re: Forgive my stupidity

Try turning the thermastat down to see if the flame will go out when lowered. If not, The thermostat maybe broken. If the flame goes out when you turn the thermostat down, it may just be a result of the extra cold weather and your higher water temperature setting.

By the way, to those who have a problem with saying hot water heater, you can go freak yourself. It's just a colloquialism. You say potato I say Patata. Besides the water in the tank pretty much remains hot all the time. it comes on to keep it hot. Therefore, it is a hot water heater.