A water heater failure is one of those problems that announces itself immediately — a cold shower, a puddle in the utility closet, or a unit that’s just stopped keeping up with your household. RM Mechanical Services repairs and replaces residential water heaters, including both traditional tank units and tankless systems.
Signs your water heater needs attention
- Not enough hot water, or water that runs out faster than it used to
- Rusty or discolored water coming from the tap
- Rumbling, popping, or banging noises from the tank
- Water pooling around the base of the unit
- A tank older than 10-12 years
Most standard tank water heaters last around a decade before efficiency drops and failure risk climbs — if yours is getting up there in age, it’s worth having a technician take a look before it fails on its own schedule, usually at the worst possible time.
Tank vs. tankless
Traditional tank water heaters are the most common and least expensive to install, but they take up space and can run out of hot water during heavy use. Tankless units heat water on demand, take up a fraction of the space, and never run out — at a higher upfront cost. We’ll walk you through both honestly based on your household’s actual hot water usage, not just what’s more profitable to sell.
Already have a system that’s just acting up? We repair existing tank and tankless water heaters too, not just new installs.
Heat pump water heaters
A heat pump water heater (sometimes called a hybrid water heater) works like a heat pump HVAC system, but for your hot water — it pulls ambient heat from the surrounding air instead of generating heat directly, which typically uses 2-3 times less energy than a standard electric water heater. They’re a strong fit for basements, garages, or utility rooms with enough space and ambient warmth around the unit, and many utility companies and states offer rebates that offset a meaningful chunk of the higher upfront cost.
One thing worth knowing: because it’s pulling heat from the surrounding air, a heat pump water heater also cools and dehumidifies the room it’s installed in — usually a welcome side effect in a damp basement, less so in an already-finished, conditioned space. We’ll help you figure out if your install location actually makes sense for one before you commit to it.