Water heater repair on Wilmington Island, GA

Savannah-run wells on an unincorporated island

Although Wilmington Island is not part of the City of Savannah, the city's Water Supply and Treatment department operates the island's public water system and bills residents through Savannah Utility Services. The supply is groundwater pumped from the Upper Floridan aquifer, the same limestone formation that has served coastal Chatham County since the late 1800s.

That water emerges in the mid 60s and is moderately hard, so tanks collect a slow layer of calcium sediment and tankless units need periodic descaling. It can also carry traces of hydrogen sulfide, which bacteria in the tank turn into a sulfur odor at the hot faucets when they react with the anode. Residents on the island have, at times, raised questions with the city about unusually high bills, so a sudden jump in usage is also worth checking against a hidden leak at the heater.

Ranches, raised homes and condos along the creeks

Most of the island developed after the Islands Expressway and US 80 made the commute to downtown Savannah easy in the 1960s and 1970s. Brick and frame ranch houses on slabs line the streets off Wilmington Island Road, Walthour Road and Johnny Mercer Boulevard, with the heater commonly in an attached garage, a utility room or a closet off the carport.

Homes on the marsh edges and along Turner Creek and the Wilmington River are more varied. Some older waterfront houses sit low to the ground, while newer or rebuilt ones are raised on pilings or tall foundations to meet flood elevations, with the heater placed either in an upper-floor closet or on a platform in the enclosed space below. The island's best-known landmark, the 1927 hotel later called the General Oglethorpe and the Sheraton, now houses the Wilmington Plantation condominiums, where compact electric heaters in unit closets are common.

Salt air, surge and evacuation season

Everything on Wilmington Island lies inside Chatham County's Zone A, the first area told to leave when a hurricane approaches. Hurricane Matthew in 2016 pushed the Fort Pulaski tide gauge to a record level, and Irma in 2017 arrived on a king tide that sent creek water over Walthour Road and into low-lying yards. Both storms left homeowners dealing with soaked garages and heaters whose burners or electrical controls had been under water.

Between storms, the salt in the air is a slower enemy. It corrodes gas connectors, flue pipes, burner assemblies and the outdoor cabinets of tankless units mounted on exterior walls, especially on homes facing open marsh. Stainless or coated venting and periodic inspections pay off here more than they would a few miles inland.

The problems plumbers see most on Wilmington Island

• Flood-damaged gas controls and burners in garage heaters after a storm surge or king tide.
• Salt-corroded venting and connectors on homes facing the marsh.
• Rusted cabinets on outdoor tankless units mounted on exposed walls.
• Sulfur odor at the hot tap from Floridan well water reacting with the anode.
• Heaters that will not relight after a long post-evacuation power or gas shutoff.
• Tight access to heaters placed under raised homes or in upper-floor closets of rebuilt houses.

If a heater lost its pilot after an outage and will not stay lit, read why pilots and gas valves fail.

Typical water heater prices on Wilmington Island

Wilmington Island prices run close to Savannah's. Raising a heater above flood level, replacing salt-damaged vent pipe, or hauling a tank up to a second-floor closet all add to the cost, and the weeks after a hurricane bring heavy demand.

Chatham County permits and Georgia plumber licensing

Because the island is unincorporated, permits come from the Chatham County Department of Building Safety and Regulatory Services on Eisenhower Drive in Savannah, not from the City of Savannah. Water heater replacements are reviewed for venting, gas piping and relief valve discharge, and properties in a designated flood zone may face added rules about how high equipment must sit.

Georgia's master and journeyman plumbing licenses are issued by a division of the state's construction licensing board. Confirm a master plumber's license online before hiring, and make sure the county permit is in their name, not yours.

Flood elevation for island heaters

If your heater has been in floodwater once, assume it can happen again. Moving a gas or electric tank from the garage floor onto a sturdy platform, or into an interior closet on higher ground, keeps the burner, gas valve and wiring above the most common king-tide and rain flooding. In homes being substantially rebuilt after storm damage, flood rules typically require mechanical equipment to sit above a set elevation, so ask the county or your plumber what applies to your parcel.

A heater that has had water in its burner compartment or gas control should be replaced rather than dried out. Corrosion inside the valve can make it unsafe weeks later. See how a replacement visit goes for the steps.

Before and after an evacuation

When Zone A is ordered out, turn the gas heater to vacation or pilot mode, or switch off the breaker for an electric tank, and shut the cold supply valve above the heater. If the house floods while you are gone, a closed supply valve limits the damage from a broken line.

On returning, check for water lines on the garage walls before relighting anything. If water reached the heater controls, leave it off and call a plumber. If the house stayed dry, open the cold supply, run a hot tap until the air clears, then restore power or relight the pilot following the label.

Choosing gas, electric or heat pump

Georgia Power supplies the island's electricity. Natural gas runs through Atlanta Gas Light lines in many neighborhoods, and residents choose a certified marketer for the gas itself. Gas tanks keep working during the power outages that follow storms, while heat pump electric heaters are efficient but need a garage or utility room with space and airflow. Georgia Power has had water heater rebate offers in some years. If an island heater is younger than eight, has never sat in floodwater and has just one bad part, fixing it usually wins; our guide to weighing heater age against repair cost explains why.

Around Wilmington Island

Whitemarsh Island and Talahi Island next door are also unincorporated and use Chatham County permits. Thunderbolt, just across the Wilmington River, is its own town with its own permit process. Tybee Island to the east has its own city-run water and building office. Savannah proper, to the west, handles its own permits, and Skidaway Island to the south is unincorporated county land with its own utility arrangements.

Water heater questions from Wilmington Island