Unlike tankless water heaters, standard type gas and electric water heaters use an insulated storage tank. The construction or anatomy of a gas tank type water heater is explained in the tutorial Anatomy of the Gas Water Heater.
Water heaters are generally very reliable but occasionally they do have problems. These problems can include:
Before any troubleshooting is done on the water heater, make sure to prepare safely for the job by doing the following:
Let's take a look at each problem and what possible causes and repairs exist.
And for reference, here is a great cutaway photo of worn and damaged electric water heater components.
