Frozen pipes can cause cracks, leaks, or totally destroyed and burst pipes. Just avoid it altogether and keep your water heater on during vacation. Someone might need the hot water while you're gone.
If you have an electric water heater, it is recommended that you shut off the power and the cold water supply to the water heater if you are going away for any length of time. You will save electricity and limit any damage in case the tank leaks. Upon your return, do a visual inspection of the water heater.
When on vacation in the winter, you should still turn off the water. Shutting off the water to your home or business is safe to do year-round, but can be especially beneficial during the winter season. Cold temperatures can cause standing water to freeze, leading to burst pipes and soggy situations.
Keep It Running
If possible, your hot water heater should always be connected to a power source. This will keep it running, and much less likely to have issues with freezing, if it's exceptionally cold outside.
WAPT spoke to four plumbing companies that all said that homeowners should turn off the water heater if the water is not running for more than 24 hours.
If your hot water tank is empty and is not going to be refilled right away, you should turn off your water heater. This will prevent the tank from taking any damage from excessive heat buildup while it's empty. There are a couple of common reasons your hot water tank would be empty.
No it wont hurt the water heater. Turning the gas on and allowing the burner to operate with an empty water heater would damage it, but no gas, with or without water in the tank will not hurt anything. Be aware, water left in the tank may smell like rotten eggs until flushed for 10 mins or so prior to use.
If your hot water heater doesn't have a vacation setting, simply manually adjust your temperature to resemble Vacation Mode by lowering the temperature to 50 degrees Fahrenheit, or the lowest setting your thermostat allows. You may also choose to turn your hot water heater off completely.
Vacation mode is a setting on your water heater system that allows you to run your boiler at lower temperatures than normal, saving energy. Typically, manufacturers set vacation mode to 50° F—well below the warmth you need to heat your home, but hot enough to prevent any water from freezing while you're away.
How Long Can You Turn Off Water to a Toilet? Like turning off your toilet's water for a night, it's safe to do so for a week. While you can keep your toilet water off for as long as you'd like, we wouldn't recommend it unless you have a problem with your toilet's plumbing system.
Unplug Electronics
If any of your televisions, computers, sound systems, and other electronics are plugged directly into the wall rather than into a surge protector, pull the plugs in case a power surge happens while you're away. If the devices are plugged into surge protects, simply flip the switch to power them off.
When preparing your home for winter if you plan to be away, the best thermostat settings are between 55 and 60°F. If your winters are mild and freezing pipes are not as much of a concern, you can go lower to 45°F to potentially save money.
It's generally best to avoid turning your water heater off too regularly. Some homeowners try to save money by switching off their water heaters when they don't need them, but the savings are unlikely to be significant enough to justify the additional wear and tear on your machine.
When the main water line is turned off, it cuts off the water supply to your entire house, including both hot and cold water. The reason why hot water stops flowing when the main water line is turned off is because the hot water system in most homes is connected to the cold water system.
Even if you are going out for the weekend, it is always advisable to shut off your water supply. While on vacation, faults could be developing gradually within your plumbing. They could be pipe leaks, water heater malfunctions or clogged drains.
Simply turn off the main water supply valve, which is typically located inside your home, right where the main pipe enters the house. With some homes, the valve is located on the exterior where the pipe connects to the water meter and enters the house.
120 degrees Fahrenheit is the safety recommendation against scalding, but 140° is the common default setting. Most experts agree that anything below 120 degrees creates a risk for bacteria to develop inside your water heater from stagnant water, such as legionella that causes Legionnaire's disease.
For a power-vented water heater, you can prepare to go away by first setting it to vacation mode. Then shut off the cold-water supply to limit damage in the event of a leak. Lastly, you can disconnect the water heater to ensure that everything will be safe while you are away.
For Gas Water Heaters: Turn the knob on top of the thermostat clockwise to the off position. The thermostat is located near the bottom of the water heater. For Electric Water Heaters: Go to your circuit breaker panel, find the breaker for your water heater, and switch it to the off position.
Step 5: Turn on a hot water tap.
This helps to alleviate pressure and allows the tank to drain quicker. If possible, the DIY Network recommends using a tap that is on the floor above the water heater.
If the pilot light goes out, the gas will stop flowing and your unit will shut off. When heating is required, the gas control valve releases the gas into the main burner where the pilot light ignites the gas. Apart from lighting the main burner, the pilot light also provides warmth to the thermocouple.
Water Heaters
Your cold water supply is immediately ready for you, but the hot water has to go through the water heater first. One pipe carries the cold water to a water heater. From there, a hot water line moves the heated water to the fixtures and appliances that require hot water.
Because your pilot light relies on natural gas to stay aflame, shutting your gas off will also make your pilot light go out. Luckily, this simple matter can be solved by turning your gas back on and re-lighting the pilot light yourself.
Your water heater may be turning off because it is short-circuiting or because it has other electrical problems. Such damage may have developed from water damage, impact or wear-and-tear. This is also a problem that's better left to the professionals.