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Time for a new hot water heater

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Hudson_Hawk

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Our current HWH was installed in '96 and we've noticed some rust in our water on occasion. We feel like we're playing Russian Roulette with the thing, so we've decided to pull the trigger and get a new one. Does anyone have recommendations for a 50+ gallon Natural Gas water heater? Max budget is $600, we're installing it ourselves (FI has successfully done it before).
 

D&T

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Date: 5/18/2009 2:17:12 PM
Author:Hudson_Hawk
Our current HWH was installed in ''96 and we''ve noticed some rust in our water on occasion. We feel like we''re playing Russian Roulette with the thing, so we''ve decided to pull the trigger and get a new one. Does anyone have recommendations for a 50+ gallon Natural Gas water heater? Max budget is $600, we''re installing it ourselves (FI has successfully done it before).
Can''t remember what we got, but I''m glad you decided to replace this, as when we came back from vacation, the thing broke from the bottom, luckily ours was in the garage so no real damage.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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Date: 5/18/2009 3:00:08 PM
Author: D&T
Date: 5/18/2009 2:17:12 PM

Author:Hudson_Hawk

Our current HWH was installed in ''96 and we''ve noticed some rust in our water on occasion. We feel like we''re playing Russian Roulette with the thing, so we''ve decided to pull the trigger and get a new one. Does anyone have recommendations for a 50+ gallon Natural Gas water heater? Max budget is $600, we''re installing it ourselves (FI has successfully done it before).
Can''t remember what we got, but I''m glad you decided to replace this, as when we came back from vacation, the thing broke from the bottom, luckily ours was in the garage so no real damage.

Yea...we have a 1600 sq ft finished basement with wall-to-wall carpet...we want to be proactive with this! It really stinks though, 500 bucks 6 weeks before the wedding....UGH!
 

jet2ks

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Just FYI, there are only two hot water heater manufacturers in the US. I don''t care how many brand names you see, they are all made by two companies. The reason I mention this is that you can pay extra for a "name" brand that is the exact same as another heater that is 10-15% less.

Make sure to check out independent hardware stores (True Value, Ace, Do It Best), they generally have better pricing than the big box stores like Depot or Lowe''s. For that budget you should be able to get a 9yr or possibly 12yr warranty heater. Also, if the last HWH was installed that long ago, many building codes have changed in the meantime, and as a result, so has water heater construction. Most places now require outside air for combustion as opposed to pulling air out of the house. Make sure to check into this and adjust accordingly.

Do/did you flush the water heater on a regular basis? (every year preferably)

Even though it is bad timing before the wedding, 13 yrs is generally pretty good for a water heater, so count your blessings.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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Date: 5/18/2009 4:48:35 PM
Author: jet2ks
Just FYI, there are only two hot water heater manufacturers in the US. I don''t care how many brand names you see, they are all made by two companies. The reason I mention this is that you can pay extra for a ''name'' brand that is the exact same as another heater that is 10-15% less.


Make sure to check out independent hardware stores (True Value, Ace, Do It Best), they generally have better pricing than the big box stores like Depot or Lowe''s. For that budget you should be able to get a 9yr or possibly 12yr warranty heater. Also, if the last HWH was installed that long ago, many building codes have changed in the meantime, and as a result, so has water heater construction. Most places now require outside air for combustion as opposed to pulling air out of the house. Make sure to check into this and adjust accordingly.


Do/did you flush the water heater on a regular basis? (every year preferably)


Even though it is bad timing before the wedding, 13 yrs is generally pretty good for a water heater, so count your blessings.

What do you mean by the air requirements? I know we have our furnace vented, and the HWH and the furnace are right next to each other so either it''s already vented or I''m guessing we could do it easily enough.

