Northglenn was built as a planned community starting in 1959, and its ranches and tri-levels have been through several water heaters by now.
Northglenn water heaters at a glance
| Water provider | City of Northglenn: Clear Creek snowmelt stored in Standley Lake |
|---|---|
| Water hardness | About 120 mg/L (7 grains per gallon), which the city calls moderate. That's the latest figure it publishes, from 2019 sampling. |
| Homes | Median year built 1974. Northglenn was built as a master-planned community starting in 1959, and 38% of homes went up in the 1960s. |
| Elevation | About 5,371 feet (USGS reference point) |
| For your water heater | Moderate scale. A yearly flush and an anode check every few years keep a tank close to its rated life. |
Sources: Northglenn 2026 water quality report · Census ACS 2019–2023 via Point2Homes · USGS elevation. Checked October 2026.
What Northglenn's water does to a water heater
When water is heated, the calcium and magnesium in it drop out as sediment and settle on the bottom of the tank. The burner or lower element then has to heat through that layer, so the heater runs longer, pops and rumbles, and wears faster. Northglenn's water measures about 120 mg/L of hardness (7 grains per gallon), the latest figure the city publishes. Moderate scale. A yearly flush and an anode check every few years keep a tank close to its rated life.
Ranches and tri-levels from the 1960s
In Northglenn's ranches and tri-levels, the water heater is usually in a basement, a lower-level utility room, or a garage. Sixty years in, these houses often have a mix of old and new piping around the heater, and a replacement is a good time to replace a stuck shutoff valve or corroded connectors. Northglenn's water is moderately hard, at about 7 grains per gallon, so a yearly flush is worth doing.
Repair or replace?
Under about eight years old, with a failed part like a thermocouple, gas valve, heating element, or thermostat, a repair usually makes sense. At about ten years or older, or with any leak from the tank itself, replacement is the better money: a leaking tank can't be fixed. You get the price before any work starts, and most replacements are done the same day they're quoted, with the old unit hauled away. A replacement is also the time to check whether you need an expansion tank (when one is required).
Gas or electric, tank or tankless
We repair and replace both gas and electric water heaters, standard tanks and tankless units. Tankless works well at this hardness. Descale it about once a year so scale doesn't choke the heat exchanger.
At about 5,371 feet (Northglenn's USGS reference point), a gas water heater has to be rated for the altitude, and a tankless heater set for it at installation. Rinnai and Navien change their tankless settings at 5,400 feet, and elevations vary across the city, so the setting should match your address. What to check at altitude.
Make the next one last
- Flush the tank once a year to clear sediment
- Check the anode rod every few years
- Descale a tankless unit about once a year
- Know where the cold-water shutoff on top of the heater is, and how to turn the heater off, before you need to
More reading: water heater leaking? what to do, no hot water troubleshooting, how long water heaters last in Colorado, why a water heater pops or rumbles, and water hardness by city. If your water is hard, a softener protects the heater and every fixture.
Recent water heater work
Photos from our own jobs. Locations and customer details are left out.
More in Northglenn: backflow testing in Northglenn · all plumbing services in Northglenn