An unexpected cold shower is never a pleasant surprise. We rely on our water heaters to provide hot water at the turn of a faucet handle, but what happens when the hot water stops flowing? Water heaters can run cold for a variety of reasons, and it’s important to accurately diagnose the issue before attempting to make a repair. If your water heater runs out of hot water too fast, Gold Star Services is here to explain the reasons why and help restore your hot showers.

Reasons for a Water Heater Not Heating

To figure out why a water heater isn’t working, it’s important to consider the type of water heater. There are three main types of water heaters used in homes today.

• Gas Water Heaters: For gas water heaters, a common problem is that the pilot light is out. This can happen if the gas supply is interrupted, a breeze has blown out the pilot light, or the gas valve is turned off.
• Electric Water Heaters: For these water heaters, it’s likely that either the power supply has been interrupted or the controls or heating elements are not working.
• Tankless Water Heaters: Tankless water heaters can experience issues like mineral buildup, ignition failure, or a system overload.

Most of these problems need to be professionally diagnosed. Trying to repair a water heater on your own can cause damage to the device, so be sure to call a plumbing technician.

What To Do If Your Water Heater Runs Out of Hot Water Too Fast

Any water heater can experience power interruptions or mechanical failure that prevent water from being heated at all. But what if you ARE getting hot water, just not enough of it? There are two main factors to consider:

• Your water heater needs maintenance. Water heater tanks can experience sediment and mineral buildup over time. They need to be flushed periodically to make sure that sediment doesn’t interfere with heating. If you haven’t been flushing your water heater, and you’ve gradually seen your hot water running out faster, this is likely the problem. Call a plumbing technician to officially diagnose the issue, and don’t attempt to flush a water heater if it hasn’t been flushed in a long time.
• Your water heater is over capacity. Has your family grown, or have you simply been using more hot water than usual? Multiple people trying to take hot showers at once can overload your water heater – it just isn’t able to keep up. To solve this problem, you can try limiting the amount of hot water being used at once. Another solution is to get a bigger tank or upgrade your water heater to better serve your household.

Gold Star Services are the Water Heater Experts

Need help figuring out what’s wrong with your water heater? Contact Gold Star Services at 1-302-947-8694 for expert advice, maintenance, and repairs. We look forward to helping you enjoy hot showers that won’t turn cold!