RV has no hot water: what to check and what it costs

A water heater that will not light is one of the most common “big scary problem” calls that turns out to be small. Most of them are a $150 to $450 repair, not the $700 to $1,800 replacement owners fear.

Check this first (ten minutes)

Confirm propane is flowing. Check the tank level and that the regulator is not shut off, and try another propane appliance (the stove, for instance) to confirm gas is reaching the rig at all.
Look at the burner tube through the exterior access panel, if you can safely do so. A wasp or mud dauber nest blocking the tube is one of the most common causes here, especially on a rig that sat unused for weeks or months.
Listen for the igniter clicking. If you hear clicking but no ignition, the igniter itself is likely working and the issue is fuel delivery or a dirty burner.
Try 120V electric mode, if your unit has it. If electric heats water fine but propane does not, the fault is specifically on the gas side.
Check the reset button, if your unit has one, often tripped by an overheat condition that has since cleared.

What is usually wrong

What you find	Likely cause	Fix and cost
No clicking, no attempt to ignite	Failed igniter or board	$150 to $400
Clicking but no flame	Blocked burner tube (often an insect nest) or gas supply issue	$150 to $350
Lights, then goes out shortly after	Failed thermocouple	$150 to $300
Works on electric, not on propane	Gas-side fault, isolated	$150 to $450
Rust-colored or foul-smelling water	Failing anode rod (steel tanks only)	$50 to $150 for the rod, part of a service visit
Tank itself corroded or leaking	End of tank life	Replacement $700 to $1,800

Those ranges are from the pricing page, on top of the $75 to $150 trip fee and $125 to $190 hourly labor.

Why this is so common after storage here

A rig parked in a Kern County storage lot or driveway for weeks or months, common between trips in a year-round owner market rather than a seasonal one, gives insects plenty of opportunity to build a nest in the water heater’s burner tube, a warm, sheltered space they favor. Wasps and mud daubers are a constant presence in Central Valley agricultural country, and clearing a blocked burner tube is one of the single most common repairs on this list. It is also one of the cheapest, which is exactly why diagnosing before assuming replacement matters.

What to expect on the call

Tell us whether you have tried electric mode (if available), whether you heard the igniter click, and roughly how long the rig has been sitting before this happened. We work on site across Bakersfield, Oildale, Rosedale, Shafter, Taft, Tehachapi, and the Kern River Valley. The repair cost calculator will price a range now.

Frequently Asked Questions

My water heater won't light after months in storage. Is it dead?

Usually not. The most common cause after a rig sits, common in Kern County storage lots, is an insect nest (wasps and mud daubers are constant in ag country) blocking the burner tube, followed by a corroded thermocouple. Both are $150 to $450 repairs, not the $700 to $1,800 a replacement costs.

What does water heater repair cost?

$150 to $450 for the common causes: thermocouple, igniter, burner tube clearing. Full replacement, tank or tankless, runs $700 to $1,800. We diagnose before quoting either way.

It works on 120V electric but not on propane. What does that tell you?

That points specifically at the gas side: the thermocouple, the gas valve, the igniter, or a blocked burner tube, rather than a wiring fault, since the electric element circuit is clearly working.

Should I flush my water heater more often here?

Bakersfield's water hardness varies by source, and scale buildup in the tank reduces efficiency and can affect the anode rod's job on steel-tank units over time. An annual flush as part of a seasonal service is cheap insurance.