When Your Water Isn’t As Hot As It Used To Be
If you enjoy hot showers, or like to make sure the water you are washing and cleaning with is hot enough to kill the germs, what do you do when you realize your water is not as hot as it used to be? If your hot water stops working all together then you may want to contact a plumber . However if it just isn’t as hot as it used to be, it may be due to the following problems.
Why Isn’t My Water Getting Hot?
There are a few easy things you can check first.
- If your electric water heater is not heating the water properly there could be a problem within the circuit breaker. Be sure to check all the fuses to make sure there are no blown fuses. You can also purchases a circuit tester and tester the heater’s thermostat as well as the heating element. If one of these has failed it will cause your hot water system to not work. Replace any parts that are no long working.
- If you have a gas heater the best place to start is the pilot light. Make sure it is still lit and if it’s out, re-light it. Once you have checked out the basics you can move to other reasons as to why your hot water system is not working correctly.
Check the Temperature Dial
The next place to check is the temperature dial; it may have gotten turned down on accident. Heating your hot water back up to the temperature you prefer could be as easy as turning the temperature dial back up.
Check for Leaky Faucets
If you have leaky faucets in your home, they could be leaching hot water from your system. Take a walk through the home and make sure you’re faucets aren’t leaking. If you find a leaky faucet, have it fixed as soon as possible; this will not only help your hot water situation but will also lower your water bill. If your leaky pipe turns into a larger problem call a plumber to prevent water damage inside your home.
Pipe Insulation Could Be to Blame
If your pipes are not insulated properly, you will find that the water will vary depending on the current air temperature. This can also cause frozen pipes, where you find no hot water comes out at all. Adding insulation to your pipes can help with varying temperature differences.
Water Heater Recharging
Listen and watch to see if your water heater is recharging after a large amount of hot water is used. Running a hot bath or taking a long shower can use up the hot water in the tank. It may take your hot water anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to recharge. If your system is taking a long time to recharge it may be getting to the end of its life, or there may be another problem that it is worth calling a professional plumber for.
If your hot water isn’t getting hot enough and you are not confident dealing with a hot water system on your own, call American Mechanical for 24 hour emergency plumbing services in Virginia Beach .
