Water Heater Repair and Replacement in Westside, Ortega and Baldwin

What's in this district

This district runs from Ortega and Lakeshore on the St. Johns River west through Cedar Hills, Jacksonville Heights and Argyle Forest to the rural land around Whitehouse, Baldwin and Maxville. Ortega was laid out as a planned subdivision from 1909 and grew through the 1920s land boom, and its historic district holds everything from modest early frame houses to large Tudor and Mediterranean Revival homes. Cedar Hills was built mostly in the 1940s and 1950s as brick and block single-family homes. Argyle Forest was built almost entirely between the 1970s and the 1990s. Farther west, lots are large, many homes are newer, some are manufactured, and private wells are common. Naval Air Station Jacksonville sits on the river south of Ortega.

In Westside, Ortega and Baldwin, the pros we connect you with work across 32099, 32210, 32212, 32220, 32221, 32222, 32234 and 32244.

Rotten-egg hot water: the sniff test

Before calling, run a hot tap and a cold tap for a moment each and notice which one smells. The pattern tells a technician most of what they need to know.

• Hot only: the smell is almost certainly forming inside the water heater.
• Hot and cold: the smell is in the water supply, most often the well itself.
• One tap only: the drain under that sink or tub may be the source rather than the water.
• Only after time away: water that sat still in the tank has given the reaction time to build up.

Why it's common out west

Much of the western edge of Duval County, around Baldwin, Maxville and Whitehouse, relies on private wells drawing groundwater that often carries sulfate. Inside a warm tank, certain bacteria use that sulfate, together with the corrosion of the heater's anode rod, to produce hydrogen sulfide, the gas behind the smell. Magnesium anodes, the commonest type, are especially active, which is why a heater can smell while the cold water doesn't. City water can cause the smell too, though less often. See rotten-egg smell in hot water.

What a technician usually does

If the heater is the source, the usual fix is to replace the anode with a type that reacts less, such as an aluminum-zinc rod, or a powered anode that protects the tank without being consumed. A flush and a treatment of the tank may be done at the same time. What a pro won't do is simply remove the anode and leave nothing in its place: that can stop the smell, but it leaves the tank's steel unprotected and shortens its life. See anode rod replacement.

If the cold water smells too, the source is the supply, and that's a matter for well treatment rather than water heater repair, though a technician can still check whether the heater is adding to it.

Wells, sediment and heater life

Well water can also carry sand, silt and iron that settle in a tank faster than city water. Sediment takes up space meant for hot water, can bury the lower element on an electric heater, and makes the tank pop or rumble as it heats. Regular flushing, started early in the heater's life, helps. If there's a whole-house filter on the well, keeping it serviced helps the heater as well. See flushing and maintenance.

Manufactured homes on the rural edge

Around Baldwin, Maxville and the rural Westside, some homes are manufactured. Their heaters usually sit in an exterior compartment or a small closet, and replacements need a model designed for manufactured housing that fits the space and connection layout. A compartment reached from outside also means the heater's fittings face more outdoor air and damp. Mention it's a manufactured home when you call. See manufactured home water heaters.

Closer in: Ortega, Lakeshore and Cedar Hills

On city water, the smell is less common and the typical call is different. In Ortega's older houses, heaters may sit in utility rooms, closets or spaces added long after the house was built, sometimes over wood floors, where a drain pan with a working outlet matters. Many larger Ortega homes have natural gas, and gas heaters there should be serviced by technicians qualified for gas appliances. If you ever smell gas, which is different from a sulfur smell at the tap, leave the building and call your gas utility and 911 from outside. See gas water heater service.

In Cedar Hills and Jacksonville Heights, most homes are on their third or fourth heater, usually in a garage, carport or laundry area. In Argyle Forest, many homes are on their second or third. The manufacture date, coded in the serial number on the tank's label, tells you where yours stands.

When the smell and the age coincide

If an older heater starts to smell, it's worth weighing an anode change against a replacement. On a heater well into its second decade, with rust at the base or rumbling, the money may be better spent on a new heater fitted with a suitable anode from the start. The technician prices both. See water heater replacement.

Winter on the Westside

Well water and city water alike arrive colder in winter, so heaters recover more slowly and hot water can run short in January. If yours is struggling only in cold weather, it may simply be working at its limit rather than failing.

Base housing and a business ZIP

Housing at Naval Air Station Jacksonville has its own maintenance arrangements, so residents there should use those first. ZIP code 32099 has few or no residential addresses, so if you're unsure which district you're in, your street address is the better guide.

Other Jacksonville districts

• Riverside, San Marco and the Urban Core

  Downtown, Riverside, Avondale, Murray Hill, Springfield, San Marco and the older neighborhoods north and west of downtownZIP codes 32202, 32204, 32205, 32206, 32207, 32208, 32209 and 32254

• Southside and Mandarin

  Southside, Baymeadows, Deerwood, San Jose, Mandarin, Bartram Park and the Kernan and UNF areaZIP codes 32216, 32217, 32223, 32224, 32246, 32256, 32257 and 32258

• Arlington, Northside and Mayport

  Arlington, Fort Caroline, Oceanway, Dinsmore, the northside and MayportZIP codes 32211, 32225, 32277, 32218, 32219, 32226 and 32227

Or return to the Jacksonville overview.

Services most used here

• Rotten-Egg Smell in Hot Water
• Anode Rod Replacement
• Manufactured Home Water Heaters
• Flushing and Maintenance
• Gas Water Heater Service

Westside, Ortega and Baldwin questions

Why does only the hot water smell of rotten eggs at my Baldwin home?

Because the smell is forming inside the heater. Sulfate in the well water and bacteria in the warm tank can react with the anode rod, producing hydrogen sulfide. Cold water bypasses the tank, so it smells normal. A technician can confirm the cause and change the anode to a less reactive type.

Both the hot and cold water smell in my Maxville home. Is the heater to blame?

Probably not. When both sides smell, the gas is already in the water before it reaches the heater, usually from the well. That's a water treatment question for the well system. A technician can still check the heater to see whether it's making the smell stronger on the hot side.

Can I just take the anode rod out to stop the smell?

Please don't. Removing it may stop the smell, but it leaves the tank's steel without protection, and the tank can rust through much sooner. The fitting is often seized, and the job means isolating and partly draining the tank. A technician replaces it with a better-suited anode instead.

What's a powered anode, and is it worth it on well water?

It's an anode that uses a small electric current to protect the tank instead of corroding away. Because it isn't consumed, it doesn't feed the reaction that causes the smell. On wells where the smell keeps returning, many owners find it worth the extra cost. The technician can advise.

Our Argyle Forest heater is original to the house. Should we replace it?

If the house dates from the 1970s to the 1990s and the heater is truly original, it's well past a typical lifespan and worth replacing before it leaks. More likely it has already been replaced once or twice. Check the manufacture date coded in the serial number on the label.

Does a water heater in a manufactured home on the Westside cost more to replace?

It can, because it needs a model designed for manufactured housing and the compartment may be tight to work in. The difference depends on the home and the heater. Describe the setup when you call, and the price is agreed before any work begins.

My older Ortega home has a gas water heater. What should I know?

Gas heaters recover quickly, which helps in winter, and they need a sound vent. Servicing is for technicians qualified for gas appliances. If you ever smell gas, leave the building and call your gas utility and 911 from outside. Replacement is a good time to check the vent and add a drain pan.

Why did the hot water smell after we came back from a long trip?

Water that sits still in a warm tank for weeks gives the smell-causing reaction time to build up. Running the hot taps for a while often clears it. If it returns over the next few days, the anode and water conditions are likely the cause, and a technician can help.