And no, we didn''t (or FI didn''t) flush it regularly. I know that could likely be the cause of the rusty water, but we know we''ve had a good run with the unit and we don''t want to push our luck. $500 now is well worth a $1000 homeowner''s deductible and lots of soggy carpet!
 

jet2ks

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It used to be that HWH's just burned up air from whatever room they were in. Due to changes in the burner designs, the new ones generally require more oxygen than is available in the small rooms they are usually installed in. Most places now require that you have the room vented to the outside, so that the water heater draws oxygen from the outside air as opposed to room air. This is different from the vents that draw out the hot air and gas from the burner. There are several ways of doing this, but I would check with a local inspector to find out what the requirements are in your area. Depending on how your furnace is installed, it may or may not be a simple matter.

You guys are very smart to be doing this now, most people wait until they have the soggy carpet. Flushing the sediment out yearly can prolong the life of the tank by years.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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J2ks, silly question but I''m trying to research the code requirements for installation. What would this fall under, plumbing or fire? I''m not finding anything specific but I''m sure I''m not googling the correct terms. I''m in Warwick, RI.
 

jet2ks

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Should be under plumbing. It might be a lot faster to call the city or state office (depends on how RI does that) and just ask. I have found that inspectors are generally very good about answering questions.

EDT: You may be able to ask at the place where you purchase the water heater, as well. If the plumbing person there is very knowledgable, they may be able to help you with current code requirements. It is possible that you won't have to worry about it, but better safe than sorry, ya know?
 

crown1

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we recently replaced a fifty gallon rheem with another fifty gallon rheem. i called around some local hardware stores and got an excellent price, around 350 dollars.
 

Dancing Fire

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our HWH is 23 yrs old,still working, but thinking about replacing it with a tankless depending on how much difference in $$$''s.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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DF-I heard that tankless HWHs require either electricity or constant access to your furnace (forcing you to run your furnace year round). I have no idea if this is true or not, but consider the choice carefully.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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Date: 5/18/2009 11:16:27 PM
Author: crown1
we recently replaced a fifty gallon rheem with another fifty gallon rheem. i called around some local hardware stores and got an excellent price, around 350 dollars.

WOW, really? for a 50 gallon, that''s a fantastic price! The ones we were looking at at HD/Sears were at least $450 for a 50 gallon with a 6-year warranty.

We''re calling around to plumbing supply and smaller hardware stores today. We checked our HWH again last night and discovered it was only a 40 gal tank, not the 55 FI thought it was. We are happy with the output from that size, so this means we can go with a smaller tank and save a few or get a better but smaller version.
 

applequeen

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Have you checked with your local utility company? Ours offers a 0% loan program for water heaters... basically they will come and install a new water heater and then divide the cost over a year or so of your utility bills.

Another option might be to try the 0% option offered by Lowes or Home Depot. You''d have 12 months to pay it off so you could wait until after the wedding to start paying.
1.gif
 

Hudson_Hawk

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Hey AQ, thanks for the heads up. I''ll check with my utility Co now. We try to live as close to credit free as possible, so the HD/Lowes financing is not what we''re looking for. We have the money, I''m just cheap!
 

applequeen

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haha...I hear you on being cheap... my husband and i hate to spend $ (guess we''re lucky that we''re both that way).

Is it too late to register for a hot water heater? (joking
1.gif
) .... good luck!
 

Dancing Fire

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Date: 5/19/2009 8:17:22 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
DF-I heard that tankless HWHs require either electricity or constant access to your furnace (forcing you to run your furnace year round). I have no idea if this is true or not, but consider the choice carefully.
tankless heater...

pros...unlike hot water tanks which needs gas or electricity most of the day to keep the water hot. the tankless will only come on when you need hot water,plus there will be a endlees supply of hot water.

cons...cost 2x more than a hot water tank,plus we would need to run a bigger gas pipe to the tankless heater,so more $$$s.
14.gif
 

pennquaker09

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Date: 5/19/2009 2:42:35 PM
Author: Dancing Fire

Date: 5/19/2009 8:17:22 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
DF-I heard that tankless HWHs require either electricity or constant access to your furnace (forcing you to run your furnace year round). I have no idea if this is true or not, but consider the choice carefully.
tankless heater...

pros...unlike hot water tanks which needs gas or electricity most of the day to keep the water hot. the tankless will only come on when you need hot water,plus there will be a endlees supply of hot water.

cons...cost 2x more than a hot water tank,plus we would need to run a bigger gas pipe to the tankless heater,so more $$$s.
14.gif

But I love having hot water on demand!
 

