Water heater permit checklist — Tempe, Arizona
Assembled from Tempe’s own published permit rules. Every line below is quoted from a city document and linked to it. Nothing here is generated, estimated, or inferred from another jurisdiction.
Do you need a permit?
Tempe does not require a permit for a water heater.
Replacement of a water heating appliance of the same type and fuel source, in the same location, with an equal or lesser amperage rating, along with minor modification to the electrical, plumbing and mechanical connections serving it, is exempt from permit in R-3 and R-4 occupancies, detached single-family and two-family dwellings and townhomes where the appliance serves an individual dwelling unit (Tempe Administrative Code, City Code Sec. 8-105, 105.2). The exemption is limited to replacements meeting all of those conditions.
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Sources
- water heater — permit rules ↗verified August 2026
Other permits Tempe publishes rules for
Listed because the city publishes a separate rule for each type — not because this project necessarily triggers one. Whether it does depends on your scope of work.
- Deck permit checklist
- Fence permit checklist
- Shed permit checklist
- Re-roof permit checklist
- Retaining wall permit checklist
- Electrical work permit checklist
- General building work permit checklist
BuildSpec is a reference, not the authority having jurisdiction. Confirm requirements with Tempe before you build.