Check the dome first
On a propane house, the lid on the yard tank hides a dial. Under about a fifth full, the supplier needs to come out. That’s a ten second check that can save a service call.
Lorton, Virginia
Water heater repair in Lorton.
For water heater repair in Lorton, the plumbing visit to find what’s wrong is $49, or $250 after hours. Call SwiftPro, rated 5.0 stars across 1,130 reviews, at (703) 997-9757, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
SwiftPro’s plumbers in Lorton are rated 5.0 stars across 1,130 reviews and work under Virginia Class A contractor license 2705192276. Water heater repair in Lorton: some houses here run on propane, and an empty outdoor tank looks exactly like a dead water heater, so we check the gauge first. The repair, a thermocouple, a gas valve, an element or a thermostat, is priced in writing at the tank before we start.
- The failed part named before the price
- Our own licensed plumbers
- Fired up and tested before we leave
5.0 stars across 1,130 reviews
Two of our plumbers at a gas water heater in a Northern Virginia basement.
Get your price in writing
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Rather talk now? (703) 997-9757
Licensed and insuredVirginia Class A contractor #2705192276
24/7 emergency serviceWe answer day or night, and we will tell you honestly when we can get there.
Our own plumbers, our own trucksNobody here is a subcontractor with a magnet on the door
The price is settled before the workYou see the number in writing before anything is taken apart
What it costs
What water heater repair costs in Lorton.
The visit fee is the same one on our plumbing price list. What usually fails, and when it’s the tank itself, is in our water heater repair guide.
Plumbing diagnosis visit
$49
Plumbing diagnosis visit, after hours
$250
Water heater repair (thermocouple, gas valve, element, thermostat, burner)
Priced in writing at the tank, before we start
Prices checked .
Where the repair lands depends on the part: a thermocouple or an element is a short job, a gas control valve takes longer and costs more, and either way you see the number before we start.
Water coming out of the tank body itself can’t be repaired. That’s a replacement, and the installed prices for one are on our water heaters page.
What’s different in Lorton
Lorton has propane houses, and an empty tank can pass for a broken heater.
Most of Lorton heats with natural gas, but about 3 percent of owners here use propane. Those are mostly out on the Mason Neck side, where the gas main doesn’t reach. A propane water heater is a gas tank by every measure that matters for a repair. It has a pilot, a thermocouple and a gas control, and it fails the same ways.
The extra suspect is the supply. A propane house has a tank in the yard, and when it runs low the water heater, the furnace and the stove go out together. Before you call for a repair, walk out and read the gauge on the dome. If it reads under 20 percent, that’s your answer, and no part is bad. If it’s fine, we pick up from there.
For natural gas homes, Lorton is young. The median owner home went up in 1997, and 43 percent were built since 2000. Tanks that new are mostly better built, so the failures are small parts rather than rusted shells: a sticking gas control, a dirty screen over the air intake, an igniter on a sealed burner. All are repairs that make sense on a tank with life in it.
About a third of Lorton homes are townhouses. There the tank is usually in a utility closet and, with 34 percent of owners on electric heat, more likely to be electric than in the detached houses, which means an element or a thermostat before anything else.
Neighborhood by neighborhood
What fails on water heaters across Lorton.
Census figures for the owner-occupied homes in each place, and what usually fails on the water heaters in houses like them.
| Place | Median home built | Most homes are | Heated with | What usually fails |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lorton | 2001 | single-family houses, about 4 in 10 | gas, about 7 in 10 | The pilot, the igniter or the vent fan on a gas tank. |
| Newington | 1981 | townhouses, about 6 in 10 | electricity, about 6 in 10 | An element or a thermostat on an electric tank. |
| Laurel Hill | 2002 | single-family houses, about 4 in 10 | gas, about 8 in 10 | The pilot, the igniter or the vent fan on a gas tank. |
| Mason Neck | 1973 | single-family houses, nearly all | electricity, about 6 in 10 | An element or a thermostat on an electric tank. |
By the numbers
Lorton houses, by the numbers
From the Census Bureau’s 2020 to 2024 survey. Median year built and heat count owner-occupied homes only.
Lorton
ZIP 22079 as a whole: every Lorton address. Most of Newington, in the table, has Springfield mail.
- Median home built1997 Census
- Built before 1980about 2 in 10 Census
- Built since 2000about 4 in 10 Census
- Most homes aresingle-family houses, about 4 in 10 Census
- Heated withgas, about 6 in 10 Census
- Rentedabout 2 in 10 Census
- Newer houses often have a power-vent gas tank, with a fan and a pressure switch on top that can fail on their own.
