Snowbird Water Heater Checklist: Before You Leave and When You Come Back

What Should Snowbirds Do With the Water Heater Before Leaving?

Before you leave for the summer, close the cold-water supply to the heater, turn off the heat (breaker off for electric, gas set to "Pilot" or off), and shut the main water to the home if you can. Note the heater's age, add a pan or leak sensor with an automatic shut-off, and leave a key with someone who can check on it.

Every spring, a big share of Apache Junction packs up and heads north. The town of about 40,000 people roughly doubles to about 80,000 in winter, and many of those homes then sit empty from April or May until October. A water heater can leak for months in an empty home before anyone sees it.

Print this page, tick the boxes, and tape a copy inside the water heater closet. If you'd rather have us handle the close-up and start-up, see our snowbird water heater service.

Checklist 1: Before You Leave for the Summer

Do this a day or two before you go, not the morning you drive out.

Water and heat

• Close the cold-water supply valve on the pipe going into the top of the heater. A lever valve is off when the handle sits across the pipe. A round handle turns clockwise until it stops.
• Electric heater: switch its breaker off at the panel. Tape a "water heater off" note on it.
• Gas heater: "Pilot" keeps only the pilot lit, with no heating. "Vacation," if your control has it, keeps the pilot and holds the water at a low temperature, so the burner may still fire now and then. "Off" shuts the gas fully, but then the pilot must be relit in the fall. For an empty house, Pilot or Off is simplest.
• Close the main water valve to the home if you know where it is and it turns freely. This protects every pipe and fixture, not just the heater.
• Tankless heater: turn off its power and gas, and close the isolation valves under the unit. If it shows an error code when you return, see our tankless repair page.
• Open one hot faucet for a moment after closing the supply, to let the pressure off the tank, then close it again.

Not sure where the valves are? Our guide on how to shut off a water heater shows both gas and electric units, plus what to do if a valve won't turn.

Should I drain my water heater for the summer?

Most people don't need to. A full tank with the supply off and the heat off is fine for most homes. Draining makes sense in some cases, but each choice has trade-offs.

Leak protection

• Check for a drain pan under the heater. A pan with a drain line to the outside is best.
• Set a battery leak sensor on the floor next to the heater. Wi-Fi models can send an alert to your phone up north.
• Look for drips now: at the top fittings, the relief valve pipe, the drain valve and the floor. A small drip in April is a big puddle by August.
• Make sure the relief valve pipe runs to a safe spot and has nothing capped or blocked on the end.

Age and records

• Write down the heater's age from the label. Tanks last about 8–12 years nationally, but with East Valley hard water many show trouble at 7–9. Our guide on how to tell how old your water heater is explains how to read the serial number.
• Take two photos: one of the label and one of the whole heater with its valves and pan. They help with insurance and with phone calls from out of state.
• Leave a copy of this list in the closet with the date and what you turned off.

Access and outside closets

• Leave a key with a trusted neighbor, your park manager or your property manager, and give them your phone number.
• Ask them to look in once a month and after big storms.
• Mobile homes with outside closets: check that the door closes tight and the weather strip is in one piece. Monsoon rain blows in through gaps.
• Seal small openings around pipes and vents with the right material. Mice, pack rats and insects like quiet closets, and they chew wire insulation.

Manufactured homes and park models have their own quirks. See our mobile home water heater repair and park model water heater repair pages for more on those.

Checklist 2: While You're Away for the Summer

You're not here, but your water heater is, and Apache Junction summers are hard on it. July highs average about 105°F, and the record is 119°F. A garage or outside closet gets hotter than that.

What can go wrong while the house sits empty?

Heat wears out rubber washers and flex lines. Monsoon season runs from June 15 to September 30, bringing wind and blowing rain along with power problems.

• After a storm, your checker should look for water on the floor, a wet pan, or rust streaks on the tank.
• Breaker off keeps storm surges and outages away from the heater. Surges can damage thermostats, elements or electronic controls, so that's one more reason to switch it off before you go.
• A rotten-egg or gas smell is different. If your checker smells gas, they should leave, then call 911 and Southwest Gas or your propane supplier from outside.
• If they find water, they should close the main valve and call us. We can talk them through it by phone, any hour.

Checklist 3: Coming Back in the Fall

Order matters here. The classic start-up mistake is turning the power on before the tank is full, which can burn out an electric element.

1. Look first. Check the floor, pan, top fittings and drain valve. Water or rust? Stop and call. (A little water in the pan after a gas tank's first heat-up can be condensation rather than a leak.)
2. Open the main water slowly. Hissing or running water somewhere means a leak.
3. Open a hot faucet in the kitchen or tub and leave it open.
4. Open the cold supply to the heater slowly. Air sputters out of the open faucet as the tank fills.
5. Wait for a steady stream. When the hot faucet runs smooth with no air, the tank is full. Close it.
6. Check again for drips now that the tank is under pressure. Look at every fitting and the drain valve.
7. Turn the heat back on. Breaker on for electric. For gas, set the knob from "Vacation" or "Pilot" back to your normal setting, or relight using the steps on the heater's label.

Why does my hot water smell after the summer?

Water that sat warm for months can pick up a stale or rotten-egg smell. The sulfur smell often comes from bacteria in stale water reacting with the tank's anode rod. Running the hot taps for several minutes, or a flush, usually clears it. Our guide on how to flush a water heater walks through a flush step by step.

Should I test the relief valve when I get back?

A quick test is a good idea. With a bucket under the discharge pipe, lift the lever for a second or two and let it snap back. Water should flow, then stop. If it keeps dripping after, the valve may not be sealing. Our page on a relief valve that keeps leaking explains what that means.

Fall start-up checklist

• Floor, pan and fittings dry before and after the tank fills
• Air purged from the hot lines before power or gas goes on
• No sulfur or stale smell after running the hot taps
• Relief valve tested and not dripping
• Leak sensor battery checked and sensor back in place

When Should a Snowbird Call for Help?

Call us if you find water in the pan or on the floor, rust on the tank, a soft floor near the closet, a pilot that won't stay lit, or no hot water three or four hours after the heat is back on. If the heater is past 10 years old and you'll be away again in spring, it may be time to talk about replacing it before you go rather than after a leak.

Apache Junction Water Heater Pros is open 24/7, including the return weeks in October and November, from east Apache Junction (see leak repair in 85119) to Gold Canyon. You can start with our water heater leak repair in Apache Junction page, or call +1 480-863-0807. More common questions are on our water heater FAQ.

Snowbird Water Heater Checklist FAQs