Heading up north? What to do with your water heater and water before you leave.
For a trip of more than a couple of days, set a gas water heater to its vacation or pilot setting, or switch an electric one off at the breaker, and think about closing the main water shutoff. Leave the power to the rest of the house on, because your sump pump still needs it while you're away.
July is when half of Oakland County heads up north for a week, and this year the month opened with a reminder of what can happen at a house nobody's watching. The July 3 storm knocked out power to roughly 400,000 DTE customers with wind gusts over 60 miles per hour, and as this goes up, thousands of homes are still waiting on power. A few minutes in the basement before you load the car makes a week away a lot less of a gamble.
Gas water heater: vacation or pilot, not off
Most gas water heaters have a dial on the control box with a "vacation" or "pilot" setting. Turn it there. The pilot stays lit, but the main burner doesn't fire to keep a full tank of water hot for nobody. When you get home, turn the dial back to your normal setting, and the tank will be back to temperature in an hour or two.
We recommend vacation or pilot over turning the gas all the way off, because a pilot that's been shut off has to be relit when you get back, and plenty of people would rather not do that. Some newer units have electronic controls with a vacation button instead of a dial. The label on the front or your owner's manual will show which yours has.
Electric water heater: flip the breaker
Electric units don't have a pilot to keep going, so the simplest move is to switch off the water heater's breaker at the panel. When you get back, flip it on and give the tank a couple of hours to heat.
The one thing to never do is turn the power back on to an empty tank. If someone drained it while you were away, or you drained it yourself, fill it completely and run a hot faucet until the water flows steadily before the breaker goes back on. An element that powers up without water around it burns out almost immediately.
Should you shut off the main water?
For a week or longer, we think it's worth it. A split washing machine hose or a failed toilet supply line can run for days in an empty house, and closing the main turns that into a small puddle. The main shutoff is usually near where the water line comes through the basement wall. On a well, which is common around Milford, Highland, and White Lake, you can also switch off the well pump's breaker.
Two things to know first. If you have an irrigation system fed from the same line, it won't run while the main's closed, so plan for the lawn. And if a valve hasn't been turned in years, turn it gently. If it won't budge or starts to leak at the stem, leave it and give us a call rather than forcing it the day before you leave.
Leave the sump pump alone
It's tempting to flip the main breaker and call the house "off." Don't. Your sump pump needs power the whole time you're gone, and a July thunderstorm doesn't care whether anyone's home. Before you leave, pour a bucket of water into the pit and make sure the pump kicks on and shuts off, the same test in our sump pump maintenance checklist. If you have a battery backup, check that its alarm isn't showing a battery problem.
If you have a neighbor with a key, ask them to take a look in the basement after any big storm. Ten seconds at the top of the stairs is enough to catch a problem on day one instead of day seven.
When you get home
Open the main slowly, then run a couple of faucets until the air clears out of the lines. Turn the water heater back to its normal setting, or flip the breaker back on. We keep ours at 120 degrees, which the Department of Energy recommends and which is hot enough for anything a house needs.
Then take a quick lap: under the kitchen and bathroom sinks, around the base of the water heater, and at the sump pit. If the power was out while you were gone and there's water on the basement floor, don't relight or restart anything that got wet. Our guide on water heaters after a basement flood explains why.
If the tank rumbles, pops, or takes longer than it used to to get hot after it's been sitting, that's usually sediment, and our hard water guide explains where it comes from. For anything else, our water heater page covers what we do.
Quick answers
Should I turn off my water heater when I go on vacation?
For a trip longer than a couple of days, yes. Set a gas water heater to its vacation or pilot setting, or switch an electric one off at the breaker. When you get home, turn it back to your normal setting and it will reheat in an hour or two.
Is it safe to leave a gas water heater on pilot?
Yes. The pilot setting keeps only the small pilot flame lit while the main burner stays off, which is what the setting is designed for. It also saves you from relighting the pilot when you get back.
Should I shut off my water main when I go on vacation?
For a week or longer, it's worth doing. A burst supply line can run for days in an empty house. Leave the power on, though, so the sump pump can still run, and don't force a valve that won't turn.
Countryside Plumbing is a licensed master plumber serving Milford, Novi, Farmington Hills, and southeast Michigan since 1979. Water heater repair and replacement is what we're known for, and we leave your house clean. Free quotes at 248-705-7543.