Lebanon's houses and why the boiler matters
Lebanon is a rural town of about 7,300 people in eastern Connecticut, with Columbia, Colchester, Hebron and Coventry as neighbours and Willimantic within a short drive. Older farmhouses and colonials stand along the through roads, with capes, ranches and newer homes on side roads and larger lots.
Natural gas is limited here, so oil heats a great many houses, and propane and electricity cover most of the rest. Where an oil boiler is the heart of the house, it commonly makes the hot water too, through a coil built into the boiler or an indirect tank beside it. That is why the boiler runs even in July, and why a failed boiler can take the hot water with it.
Private wells are common across town. Cellars are the norm, and in them the heater tends to sit in a tight corner next to the boiler and the oil tank, with pipework overhead and a stair that does not leave much room.
Discoloured or odd-smelling hot water in a well home
First ask whether the trouble is at the hot tap only or at hot and cold alike. Hot only points at the heater. Both point at the supply, and that is a matter for a water professional or your local health department.
When the heater is the cause, appearance offers clues. A rusty tint may mean a spent anode, corroded fittings or sediment stirred up. Dark flecks, or white and tan flakes, point to scale or a worn dip tube. Milky water that clears from the bottom of the glass upward is usually just air. A sulphur-like smell from the hot tap alone often points to a reaction at the anode, and a different anode type is the usual remedy. Tell the technician what you noticed and when it started.
Corrosive well water and anode rods
Inside every steel tank, a sacrificial anode rod corrodes so the tank does not. Some well water uses a rod up faster than others. When the rod is gone, the tank itself starts to corrode, and the end result is a leak through the shell that cannot be repaired.
The remedy is to check the rod on a schedule set by what the last one looked like, and to replace it before it is spent. Where cellar headroom is low, a segmented anode can be fitted in pieces. Removal is a technician's job, since a rod can be seized in place and the tank is under pressure. See anode rod replacement.
A quick call can settle whether the anode is worth checking.
Why the boiler runs in summer just to make hot water
With a coil, the boiler has to stay hot all year, because the coil sits inside it. Households hear it fire in July without any heating being wanted, and it can look like a fault. It is not: it is how the hot water is made.
Shutting the boiler off for the summer would end the hot water. Two options exist for a household that wants the boiler to rest: an indirect tank, which draws heat from the boiler only on demand, or a standalone heater that does not depend on the boiler at all. The installer explains both, and the choice is yours. See tankless coil problems.
Where the hot water comes from in a Lebanon house
Four arrangements are common in town: a standalone tank, a coil inside the boiler, an indirect tank beside it, and, less often, a tankless unit on the wall. Oil homes lean toward the coil and the indirect; propane and electric homes lean toward the standalone tank.
To tell which you have, look for a flue or a power supply on a separate tank, or for two pipes running between the boiler and a second tank, or for no tank at all. A photo of the boiler and the pipes around it lets the installer arrive with the right parts.
If you smell gas while a heater or boiler is running, leave the building immediately and, from outside, call the gas utility and emergency services.
Carbon monoxide alarm going off at home? Everyone steps out of the house first; emergency services get the call from the yard or the street.
Where we cover in Lebanon
We connect households across Lebanon's ZIP code, 06249, with local installers, from the older farmhouses on the main roads to newer homes on the side roads.
Service area Lebanon, CT · ZIP 06249
Hear the price for the work before the technician starts.
Water heater repair and replacement questions in Lebanon
Is a heater wedged next to the boiler and oil tank workable?
Yes. Tight corners are common in older Lebanon cellars. The installer plans the carry, the clearances and the pipework before arriving. Describe the space, and send a photo of the corner and the stairs if you can; it saves time on the day.
Our oil-fired heater smells when it starts. Should I call a technician?
A faint smell at start-up can be dust burning off, but one that lingers, comes with smoke or soot, or returns often needs a technician. If an alarm sounds or the smell is strong, leave the building and call emergency services from outside.
In Lebanon, our house has two bathrooms in use every morning. What size heater do we need?
It depends on how many people use hot water at once, how cold the incoming water is, and how quickly the tank recovers. On a well in winter the water starts very cold. Tell the installer your morning routine and they will recommend a size.
In Lebanon, would a second, smaller heater help a far bathroom?
Sometimes. A small heater near a distant bathroom shortens the wait for hot water and takes load off the main tank. It adds another unit to maintain, though, so the technician weighs it against other fixes, such as better sizing or pipe changes.
In Lebanon, can you look at our heater while you are here for something else?
Yes. Mention it when you book and the technician can look over the tank, fittings and venting during the same visit. If something needs work you hear about it first, with the price stated before anything is done.
In Lebanon, do you remove old heaters that are no longer used?
Yes. An abandoned tank takes up room, and the pipework around it can leak. The local installers disconnect and carry out old heaters, including ones that have sat unused for years. Tell us about the stairs and where the heater stands, and we will plan the removal.
Can you handle propane supply work?
No. The installers work on the water heater and its connections. The supply tank, regulator and lines belong to your propane supplier. If you have propane, tell us so the technician brings the right parts for the heater itself.
Why does our hot water run short in winter?
Well water arrives colder in the cold months, so the heater has more work to do for every gallon. A heater that coped in autumn may fall behind in January, and sediment or a worn coil makes it worse. A technician can tell which applies.
Do you cover the whole of Lebanon?
Yes. The local installers work throughout the town, on the main roads and the quiet side roads alike. Give us your address and what the heater is doing, and we will connect you with someone who covers your area.
Water heater repair and replacement services in Lebanon
- Water heater replacement in tight cellar corners
- Oil-fired water heater service where oil is the main fuel
- Tankless coil hot water problems in boiler-fed houses
- Indirect water heater installation so the boiler can rest in summer
- Anode rod replacement for tanks on well water
- Discoloured or odd-smelling hot water at the hot tap
Nearby places we cover
The local installers also work in the neighbouring towns around Lebanon.