- Many homes here are townhouses or condos with the tank in a closet over finished space, so a drip gets looked at quickly, before it reaches the ceiling below.
The signs
When a Lorton water heater needs a repair.
No hot water at all
On a gas tank that’s usually the pilot, the thermocouple that keeps it lit, or the gas valve. On an electric tank, it’s usually an element or the reset that tripped.
Hot water runs out fast
A shower that goes cold in five minutes often means a failed lower element on an electric tank, or a tank so full of sediment that it heats far less water.
Need water heater repair in Lorton?
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Choosing who does it
How to pick who repairs a water heater in Lorton.
Questions to ask anybody who looks at your tank, us included.
Did they check my propane level before blaming the heater?
If the furnace and stove are also out, the fuel is the likely culprit. A plumber who goes straight to the water heater has missed the obvious.
Did they name the part before quoting a new tank?
A plumber who goes straight to replacement without testing the thermocouple, the valve or the elements may be selling you a tank you don’t need.
Did they check the relief valve and the venting?
A repair that leaves a stuck relief valve or a bad vent connection behind isn’t finished. Ask what else they looked at while the cover was off.
Two of our crew going over a work order before the day's calls.
From our Google reviews
What our customers say.
5.0 stars across 1,130 reviews. Read them on our reviews page.
Jim was very professional, knowledgeable and polite plumber. He installed a water heater for us. After the installation he educated us on the maintenance and the new set up. I strongly recommend Jim/SwiftPro. Plus SwiftPro price was very reasonable/20% below other estimates.
- 5.0stars across 1,130 reviewsHow we count them
- ABBB Accredited, A ratingCheck it on bbb.org
- 2026Voted a Nextdoor Neighborhood Faves winner two years running: 2026 in 30 Northern Virginia neighborhoods, 2025 in Emerald Chase (Herndon) and Hunters Run (Chantilly)See it on Nextdoor
- #1BusinessRate Best of 2026: the top-ranked heating contractor in Fairfax, VirginiaSee our BusinessRate score
- Class AVirginia contractor, license #2705192276Look it up with DPOR
Where we work
Water heater repair in every Northern Virginia town we serve
Next door to Lorton: Fort Belvoir, Springfield, Woodbridge, Fairfax Station and Burke.
Fairfax County
Arlington County
Loudoun County
Prince William County
Fauquier County
Stafford County
Every town on one page
Questions
Water heater repair questions from Lorton.
Do you repair propane water heaters in Lorton?
Yes. Propane tanks work like natural gas ones, and we repair both. We won’t touch the supply tank itself, which belongs to your propane company.
My Lorton water heater lights but shuts off in a minute. Why?
Usually a thermocouple that isn’t sensing the flame, or a clogged intake screen starving the burner. Both are small repairs.
How much is water heater repair in Lorton?
The visit to find what’s wrong is $49, $250 after hours. The repair is priced in writing at the tank, before we start, because a thermocouple and a gas valve are very different jobs.
Should I repair my water heater or replace it?
Repair it when the tank is sound and a part failed. When the tank itself leaks, it’s a replacement, and we’ll show you where the water is coming from before you decide.
Ready when you are
Get the hot water back on.
Call, or send the form at the top. We find what failed, show you the part, and you get the repair price in writing before we touch it.
SwiftPro Heating, Cooling & Plumbing
4230 Lafayette Center Dr N, Chantilly, VA 20151
44679 Endicott Dr, Suite 211, Ashburn, VA 20147
SwiftPro Plumber & Water Heaters
4200 Lafayette Center Dr, Suite N, Chantilly, VA 20151
Virginia Class A contractor license #2705192276
SwiftPro Heating, Cooling & Plumbing is a licensed, BBB Accredited (A rating), independently owned heating, cooling and plumbing company in Chantilly, serving Lorton and the rest of Northern Virginia. Virginia contractor license #2705192276. 5.0 stars across 1,130 reviews on Google, Angi, Yelp, the BBB and Facebook. SwiftPro maintains a dedicated HVAC team and a dedicated plumbing team.
From SwiftPro Heating, Cooling & Plumbing in Chantilly. Housing figures are the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020 to 2024, for each place named; permit, water and sewer facts link to each office’s own page and were checked in September and October 2026.