hot water heater is leaking from the top

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todd_k

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My gas hot water heater is leaking at the top where the pipe comes out of the hot water heater and goes into the house. It is leaking at the connection point where the pipe would screw into the hot water heater. There is quite a bit of corrosion around that section. I can feel down at the bottom that the insulation inside the tank is wet and there is a small (but growing) puddle on my garage floor.
Is there an easy fix to this? What about the wet insulation?

I have an AHS home warranty that expires in 2 days, I called them and a plumber will be calling me tomorrow morning. Is there anything I can do between now and then to fix or minimize the damage?
 
I'd see if you can get a new water heater on your warranty. If it is corroded, any "fix" is going to be temporary.

If the leaking water is a problem, you can shut off the water to the heater and just use cold in the house for now. If it is leaking into a drain, let it leak, but watch it as it may suddenly leak a lot more.
 
Hello Todd:
Your Plumber will probably remove the fitting that enters the water heater and replace it with a di-electric fitting. Electrolisis is what has eaten the present fitting up, it is encouraged by dissimiliar metals, hot water and movement of the water. Its an easy fix for the plumber and thank the Lord for the warranty.
Glenn
 
Sometimes it may be less expensive to change the heater if it is over 12 years old also. Now is when all the parts are beginning to give out, if it is under warranty, see if you can get one more efficient....or at least pay half of the cost for a new one. .:D
Worth a try.;)
 
I determined that my hot water heater was leaking from the HOT side coming out the top. After I turned off the water and got a wrench, I remembered an old friend talking about how copper electrical wires sometimes come loose just by the nature of the current and the copper. I noticed that the pipe was copper, the fitting brass and the nipple from the heater was galvanized, so I took the wrench and tried tightening. VOILA! It was loose and tightened down nicely. Water heater problem solved!
 
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