If you smell gas around your heater turn the gas off immediately and call a licensed plumber to check the heater.
Water heater gas leak.
Although these are the two most common causes of a leaking water heater they are.
This chemical has a distinct smell and is highly noticeable when a leak does exist.
The chemical mercaptan is added to natural gas to better detect when a leak is occurring.
Check the plumbing pipes above the water heater using a stepladder if necessary.
The first place to check is the plumbing pipes above the water heater.
Turn off the power to the leaking water heater.
Is it normal for a hot water heater to smell like gas.
If you have a leaking gas powered water heater we recommend that you shut off the gas supply before working with the tank.
A drip from above can easily leak down on top of the water heater and even work its way down the insulation and make it look like the leak is coming from the tank itself.
The short answer is no here s the long answer.
If you smell rotten eggs get everyone out of the building and call 911.
Turn off the water heater and water supply now that you know where the leak is you ll want to slow the leak to prevent further water damage.
If the leak is coming from the bottom of the tank it is not looking good for you.
If it s an electric water heater.
The most likely scenario in this case is that sediment has built up and corroded the bottom of the tank causing a serious problem and the need for an entirely new water heater.
If it s a gas water heater it will have a dial or an on off switch near the spot where the gas line connects.
Gas water heater what to do with a leaking hot water heater gas water heater.
The most obvious gas leak sign is the rotten egg sulfur smell.
There should be a dedicated gas shut off valve on the gas line leading to the tank.
First turn off the water heater.
If you detect a sulfur rotten egg type smell near the water heater it could be because there is a gas leak inside that could ignite when the light is on.
See below for a visual illustration of a gas water.