Water Heater Repair in Livingston, MT
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Winter nights here and long outages take a toll on your water heater
Your water heater runs all year in Livingston, and on winter nights that average 13°F it works harder to keep water hot. That extra work adds up on the heating element in an electric unit and the burner assembly in a gas one.
Power is the other part of it. Park County has seen 120 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and across Montana 18% of households went at least 24 hours without power in 2024. A gas water heater with a standing pilot will keep running through an outage. An electric unit or a gas unit with an igniter will not come back on until power is restored, and if it does not restart on its own once the power is back, the igniter or thermostat may be what failed.
- 13°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 18%
- of Montana households lost power for a day or more in 2024, and a heater with an electric element or electric ignition stops without it
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new water heater would cut about $60 a year off hot water for a typical Montana home.
Estimates for a typical Montana home, compared with an older unit built to the federal minimum, from EIA household energy data and Montana fuel prices. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when an element, thermostat or gas valve has failed.
Replacement makes sense when the tank itself is leaking.
- Why is my water heater leaking from the bottom?
- Most often the tank itself has rusted through from the inside and is cracked. Sediment builds up at the bottom of the tank over the years, and once it wears a hole in the steel, water finds its way out. A leak from the bottom usually means the tank needs to be replaced, not repaired. Sometimes the leak is actually coming from a fitting, the drain valve, or the temperature and pressure relief valve above, and it just runs down the side and pools at the base, so it's worth having someone check where the water is really starting before assuming the worst.
- Why won't the pilot light on my water heater stay lit?
- The most common cause is a worn thermocouple, the small sensor that tells the gas valve the flame is lit. When it wears out or sits out of position, the valve shuts the gas off as a safety measure even though the pilot was burning fine. A dirty or clogged pilot orifice can cause the same problem. Either way, this is a simple part for a contractor to replace, and a standing pilot doesn't run on electricity, so this isn't something that shows up only after a power outage.
- Can a tankless water heater be repaired?
- Yes, most problems with a tankless water heater are repairable. Mineral buildup on the heat exchanger is the most common issue, especially if the unit has never been flushed, and that can be cleared out. Igniters, flow sensors, and gas valves can also be replaced without swapping the whole unit. A contractor will need to check the error code the unit is showing to know which part is causing the trouble.