Why It Makes Sense to Hire a Professional to Install Your Water Heater

plumbing emergency

Why It Makes Sense to Hire a Professional to Install Your Water Heater

Look, we get it. 

The temptation to save a few dollars has you considering buying a water heater from a big box store and doing the installation yourself.

But before you’re knee-deep in water, understand that a water heater can be a complicated appliance to install, and doing it yourself could harm you and potentially your family. 

Here are the dangers of installing a water heater yourself:

Make sure to hire a professional.

1. You can be seriously injured just by moving the unit. An empty fifty-gallon water heater can weigh around 150 pounds. These tall and reasonably wide appliances, when combined with their weight, are hard to balance in transport, and having one fall on you can cause numerous severe injuries. 

2. Connecting the new water heater can be risky. It is not uncommon for old pipes, especially ones that haven’t been touched in a few years, to be corroded or rusty. Removing old connections and attaching new ones can raise the risk of the novice cutting themselves. Also, if you don’t provide adequate time for the old unit to cool down, you run the risk of severely burning your hand on scalding hot water. 

3. You run the risk of releasing natural gas into the house. Since most water heaters are gas-powered, it is crucial to have a deep understanding of how to fully disconnect and reconnect a gas line safely. Even a small gas leak can fill a room very quickly and lead to gas poisoning for everyone living in the house.

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