Why Your Water Heater Is Not Heating Water

The pilot light is a crucial component in the functioning of your water heater. If it refuses to come on, you will be unable to get the furnace working, which in turn means cold showers in your home. However, this does not mean that your water heater is beyond being salvaged. Before enlisting the services of your plumber, you could first troubleshoot the thermocouple. This is a safety device in your water heater that functions to cut off the supply of gas to your heater in the event that the pilot light is off. 

The thermocouple has become obstructed

For your water heater to start operating, your pilot light needs to switch on. The heat from the pilot light is then sent to the thermocouple, which subsequently will switch on the gas. If the thermocouple is being obstructed, then it will not receive the heat from the pilot light. As such, your water heater will not receive any gas supply and there will not be any heating going on.

The first thing to do is check if the thermocouple has accumulated dirt. The more dirt on the thermocouple, the higher the chances it will be unable to receive any signal from the pilot light. This can easily be fixed by cleaning the thermocouple with fine sandpaper to remove any grit on it. However, ensure that you have turned off the main gas supply to avoid any unfortunate accidents.

The thermocouple is bent out of shape

Another reason that your water heater is not working is if the thermocouple has become curved or bent out of shape. In the event the thermocouple is no longer properly aligned with the pilot light, then it will be unable to register the heat sent out from the pilot light.

As with a dirty thermocouple, the first thing you should do is ensure that the gas supply has been switched off. You can then attempt to bend this component back into its rightful position. Ideally, the thermocouple should be close enough to the pilot light for it to detect heat immediately.

The thermocouple is damaged

If you have ascertained that the lack of hot water is due to the thermocouple, yet see no signs of misalignment or heavy grime, chances are your thermocouple has become faulty. The only fix for this would be to have it replaced with a new one. This should only be done by a professional plumber or electrician as improper installation of the new thermocouple will result in premature heating problems.