard water scale, and that is one of the few parts that may call for replacement instead of repair. A contractor can look at the error code the unit is showing and tell you which one you are dealing with.