//Quick answer
- Young unit, one identifiable fault: repair.
- Aged unit with repeating failures: replace.
- Leaking tank: replace, no exception.
- The age threshold in years has not been published; the technician applies the rule at your house.
01Definition
What does each option include?
Repair: diagnosis, the part, and labor. Replacement: the new unit, installation to code, and the permit where required. Whether haul-away of the old unit is included in the installed range has not been published; ask when booking.
What does repair not fix?
Age-related failure. A rusted tank, a unit that has started failing in more than one way, or a heater at the end of its expected life will keep failing, and each repair buys weeks or months.
02Which fits
Who should repair?
Anyone with a newer unit and a discrete, identifiable failure: a thermocouple, an element, a thermostat, a relief valve, a gas valve. Those are parts, and on a young unit they are worth replacing.
Who should replace?
Anyone with an aged unit that is already failing, and anyone with water on the floor under the tank. The published range makes the comparison a real number: $2,300 to $3,200 installed for a Bradford White tank, $4,000 to $6,000 for tankless.
//What it costs
| Item | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Water heater repair | Call for pricing | Diagnosis, part and labor. Quoted on site. |
| Water heater tune-up | $150 | Flat, per unit. |
| Tank water heater replacement | $2,300 to $3,200 | Unit + installation. Permit where required is separate. |
| Tankless installation | $4,000 to $6,000 | Unit + installation. Permit where required is separate. |
The repair range has not been published; replacement ranges are Done-Rite's approved figures.
Financing available with terms up to 10 years. Ask the office about Enerbank, GE and Wisetack.
//Side by side
Repair
- Lower cost today on a young unit
- Keeps a good tank in service
- Does not fix age-related failure
- Repeat repairs add up
Replace
- New unit, 1 year minimum labor warranty
- Published installed range
- Ends the repair cycle
- Higher cost today
- Usually permitted work
03What goes wrong
What does one more repair on an old tank cost?
The repair, plus the next one, plus the flooded garage when the tank finally lets go. The rule exists to stop that sequence before it starts.
04Proof
- 1 year minimum warranty on labor. Manufacturer warranty handling varies by manufacturer.
- 4.9 stars across 1,720+ Google reviews on the Orange profile, checked September 17, 2026.
- Six plumbers averaging more than 9 years in the trade each, plus a General Manager with 25+ years.
- No trip charge, a 1-hour response time, and 24/7 emergency service.
05Action
Get the honest call on your unit
Tune-up and repair from $150; tank replacement $2,300 to $3,200 installed; tankless $4,000 to $6,000. The $100 off any replacement offer applies when the material is supplied by Done-Rite. Financing is available with terms up to 10 years.
//Keep going
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//Terms used in this guide
Where this applies
Done-Rite runs these calls across Orange County from its shop in Anaheim, CA, with no trip charge in any city it serves.
Common questions
It depends on the age of the unit. Most of the time, once a water heater is old enough to be failing, it is more advantageous to replace it than to keep repairing it.
Done-Rite has not published a specific age threshold. The technician applies the rule to your unit on site.
No. Water at the base of the tank means the shell has failed, and there is no part for that. It is a replacement, on gas or electric.
