I'm moving in a month, and my current house will be empty until I sell
it in the spring. I'm concerned about two plumbing issues 1) frozen
pipes if the furnace should happen to die when I'm not there 2) Hot
water heater leaking, and having had that happen to me, I know how much
of a mess that can make just overnight. What if it went undetected for a
week! I'm probably more concerned about the water heater or random
spontaneous leaks than a whole house freeze, since this is a row house
in Maryland, so we're not talking sub-zero weather.

So on to my question - if I turn the water off for the house, will that
affect the water heater at all, say if it leaked? Would it matter that
the the heating element was heating an empty tank? I suppose I could
turn off the water heater, but I'm really intimidated by all things gas,
and worry about how to relight it. It's a gas water heater, 6 yr old. I
am going to be having some work done over the winter (paint, kitchen
upgrade etc), so I suppose those people will need some water, even if it
isn't hot water. Or can I turn the water off just to the heater, and
stick a note on the sink to any repairmen saying they need to turn it on
if they want hot water? Am I asking for trouble if I turn the water off
to the house too often (like could it somehow break the spigot)?

Sorry, I'm obviously not a do-it-yourselfer around the house, but I'm
a great worrier sigh. And this probably isn't exactly a repair
question.... more how to avoid a repair. I know the water heater isn't
that old; it's just the idea that it could leak undetected for a week or
more that concerns me. (And on that note, I guess I should turn off the
spigots at the washing machine).

Thanks.