Water Heater Repair on Hilton Head Island, SC

Age of the homes

The median home inside the Town of Hilton Head Island was built in 1987, and about 6 in 10 were built before 1990 (as of 2024). Most have had a heater replaced already, and many are due again.

Empty houses

About 1 home in 4 on the island is a seasonal or vacation home (as of 2024). A slow leak in a house nobody is in runs for weeks, so shut the water off when you leave.

Gas or electric

About 93 in 100 occupied homes on the island heat with electricity and about 6 in 100 with gas (as of 2024), so most replacements are electric tanks. Gas and tankless units are the exception.

How long a heater lasts

R.S. Andrews puts a tank heater at about 8 to 12 years and a tankless unit at about 20 to 25.

Permit

The Town’s fee schedule lists a water heater change-out at $50 per unit. Building staff: 843-341-4757.

Water district

Hilton Head PSD (north and mid-island), Broad Creek PSD (Palmetto Dunes and Shelter Cove) or South Island PSD (Sea Pines and Shipyard) supplies your water.

Start with the age, printed on the label on the side of the tank. R.S. Andrews says a tank more than 7 years old or a tankless unit more than 15 is nearing the end of its life, and Howell-Chase treats a heater 10 to 15 years old as high risk for failure. A heater in that range that is leaking from the tank itself is a replacement; a failed element, thermostat or gas valve on a younger heater is usually a repair.

Hilton Head’s housing is older than Bluffton’s: the median home in the Town was built in 1987, and about 6 in 10 were built before 1990, so most island homes have already had a heater swapped once. Ask for a repair price before agreeing to a replacement: Bluffton Plumbing Co. reviewers describe a tankless heater repaired after another company quoted a new one. For other plumbing jobs, see the best plumbers on Hilton Head Island.

Close the cold-water valve on the pipe into the top of the heater, then turn off the breaker for an electric heater or set a gas heater’s control to off. If the valve won’t close, shut the main where the line enters the house or at the meter box near the street. A heater in an attic or closet leaks onto the ceiling or floor below, so get a bucket under the drain pan line.

Your water comes from one of the island’s three public service districts (Hilton Head PSD, Broad Creek PSD or South Island PSD); see utilities on Hilton Head for which one serves your street, and ask the district where its line ends. For a heater that failed at night, Dyess Air & Plumbing offers 24/7 emergency service and Roto-Rooter runs 24-hour emergencies and sends a crew to dry the floor. If water has soaked walls or flooring, see water damage restoration on Hilton Head.

Most island homes are all-electric: about 93 in 100 occupied homes heat with electricity, so a like-for-like electric tank is the usual replacement. A gas tankless unit needs gas piping and venting that many island homes do not have, and in a condo the association may have its own rules, so ask the board before you order. Ace’s Plumbing is a certified installer of Rinnai and Navien tankless units, Bluffton Plumbing Co. lists tankless installation, service and cleaning, and Howell-Chase and R.S. Andrews install tankless units too.

A tankless unit lasts longer, about 20 to 25 years by R.S. Andrews’ count against 8 to 12 for a tank, and it frees the closet. Tankless installation in Hilton Head, SC costs more up front and the unit needs descaling now and then, so ask the plumber to show you the filter. Butlers Plumbing and Roto-Rooter both list water heater work for homes on the island; Roto-Rooter says it handles gas, electric and tankless units.

Yes. The Town of Hilton Head Island says a building permit is required for any electrical, plumbing, or heating and cooling work, and its fee schedule lists a flat water heater change-out permit at $50 per unit. In most cases the plumber you hire submits the application, through the Town’s online permit portal or in person at Town Hall, 1 Town Center Court; questions go to the Town’s building staff at 843-341-4757. Roto-Rooter says it handles the permit for its replacements.

Ask who pulls the permit and whether it is in the quote, and ask for the contractor’s SC license number; the Town’s contractor page points to the SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, where a residential mechanical license covers plumbing, electrical and HVAC work. Gas work and a move from tank to tankless are plumbing and mechanical changes, so say so when you ask. See how to check a license.

About 1 home in 4 on the island is a seasonal or vacation home, so a failed heater is often found by a guest, a cleaner or a property manager, not the owner. Piper Plumbing is not on this list because its website lists no water heater work, but its reviewers describe a Friday-night leak fixed by midnight; for water heaters, Dyess Air & Plumbing and Roto-Rooter both take after-hours calls, and Butlers Plumbing keeps weekday hours and says it does no emergency plumbing.

Before you leave a house for the season, turn off the water at the main or at least the heater’s cold-water valve. Owners in communities like Sea Pines, Palmetto Dunes, Shipyard and Hilton Head Plantation can ask their plumber to put a drain pan and a leak sensor under an attic or closet heater.

For water heater repair or replacement on Daufuskie Island, one company here says on its own site that it works there: R.S. Andrews has a Daufuskie Island page that lists water heater service and says it installs standard and tankless models, including a tankless heater on Daufuskie. It says Daufuskie has no bridges and limited vehicle access, so its team schedules ferry access and equipment transport in advance. Ask when the heater and the technician can cross, and whether the visit fits the ferry times; see the Daufuskie ferry guide and Daufuskie Island.

Distances help set expectations: R.S. Andrews’ shop is about 8.7 miles in a straight line from Freeport Marina on Daufuskie, and the island-side shops here are about 10.6 miles (Dyess Air & Plumbing) to 11.7 miles (Roto-Rooter and Butlers Plumbing) from it, all over water. A water heater replacement on Daufuskie costs more than one on Hilton Head for the same unit, because the trip adds time; get the extra charge in writing. Permits on Daufuskie come from Beaufort County, not the Town of Hilton Head Island, so ask the plumber to confirm.

Price depends on the heater and the house more than the company: a like-for-like electric tank in a garage is the simplest job, while a heater in an attic or a tight condo closet, a larger tank, or a switch to gas tankless (new gas piping, a venting run, a permit and a pressure test) costs more. The Town’s change-out permit is $50 per unit; hauling away the old heater may or may not be in the quote.

Ace’s Plumbing gives free estimates and flat-rate pricing, Howell-Chase lists no service-call or dispatch fees, and Bluffton Plumbing Co. charges an extra hourly rate after hours. Get two written quotes for a replacement, and ask what the warranty covers: the tank, the parts and the labor are often warranted separately.