Cold shower this morning, or a tank that's leaking from the base? We replace hot water systems across Maitland, usually the same day for a like-for-like swap, and we'll tell you straight whether a repair is worth it first.
NSW plumbing, drainage and gasfitting Lic. 000000C (demo)
Sample review
Old electric tank in a heritage cottage, nowhere obvious to put a heat pump. They found a spot down the side that you can't see from the street and the power bill has dropped noticeably.
Sample review · Wattlewater Plumbing is a fictional business
What's involved
Most hot water systems give a warning before they go: water that runs warm instead of hot, a rumble from the tank, a rusty tint at the tap, or a puddle at the base. If yours has reached the puddle, ring rather than email. A leaking tank only gets worse, and it's usually leaking into a wall or under a floor you can't see. If the floor is wet and you can't tell where from, our water leak detection finds the source before anything is pulled up.
We carry the common electric and gas units on the van, so a straight swap is often done the day you call.
Most of the systems we install now are heat pumps: they use roughly a third of the power of an electric tank, and rebates take a share off the price. Our post on heat pump hot water covers how they work, the running costs and the NSW rebates. If the house has mains gas, a continuous-flow gas unit is the other common choice, and solar suits a big household with a good north-facing roof. We recommend one for your house when we quote.
If the house already has mains gas, a continuous-flow gas unit heats water only when you turn on a tap. It never runs out halfway through the third shower, and it takes up a fraction of the wall space a tank does. Gas storage tanks are still around and we replace those too. A gas changeover is gasfitting work, done under our licence and certified. If you ever smell gas near the old unit, read what to do about a gas leak before anything else.
Not every cold shower means a new system. In the 1970s and 80s brick homes around Rutherford, plenty of tanks have one more year in them with a new element. A tripped element, a failed thermostat or a stuck tempering valve can usually be repaired in one visit for far less than a replacement. Before you ring, check the hot water circuit hasn't tripped at the switchboard, and on a gas unit, that the pilot light is on.
The price depends on the type and size of the system, and on whether it stays where the old one was. You get a free, fixed quote before we start, with any rebate shown as its own line, and the price you agree to is the price you pay.
Questions
A like-for-like swap, electric for electric or gas for gas in the same spot, usually takes two to four hours. Changing type, moving the unit or adding a new gas line takes longer, and we tell you when we quote.
If the tank itself is leaking, replace it: a leaking cylinder can't be fixed. A failed element, thermostat, tempering valve or relief valve can usually be repaired. As a rule, a tank over ten years old with a fault is usually worth replacing rather than repairing.
Usually, for a like-for-like swap. We carry the common electric and gas units on the van, so if you ring in the morning, you're often back in hot water by the afternoon. A change of type, or a unit we have to order in, can take a day or two.
It depends on how many people live in the house and how they use hot water, not on the size of the old one. As a rough guide, a storage tank is sized at about 50 litres a person. We work it out with you when we quote, so you don't pay to heat water you never use.
If you already have mains gas at the house, continuous-flow gas is compact and never runs out. If you don't, a heat pump is usually the cheapest to run, and solar suits a big household with a good north-facing roof. We'll recommend one for your house, not the one with the best margin.
Yes. The old unit is drained, disconnected and taken away, and the metal is recycled. It's included in the quote, not added at the end.