How to Prep Your Water Heater Before Hurricane Season
Hurricane Beryl in July 2024 left more than two million CenterPoint Energy customers without power, some for over a week. Homeowners who took a few minutes of prep beforehand had noticeably less water heater damage than those who did not.
For Electric Units
Know exactly which breaker controls your water heater before the storm arrives, not during it. If an extended outage is likely, switching that breaker off protects the heating element from damage when power returns unevenly across your neighborhood, which happens often after major outages.
For Gas Units
Turning the control valve to pilot is a reasonable precaution during severe weather, particularly if flooding is a possibility in your area. This is not required in every storm, but it is worth doing ahead of a major hurricane warning.
After the Storm
Before restoring power or gas, do a quick visual check for any water damage near the unit, and confirm venting has not been disturbed if debris moved around during the storm. If anything looks off, wait for a professional check rather than restoring service yourself.
Storm damaged your water heater? Call (877) 560-1148.
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