Is a Water Heater Leak an Emergency? When to Call Now

It's 11 p.m., there's water by the heater, and you're wondering whether this can wait. Use this guide — and when in doubt, call. We'd rather talk you down from a false alarm than mop up a preventable flood.

Call now — true emergencies

Active flooding from the tank or a burst connection. Any smell of gas near a gas heater — leave the area and call from safety. Water spraying from a fitting or split seam. Scalding discharge from the T&P pipe. Electrical signs: tripped breaker you can't reset, sparking, or standing water touching the unit or outlets. For any of these, our 24/7 emergency line is (833) 713-2101.

Same-day, but not 2 a.m.

Steady dripping from the drain valve or a fitting with the water shut off — you've contained it; call first thing. T&P valve weeping into its discharge pipe without scalding heat. Damp base with no active pooling. Shut the water and power down using our 6 emergency steps, put a bucket or towel down, and call in the morning.

Can wait for a scheduled visit

Light condensation on humid days (confirm with the wipe-and-wait test). Rusty hot water with no visible leak — needs attention soon, but not tonight. A heater past its prime that you want assessed before it fails — the smartest call on this list.

The cost of waiting wrong

A $200 valve drip ignored for a month rots a subfloor; a tank-shell weep ignored for a season becomes a 40-gallon basement flood. Attleboro's finished basements and vintage hardwood floors make delay expensive. When the line between "wait" and "now" feels blurry, describe what you see to our technician at (833) 713-2101 — we'll give you a straight answer, free.