Who do you call when there’s no hot water?

So, you don’t have any hot water… and it is a giant pain. You went to have a nice hot shower after a long day at work and you are met with an icy wave of unpleasantly cold shower water and you want to know who to call. You know you have an electric hot water system… but what next?

Troubleshooting electric hot water heater problems

You don’t want to call a plumber if you actually need an electrician, and you don’t want the reverse to happen either. How do you know which one? Below we have listed out some common issues that can be addressed by either a plumber or an electrician, however, this list isn’t extensive. It is a lot easier to figure out if something is a plumbing issue, as opposed to an electrical one, so feel free to give your local professional a call to see if they can assist with what is happening.

Things to check yourself before calling a professional

Before getting on the phone, there are two things you can take a look at to see if you can fix the problem yourself :

• See if your circuit breaker is tripped – if so, try and turn it back on (if you can safely) and see if it stays on
• Take a look at your hot water heaters’ pressure relief valve – there is a little lever that you will see at the top of the relief valve that is there to test your system. Try and lift the lever to see if water can flow through the overflow pipe. It is sometimes the case that your heater is just a little low and needed a top up, so ensure you keep the valve up until water has flowed into the overflow pipe

But what do you do if they don’t work?

When do you call a plumber?

There are a few things to consider when deciding if a plumber should be your tradesperson of choice, but the main ones are :

• Is there leaking water?
• Is there are a reduced amount of water coming out of the tap?
• Is there no water at all?
• Is the bottom of your system rusty?

If any of these are the case, a plumber is likely the best choice for repairing your system. Just remember, if there is water present (where it shouldn’t be) then it is likely a plumbing job!

When do you call an electrician?

Electrical situations can be a little trickier to determine. To put it simply, if you think there is an electrical component that you believe is controlling the system and it isn’t working, an electrician will be the best person to call. However, if it isn’t that simple, there are a few other ways you may be able to figure out that an electrician is the tradesperson you need :

• If you have tried to turn your circuit breaker back on, but it won’t remain on
• If you believe a fuse has blown
• You only have lukewarm, not hot, water – this can indicate a problem with your thermostat

If you are getting your whole hot water system replaced, especially if it is an upgrade, ensure you get an electrician to look at your wiring to ensure it is capable of handling the larger workload.

If you have any questions or are still unsure if you should be calling a plumber or an electrician to come and fix your hot water heater, give us a call on 1300 911 307 and we can discuss what you need. If you would like to arrange us to attend to take a look or repair your system, give us a call or complete an online job booking form today. We are your local, experienced electricians and we know how important it is to have your hot water running like it should!

Your Local Electricians

We provide electrical services in North Shore, Northern Beaches, Eastern Suburbs, Hills District and Ryde.