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In this day and age, most residential property owners have been focusing on improving their home’s energy efficiency using eco-friendly methods. With constant advancements in technology, it has become easier for the average homeowner to find innovative techniques to help them achieve their objectives without compromising their comfort. One invention that has made it possible for homeowners to reduce the amount of energy and water spent in their households is the tankless water heater.
Indeed, the US Department of Energy research shows that homes that use an average of 41 gallons daily could benefit significantly from a tankless water heater installation.
Particularly, studies show that these products could be 24 to 34 percent more energy-conscious than typical storage tank water heaters, which are popular in most American homes. They also acknowledged that asking a tankless water heater repair professional to install one could help you benefit from 27 to 50 percent energy savings.
Even though they often retail at a higher price than conventional storage tank models, tankless water heaters last longer and typically have lower energy and operational costs.
While standard tank storage heaters may last for 10 to 15 years, tankless water heating systems can serve your Mansfield, TX, home for over 20 years. However, this doesn’t mean that these units are immune to damage and issues that may arise due to conventional wear and tear.
Here’s a look at a few of the things homeowners should inherently know about tankless water heater repair.
Common Tankless Water Heater Issues
As predetermined, you’re bound to experience some issues with your home’s tankless water heater. Although they typically have fewer maintenance needs, they may experience some unavoidable problems as time passes. That said, below are some of the common problems that your tankless water heater expert can help detect and resolve.
Low Hot Water Capacity
Ideally, tankless water heaters are engineered to supply enough warm water to serve your daily household needs. The system installed in your residence by your local tankless water heater repair expert should produce enough water to facilitate routine activities such as showering or washing the dishes and clothes.
If you’re constantly running out of hot water as you perform any one of these activities, it’s a sign that your residential water heating system may be overloaded.
If you choose a small unit, it may not provide enough hot water for use in more than one or two appliances. You can consult with your water heater repair technician to see if they can offer a replacement service.
However, you can easily resolve the issue by deactivating the water heater while in use by resetting the unit. Additionally, a tankless water heater expert may ask you to limit the number of simultaneous hot water applications to prevent the system from constantly shutting down.
If limiting your household’s water seems improbable, your tankless water heater repair professional can help you find and install a unit with a higher capacity. They can also ask you to consider installing a second water heating system. That way, your home will have one water heater for the appliances and another for the plumbing fixtures.
Clogged Exhaust Pipes
Your local tankless water heater expert can install three different types of systems. Depending on your selection, your residential unit can use propane, electricity, or natural gas to generate warm water. If your home’s water heater relies on propane or natural gas for operation, it’s probably integrated with a network of exhaust pipes. The pipes are supposed to eradicate the poisonous gas that facilitates the combustion process.
As a safety measure, tankless water heaters feature a prompt that presents a safety code whenever the system senses a clogged exhaust pipe. Since the pipe network leads to the exterior of your house, birds’ nests, rats, dirt, and sticks can create clogs, hence disrupting the flow of natural gas.
To stay ahead of the problem, you should ask your preferred tankless water heater repair contractor to inspect the pipes outside your residence to determine if there are any blockages.
If your unit’s displaying an error code, it may be due to a crack or hole in the gas pipes. You should also ask your technician to check if the pipes are tightly secure. A loose exhaust pipe can result in a hazardous gas leak.
Mineral Buildup
Hard water comprises a high concentration of minerals such as calcium and magnesium. With time, these minerals may begin to accumulate inside your residential tankless water heater.
Luckily, some signs can tell you if your unit has mineral deposits. These include the warm water being used in your household being discolored and having a brown or yellow color in extreme cases.
Your nearest tankless water heater repair expert can install a whole-home water softener upon request to help prevent issues associated with mineral buildup within the plumbing system.
Ignition Malfunctions
Propane- or natural gas-powered tankless water heating systems feature a hot surface ignition system designed to ignite the combustion gas.
Investing in a unit with this type of ignition can have several benefits, including low emissions and outstanding fuel efficiency. These igniter models comprise miniature electric parts made from silicon. That said, if you can’t seem to get any warm water in your Mansfield, TX, home, it could mean some of the electrical components within the ignition system are worn out.
Once you’ve switched on your home’s tankless water heater, the parts making up the hot surface ignition system gradually become warm. The warm surface, in turn, ignites the incoming natural gas before it reaches the gas burners.
That’s why a lack of hot water in your household is a premonition of impending ignition troubles. However, the issue can also result from a closed water or gas valve. Under such circumstances, you can consult with your trusted tankless water heater repair professional.
You can request assistance identifying where to find and how to open the gas and water valves. You can also ask them to help you determine if your tankless water heater is receiving an optimal supply of the two components.
