Water on the floor beside a water heater is three different problems that get described with one word. A fitting at the top can drip at a flex line, a union, or the cold inlet. The temperature-and-pressure valve can release down its discharge pipe into a pan, or onto the floor if the pipe is missing. The tank itself can let go at a seam under the jacket, which usually means replacement rather than a patch. Look at where the water starts. Do not pull the burner cover or the electrical plate to get a better view.
Put a pan, a bucket, or towels under the drip if you can do that without moving the tank. If you already know the cold-water valve on top of the heater, and water is actively spreading, you can close that valve by hand. That stops the tank from refilling. It does not drain the heater, and it will also stop hot water to the house until someone opens it again. If you do not know which handle that is, do not start closing valves at random, and do not cut pipe. Active water that you cannot control belongs on emergency plumber. That page is still a request for a callback. It does not send a truck from this website.
A seam leak on an older tank in Tucson hard water is often the end of that tank. Hard water already cites ContractorBear’s March 2026 note that local water around 12–18 grains per gallon can shorten tank life from a national 10–12 years toward about 7–9. That is their figure, not a measurement we took at your house, and it is not a promise your tank will fail on that schedule. There is no separate “leak repair” price on this page. If the conversation turns into a new tank, water heater replacement repeats HomeAdvisor’s installation guide, updated June 17, 2026 and checked October 19, 2026: a normal range about $882–$1,826, many projects around $1,348, and a span from $350 to $12,000. That is not our price.
A drip that shows up only while the heater is firing can be the T&P doing what it is built to do, or a valve that needs to be replaced. It can also be a temperature setting that is simply too high. Those are contractor checks. If the house also has no hot water, use no hot water for the cold-shower clues and keep the leak in the details. Repair versus a new tank, without a made-up leak price, starts on water heater repair.
We do not solder a fitting or haul a tank. Sabino Creek is the referral service. The contractor who takes the request is the one who touches the equipment. License checks are at roc.az.gov.
Choose Water heater. Say whether the water is at a top fitting, at the T&P pipe, or coming from under the jacket, and whether you closed the cold inlet. Include the ZIP. If you smell gas, leave and call the utility instead of using the form.