No Hot Water? Water Heater Fixes for New Braunfels Homes

Which checks apply depends on your fuel, and in New Braunfels that can change from one neighborhood to the next. The City's utilities page (opens in a new tab) says New Braunfels Utilities (NBU) supplies electricity to most of the city, Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative (GVEC) serves the area south of County Line Road, around Voss Farms, and Pedernales Electric covers the area west out FM 306.

CenterPoint brings natural gas to many parts of the city, but not all of it. Veramendi is the one neighborhood with a confirmed CenterPoint supply, so everywhere else, look at the heater itself before you start.

Is my water heater gas or electric?

You can tell a gas water heater from an electric one by looking at the top and the bottom of the tank. A metal flue pipe on top and a gas line with a control dial near the base mean gas; a thick electrical cable into the side and no flue mean electric.

• Gas tank: a small window near the bottom shows the pilot or burner, and the label lists the gas type.
• Electric tank: one or two square access panels on the side cover the thermostats and heating elements.
• Tankless: a wall-mounted box; a gas model has a vent pipe running outside, and the label says which fuel.

My electric water heater has no hot water. What do I check?

An electric water heater with no hot water should be checked at the breaker first, then at the red reset button behind the upper access panel. A tripped breaker or a tripped high-limit switch is the most common reason an electric heater goes cold.

1. Find the double breaker labeled water heater. If it sits between ON and OFF, push it fully off, then back on. If it trips again at once, stop: that points to a shorted element or wiring.
2. Turn the breaker off, remove the upper cover, fold back the insulation and press the red button until it clicks. Replace the cover and restore power.
3. Give the tank time to reheat before judging it. A reset that holds for a day and then trips again means a thermostat or element needs replacing, not another push.

Elements and thermostats come in pairs, upper and lower. A failed upper element gives no hot water at all; a failed lower element gives a little that runs out fast.

My gas water heater has no hot water. What do I check?

A gas water heater with no hot water should be checked at the pilot first, then the gas supply valve, then the thermocouple. A pilot that has gone out is the most common cause, and the relighting steps are printed on the label.

• Pilot: no flame in the small window at the bottom means no pilot. Turn the knob to PILOT, hold it down, click the igniter, keep holding as long as the label says, then turn to ON.
• Gas supply: the shutoff handle on the gas line should run parallel to the pipe. If the stove is cold too, the problem is upstream of the heater.
• Thermocouple: this small probe sits in the pilot flame and tells the gas valve the flame is lit. When it wears out, the pilot dies the moment you let go of the knob.
• Newer gas water heaters: many use an electronic igniter instead of a standing pilot, so a blinking status light on the control replaces the window check. The label explains the blink pattern.

Smell gas? Stop there. Get everyone outside first, then call 911 and the CenterPoint gas leak line (opens in a new tab) at 888-876-5786 from outside. Do not flip switches or use a phone indoors.

Why is the water lukewarm instead of cold?

Lukewarm means the heater is working but something is shrinking its output: a broken dip tube, one dead element or a thick layer of sediment. Fully cold water points instead to power, gas or a control.

• Dip tube: carries incoming cold water to the bottom of the tank. When it breaks, cold mixes in at the top, and bits of white plastic in faucet aerators are the giveaway.
• One failed element: the upper element still heats the top of the tank, so you get a short burst of hot, then warm, then cold.
• Sediment: NBU's 2019 water quality report (opens in a new tab) (2018 data) recorded 8.1 to 19.5 grains per gallon, averaging 15.1, and newer reports publish no figure. Minerals at that level settle as the tank heats and take up room that should hold hot water.

Why does my tankless water heater have no hot water?

A tankless water heater with no hot water usually has one of three causes: a flow too low to fire the burner, scale in the heat exchanger, or a gas or power problem, and the display usually shows an error code that narrows it down. Start with the code in the owner's manual.

• Low flow: a tankless water heater only fires above a minimum flow, so a trickle from one tap may never turn it on. Open the tap wider as a test.
• Scale: on hard water, minerals line the exchanger's narrow passages. Navien, Rinnai and Rheem call for descaling at least once a year, more often on hard water.
• Fuel or power: check the breaker, and on a gas model make sure the gas valve is open and other gas appliances work.

When should I stop and call?

Stop troubleshooting and call when a breaker trips a second time, when the pilot will not stay lit after a careful relight, when you see water on the floor, or when the next step means opening wiring or the gas valve. Those are jobs for a licensed plumber.

• Repeat trips: a breaker or reset button that trips twice is telling you something is shorted or overheating.
• Water on the floor: switch to the leaking water heater guide and shut the water off first.
• Rotten-egg smell in the hot water: usually the anode rod reacting with the water, and a plumber can swap it.
• Any gas smell: leave first, then call 911 and the gas leak line.

What do the common fixes cost?

A typical repair visit for no hot water runs $200 to $850, about $550 on average, and most no-hot-water parts sit at the low end of that.

With water heater repair, you'll get a price for your exact repair before any work starts. Whoever does the job, ask for their Texas license number; master plumber numbers begin with "M".

Repair prices on this page are rounded averages of several national cost guides; the pricing page lists them.

Is it time to replace the water heater instead?

Replacing the water heater often makes more sense than another repair once the tank is past a decade old. A tank typically lasts 8 to 15 years, the span between the manufacturers' figures and Consumer Reports (opens in a new tab), and on an older tank a thermostat today and an element next month rarely pays off. One small, inexpensive part on a tank that is not leaking can still be worth fixing.

Find the manufacture date on the label, sometimes coded into the serial number. If the tank is old and also rumbling, rusty or damp at the base, ask about replacement on the same call. The replacement cost guide has the ranges, or get your price now.

Last updated: October 2, 2026