Telltale Signs That Your Home Needs a Tankless Water Heater Repair Service
Now that you’re acquainted with some of the common problems that you may experience with your tankless water heater, you should also know some of the signs that denote these issues. Your unit’s not only important but also quite costly, which is why you should know when to request a professional tankless water heater repair service. The longer you leave the issues unresolved, the higher the chances of a complete system breakdown.
No Hot Water
A common issue with tankless water heaters is the lack of hot water under several circumstances. The ignition may be faulty or damaged if the unit’s red flame rod doesn’t generate sparks when you activate it.
You may also experience a lack of hot water if the shut-off valve is closed, a situation you can remedy by simply cranking the valve open. During the winter, you may encounter issues with the hot water supply in your Mansfield, TX, home due to frozen pipes. Your local tankless water heater repair expert can install an insulation jacket to keep the pipes from freezing.
The Water Gets Extremely Hot
If the water you’re receiving in your household is running too hot, it could mean that the thermostat may be set too high. In most cases, you could adjust the thermostat reading to a more acceptable level.
Besides that, your residential tankless water heating system can also produce extremely hot water due to excessive sediment buildup or faulty temperature sensors. If the temperature remains unbearably hot even after tweaking the thermostat, you should consider consulting your nearest tankless water heater, repair expert.
Fluctuating Water Temperatures
It may be time to schedule a professional water heater repair service if you seem to be getting warm when you first activate the system, which runs cold and then warms up again. This issue often results from warm water remaining in the pipes after some of it has already left the outlet.
It may happen due to improper sizing of the gas line in correspondence to your home’s tankless water heater installation. Alternatively, the system could be having a worn-out flow sensor or damaged plumbing crossover, causing cold and hot water to mix. Regardless, your tankless water heater repair professional near Mansfield, TX, can provide timely and effective solutions upon request.
Lukewarm Water
Your home may start receiving lukewarm to cool water due to a malfunctioning or improperly sized gas valve, which a trained tankless water heater repair expert can provide replacement solutions for. However, this phenomenon can also happen due to mineral buildup inside the heat exchanger, limiting warm water flow. Your plumbing contractor can also offer professional descaling services.
Gas Burners That Won’t Ignite
If the gas burner on your residential tankless water heater doesn’t have a flame or isn’t igniting, a poor ventilation installation service may be to blame. Excessive condensation could also put out the flame.
In some scenarios, the problem may be due to a loose or damaged flame rod or the gas valve being open when it should be closed. Your local tankless water heater repair expert should be able to identify the root cause and offer the appropriate solutions.
Low Water Pressure
An obstruction within the plumbing system or water heater filters can result in low hot water pressure.
This phenomenon may also happen due to multiple hot water appliances being used simultaneously. Additionally, low water pressure may occur due to technical issues with your local water utility service provider.
Noisy Burners
Dirt and debris that may be stuck in your tankless water heater’s fan may cause the unit to produce unusual clunking and banging noises. A leak in the sealed combustion chamber may also destabilize the combustion process, resulting in a strange noise.
On the other hand, improper ventilation may be to blame for the weird sounds that may be coming from your unit. An experienced tankless water heater repair professional can help identify and resolve any of the above issues.
White Smoke
Suppose you observe white smoke leaving the exhaust vent. In that case, you should immediately contact your tankless water heater repair contractor for your safety and to prevent further damage to your unit.
White smoke is often the result of higher exhaust gas temperatures than the external thermal conditions, causing an imbalance.
Tankless Water Heater Maintenance Tips
Even with enough knowledge of the various signs of tankless water heater problems, you should know a few maintenance tips to help you preserve the efficiency of your unit and avoid frequent calls to your tankless water heater repair service provider.
Counter Water Hardness
Water heater specialists cite water hardness as the main culprit behind most tankless water heater problems. As aforementioned, hard water contains a significant concentration of minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, which may cause the interior of your residential unit to start scaling with time.
Consequently, the heater may lose its operational efficiency, making it take longer to heat the water. Luckily, there’s a solution for this. You can ask your local tankless water heater repair service provider to install a filter to trap the mineral deposits or clean the unit’s interior thoroughly.
Annual Inspections
To prevent frequent water heater repairs and ensure tip-top performance all year round, you should request a professional plumber to inspect your tankless water heating unit at least once annually.
During this time, the technician can identify and repair minor issues before they cause further damage. Similarly, you should avoid trying your DIY skills on your tankless water heater, as you could harm yourself or exacerbate the damage.
Where to Find Professional Tankless Water Heater Repair Solutions in Mansfield, TX
If you need assistance in troubleshooting or fixing issues with your residential tankless water heater, look no further than Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Fort Worth.
Family-owned and operated, we’re fully licensed and certified to handle all your tankless water heater repair needs. Our well-trained technicians can also provide routine maintenance services for homeowners in Mansfield, TX, and its surroundings.