Water Heater Repair in Palm Bay, FL
Tell us what your water heater is doing, and a licensed contractor who covers Brevard County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Palm Bay water heaters run through storms more than cold
Water heaters here run nearly year round, since Palm Bay only needs heat in January. There's little winter to slow the wear on the tank and the heating element.
The bigger issue is power. Brevard County has logged 99 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and across Florida, 38% of households lost power for at least 24 hours in 2024. An electric water heater shuts down cold when that happens, and some units need a reset before they'll heat again once power is back. A gas water heater with a standing pilot keeps running through the outage itself, but its thermostat and any electric ignition parts can still need a look after a long one.
- 54°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 1 months
- January through January, the months homes here need heat
- 38%
- of Florida 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 $240 a year off hot water for a typical Florida home.
Estimates for a typical Florida home, compared with an older unit built to the federal minimum, from EIA household energy data and Florida 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, and once that happens the tank can't be patched or repaired, only replaced. Sediment builds up in the bottom of the tank over years, and it traps moisture against the steel until it corrodes. Water pooling underneath can also come from a loose drain valve or a fitting that's simply worked itself loose, so it's worth having a contractor check those first before assuming the worst. If the tank is the source, turn off the water and power to it until someone can look at it.
- 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 pilot is burning. When it wears out, it fails to hold the valve open and the flame goes out, even though everything else looks fine. A dirty pilot orifice or a draft pulling on the flame can cause the same thing. This is a gas component, so it's not something to keep relighting on your own if it won't hold. Have a licensed contractor check it.
- Can a tankless water heater be repaired?
- Yes, in most cases. Tankless units are built with parts that get serviced individually, things like the igniter, the flow sensor, or the heat exchanger, rather than the whole unit getting swapped out. Mineral buildup inside the heat exchanger is one of the more common issues, especially where the water is hard, and that can usually be flushed rather than replaced. A contractor can tell you whether what's failing is a part worth fixing or a sign the unit is at the end of its life.