Water Heaters.
The water heater is the hardest-working appliance in the house and the one most people ignore until a cold shower — or a flooded utility room. Here’s what we check, how our hard water shortens their lives, and the small maintenance that adds years.
What we check during an inspection
We evaluate the visible unit, its safety devices, and its installation — and we always decode the age.
✓ Age & capacity
The serial number tells us the manufacture date; we report it against the ~10–12 year expected life and note whether capacity fits the home.
✓ TPR valve & discharge
The temperature-pressure relief valve is the tank’s failsafe against explosion. We check it exists, isn’t capped, and discharges through a proper pipe toward the floor.
✓ Venting & combustion
On gas units: draft, flue condition, clearances, and signs of backdrafting or scorching around the burner compartment.
✓ Connections & shutoffs
Water and fuel connections, the cold-water shutoff, dielectric fittings, and any signs of past leaks at the fittings.
✓ Expansion tank
Where a check valve or pressure regulator closes the system, an expansion tank protects the plumbing — we note when one’s missing or waterlogged.
✓ Location & pan
Units over finished space should have a drain pan; garage units need protection and elevation appropriate to the installation era.
Common problems we find
✓ Past-date units
Tanks 12, 15, even 20 years old still running — every year past 12 is borrowed time, and failures arrive as leaks, sometimes big ones.
✓ Sediment buildup
Front Range hard water drops mineral into the tank. The rumble and pop of a sediment-loaded heater is it working harder to heat through rock.
✓ TPR problems
Missing discharge pipes, pipes that run uphill, or — the scary one — capped valves. A failed TPR setup turns a tank into a pressure vessel.
✓ No expansion tank
Closed systems without expansion control stress the tank and every fixture; the telltale is a TPR valve that periodically weeps.
✓ Venting defects
Disconnected or back-pitched flues, missing draft hoods, and melted grommets — all carbon-monoxide pathways.
✓ Amateur installs
Missing permits show: flex lines where hard pipe belongs, no drip leg on the gas line, saddle-valve tie-ins, and pans that drain nowhere.
What you can maintain yourself
✓ Flush the tank yearly
Hook a hose to the drain valve and flush until clear. In our hard water this single habit is worth years of extra life.
✓ Test the TPR valve
Lift the lever briefly once a year — you should get a burst of hot water through the discharge pipe that stops when released. No flow, or won’t stop: call a plumber.
✓ Know the shutoffs
Find the cold-water shutoff and the gas valve (or breaker) now. A leaking tank with a known shutoff is a mess; without one it’s a flood.
✓ Check the anode rod
The sacrificial rod is what rusts so the tank doesn’t. Having it checked/replaced around year 5 can meaningfully extend tank life.
✓ Keep 130°F-ish
Around 120–130°F balances scald safety, energy use, and legionella control. Much hotter wastes energy; much cooler risks bacteria.
✓ Plan the replacement
Replace on your schedule around year 10–12 — you get to choose the unit, the price, and a dry floor. The tank chooses none of those for you.
Common questions
How long do water heaters last?
Standard tanks: 10–12 years on average, often less in Front Range hard water without flushing. Tankless units: 15–20+ years with descaling. The manufacture date is encoded in the serial number — we decode and report it on every inspection, because “the water heater is 14” changes a buyer’s first-year budget.
Tank or tankless — which is better in Colorado?
Tankless wins on lifespan, space, and endless hot water, and loses on upfront cost (often 2–3× installed) and hard-water sensitivity — ours demands regular descaling and usually a softener or conditioner to hit its lifespan. High-altitude derating also applies to gas tankless sizing. For many homes a quality tank remains the pragmatic choice; for high-use households planning to stay, tankless pencils out.
Why is my water heater making popping or rumbling noises?
That’s water flashing to steam beneath a layer of sediment — the sound of mineral buildup making the burner heat rock before it heats water. It shortens tank life and efficiency. A thorough flush sometimes clears it; a heavily scaled older tank may be past the point of rescue, and the noise becomes an age indicator.
What is the pipe coming off the side of my water heater for?
That’s the TPR (temperature-pressure relief) discharge. If the tank ever over-pressurizes or overheats, the valve dumps hot water down that pipe instead of letting the tank fail catastrophically. It should run downhill, end near the floor, and never be capped or reduced. A dripping TPR is a symptom worth diagnosing — often thermal expansion, not a bad valve.
Does a water heater in the attic or over living space need anything special?
A drain pan piped to a drain, ideally with a leak alarm — because when a tank over finished space fails, it fails onto your ceiling. We flag pan-less installations over living areas every time. A $15 WiFi leak sensor on any water heater is some of the cheapest insurance in the house.
This guide is for general education. It reflects what we look for during a home inspection, not a substitute for a licensed professional. If you have a specific concern, please contact a licensed plumber — and of course, we’re always happy to take a look during an inspection.
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Read →Concerned about your water heaters?
We’ll give your home a thorough, plain-English inspection and flag anything worth a closer look.