MonkeyPie

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You know, I was just thinking about this thread last night, and what happens? Our pilot light on our water heater shuts off for no apparent reason - it lit right back up when we tried - and I got to take a lukewarm shower this morning. I am FREEZING.
 

crown1

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Date: 5/19/2009 8:19:44 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
Date: 5/18/2009 11:16:27 PM

Author: crown1

we recently replaced a fifty gallon rheem with another fifty gallon rheem. i called around some local hardware stores and got an excellent price, around 350 dollars.


WOW, really? for a 50 gallon, that''s a fantastic price! The ones we were looking at at HD/Sears were at least $450 for a 50 gallon with a 6-year warranty.


We''re calling around to plumbing supply and smaller hardware stores today. We checked our HWH again last night and discovered it was only a 40 gal tank, not the 55 FI thought it was. We are happy with the output from that size, so this means we can go with a smaller tank and save a few or get a better but smaller version.



i got higher prices at other stores also that was why i jumped on the 50 gallon rheem with the 6 year warranty with the cheaper price. i do have to admit that the other prices were in the four hundred range. i was calling local hardware stores as opposed to chain types. we like having the 50 gallon and have considered the tankless but were to lazy to make the switch. many years ago we first saw the tankless on bob villa.
 

Hudson_Hawk

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we''d love a 50 gal, but seeing as we''re happy with the 40 we have now and money is really tight, we''re going to stick with the 40 gal size. We''re going to reassess in a few years.

So this morning Fi and I got up and went out to get our marriage license and the HWH. We walked out of town hall to discover that the battery on our Jeep was dead and we were in an unjumpable spot. So we took a cab home (to the tune of $30) and picked up our other car and external charger. We stopped to pick up a new battery as well just in case the charger was dead. Well it was. So FI had to change the car battery in the TH parking lot. Then we had to come back home to drop the car off and so FI could have a conference call for work. We had a few minutes, so he decided he''d start draining the existing HWH. Well the rise from the HWH outlet to the window was too high, so we had to run the hose alllllll the way across our carpeted basement to the door on the other side of the house. it''s still draining. So it''s 11:18 and I feel like we''re a circus of fools just running around like we''re nuts. We''re going to home depot/hardware store after FI''s call. Wish us luck on the rest of the day!!
 

jet2ks

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Ouch! Here''s hoping that the rest of your day and the HWH installation goes better than how it started. Good luck.
 

crown1

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Date: 5/20/2009 11:19:26 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
we''d love a 50 gal, but seeing as we''re happy with the 40 we have now and money is really tight, we''re going to stick with the 40 gal size. We''re going to reassess in a few years.


So this morning Fi and I got up and went out to get our marriage license and the HWH. We walked out of town hall to discover that the battery on our Jeep was dead and we were in an unjumpable spot. So we took a cab home (to the tune of $30) and picked up our other car and external charger. We stopped to pick up a new battery as well just in case the charger was dead. Well it was. So FI had to change the car battery in the TH parking lot. Then we had to come back home to drop the car off and so FI could have a conference call for work. We had a few minutes, so he decided he''d start draining the existing HWH. Well the rise from the HWH outlet to the window was too high, so we had to run the hose alllllll the way across our carpeted basement to the door on the other side of the house. it''s still draining. So it''s 11:18 and I feel like we''re a circus of fools just running around like we''re nuts. We''re going to home depot/hardware store after FI''s call. Wish us luck on the rest of the day!!


time for you two to catch a break! i hope the installation was painless.
 
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