Do we need a permit in Novato just to swap one gas tank for another?
Yes. The city's Building Permit Guide keeps water heaters on the list of plumbing work that needs one. The route is short, though: a same-type replacement is what Residential Plumbing Like-for-Like was written for, and that express type is applied for and paid in Novato Permits, coming back without plan review. Set up the portal account before the tank is ordered, and if a contractor is filing, check the City of Novato business license is current.
Our tank burst on a Sunday. Can the plumber start before the permit?
Novato's permit guide has a line for exactly this. Where equipment replacements and repairs must be performed in an emergency, the permit application is to be submitted to the building official within the next working business day. So the work can begin and the filing follows on Monday. It does not make the job exempt and the inspection still happens, so keep the failed unit's details and photographs of what was behind it.
How hard is Novato water, and will it wreck a new tank?
It is moderate. North Marin Water District's 2025 report for Novato gives average hardness of 110 milligrams per liter in the water it treats at Stafford Lake and 91 in the supply bought from Sonoma County Water Agency, roughly 6.4 and 5.3 grains per gallon. The two blend in the distribution system, and the district says the share from each source can change by location, by day and by season. That is not punishing water, but an annual flush and a look at the anode rod are still worth scheduling.
Would a heat pump water heater work in a Novato garage?
Often, and the city has an interest in making it easier: Measure BE-C3 of Novato's Climate Action Plan 2030 commits it to streamline permitting for heat pump water heaters and panel upgrades. The practical limits are electrical and spatial. The Air District's draft exemptions name a service under roughly 100 amps, a panel with no spare breaker space, and a heater more than 50 feet of new conduit from the panel as the cases that make a compliant unit unusually expensive. Have the panel looked at by a licensed electrician before a unit is chosen.
We are selling and nobody can find a permit for the water heater. Now what?
Two doors, per the Building Division's unpermitted construction policy of October 10, 2024. Either pull a demolition permit and return the house to its last permitted condition, or apply for permits and show the existing work complies. The policy says plainly that there is no statute of limitations and no grandfather clause for work done under a prior owner, that unpermitted work may not be covered by homeowners' insurance, and that a buyer, realtor or lender may require it be permitted, corrected and inspected before closing. State law adds a separate step: the seller must confirm in writing that the heater is braced, anchored or strapped.
Is there any help here with a hot water recirculation pump?
North Marin Water District runs a rebate for hot water recirculation systems, limited to self-activated or on-demand types rather than ones that run on a timer or continuously. The district asks customers to call or email its conservation office to pre-qualify and collect the application before buying anything, so the order of operations matters. It also offers a free Water Smart Home Survey that checks indoor and outdoor use and confirms which rebates a household can claim.
