A switch was off
Push it up, wait for the next heating cycle. Cost you nothing, and now you know where that switch lives.
No Hot Water? Work Out Which Problem You Have
Cold altogether and running out early are two different faults, and only one of them is urgent.
No hot water at all, or running out every night? Here is how to tell a normal off-peak system from a real fault, what to check at the switchboard, and whether you need an electrician or a plumber. Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland and Port Stephens.
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Turn it off and ring someone if
Do not keep resetting it
- It trips the safety switch or the breaker every time it starts heating
- Water is leaking from the tank, or pooling underneath it
- The switch or the wiring at the unit is warm, brown or scorched
- You can hear loud banging or rumbling from the tank
- Water comes out scalding hot at the tap
- Anyone has felt a shock or a tingle from a tap or the shower
A tingle from a tap is the serious one on this list. Stop using the water, keep everyone away from it, and ring Ausgrid on 13 13 88 (Essential Energy 13 20 80 in some rural areas) as well as us. Water leaking from the tank is a plumber. Someone hurt: call 000.
Cold altogether, or running out early?
Stone cold, all day, no warm water at allSomething has stopped it heating. Usually electrical, usually ours.
Hot in the morning, gone by eveningIt is heating, just not enough or not often enough. Often completely normal.
Most electric tanks in the Hunter are on a controlled load, sometimes called off-peak. The power company only feeds them at certain times, usually overnight, because the power is cheaper then. The tank heats up a full load and that is what you get for the day.
So running out at 8pm after four showers and a load of washing is the system working as designed, not a fault. Running out every morning, or never getting hot at all, is a fault.
The split, plainly: if it is not heating, that is electrical and that is us. If it is leaking, or the water arrives scalding or barely warm at the tap while the tank is hot, that is a plumber. On a replacement, a plumber fits the tank and we do the electrical side.
What to check before you ring anyone
Five minutes, and it tells whoever comes out what they are walking into.
Find the switch at the unit
Most tanks have an isolating switch on the wall beside them so the power can be cut without going to the board. If it has been knocked off, or switched off by a tradesperson and not switched back, the tank simply stops heating.
Electric tanks are usually outside on a side or back wall, sometimes in a garage or a cupboard. Look for a switch in a weatherproof box near it.
Check the switchboard for a Hot Water switch
Open the switchboard door only. Never unscrew a panel, and leave anything labelled Solar or Battery alone. A switch is ON when the lever points up.
Hot water almost always has its own switch and it is usually labelled. If it is down, push it firmly up. If it stays up, give it a few hours and see whether you get hot water. If it snaps straight back down, the element has probably failed, so leave it off and ring us.
The meter board is on an outside wall on most homes. Where it is not, the switchboard is usually in the garage or a cupboard.
Work out whether you are on controlled load
This decides whether "no hot water right now" is even a fault. Two ways to tell:
- At the boardA separate switch labelled Hot Water or Off Peak
- On your billA separate line for controlled load or off peak
- At the meterA second meter or register just for hot water
- The patternAlways hot in the morning is the giveaway
If you are on controlled load and the tank was switched off for a day or two, it may take a full overnight cycle to come back. Give it one night before assuming it is broken.
Notice whether it trips when it tries to heat
If the breaker or safety switch goes off some hours after you reset it, rather than straight away, that is the classic sign of a failed element. It only leaks to earth once it starts heating, which is why it looks random.
Do not keep resetting it. Note roughly how long it runs before it goes off and tell us, because it saves diagnostic time on site.
What your result means
It is normal off-peak behaviour
Heating overnight and running out late in the day. Not a fault. A bigger tank or a timer change is the fix if it keeps happening.
The element or thermostat has failed
Cold altogether, or tripping once it heats. Both are electrical and both are testable before anything is replaced.
Fault finding >Want this sorted?
Tell us what is going on. We ring you back, usually the same day.
When to call an electrician about hot water
It trips the power once it heats
Almost always a failed element leaking to earth. We test it rather than guess, so you are not paying for a part that was fine.
Why it trips >
Stone cold with the switch on
The supply is on and nothing is heating. We test the circuit, the isolator and the element, and tell you which one it is.
You are replacing the system
A plumber fits the tank and we do the electrical. Worth getting us in early, because a heat pump or a bigger unit can need a different circuit than the old one had.
A tingle from a tap or the shower
That is not a hot water fault, it is a serious electrical one. Stop using the water, ring the network on 13 13 88 and ring us. Do not wait on this one.
Emergency help >
Renting, or managing rentals?
Renting? Tell your property manager whether it is cold all day or runs out at night, because those are different jobs. Hot water is generally an urgent repair under a NSW tenancy, so it is worth reporting straight away rather than waiting.
Property managers: tell us whether the tank is leaking, because that decides whether it is us or a plumber attending first. If it is not heating we test the element and the circuit and report what we find with photos the same day. Property maintenance >
Related home services
Fault finding and repairs
Elements, circuits and tripping power.
Read more >Safety switch keeps tripping
It goes off a few hours after you reset it.
Read more >Switchboard upgrades
Old boards, and circuits that were never labelled.
Read more >Emergency and after-hours
A tingle from a tap. Ring now, any hour.
Read more >Hot water questions
Why do I run out of hot water every evening?
If your system is on a controlled load, it only heats overnight when power is cheaper. Running out late in the day after heavy use is normal. Running out every single morning is not.
Is no hot water an electrician or a plumber?
If the water is not heating, it is usually electrical and that is us. If it is leaking, or the water comes out scalding or barely warm at the tap, that is a plumber. We do the electrical side, a plumber does the tank and the valves.
Why has my hot water stopped heating altogether?
Most often a tripped circuit, a failed element or a failed thermostat. All three are electrical and all three are testable, so it is worth having it checked before replacing anything.
My hot water trips the safety switch. What does that mean?
Nearly always an element that has broken down and is leaking to earth. It often trips only once it starts heating, which makes it look intermittent. Do not keep resetting it.
How do I know if I am on off-peak or controlled load?
There is usually a separate switch labelled Hot Water at the switchboard, and your electricity bill will show a controlled load or off-peak tariff as a separate line.
Can you replace my hot water system?
We do the electrical work for a replacement and a plumber fits the tank. On a changeover we sort our half and work in with your plumber.