Need advice on a good name brand water heater

[flir67]

I'm going to replace my water heater soon. its a 40 gallon gas, its 30 years old and doing great but getting worried about it because of the age. its a hotpoint.

I would like to install a whole house water filter on the inlet side of this new water heater. is this recommended or not for the water pressure? I've recently upgraded all the appliances to whirlpool but not sure if whirlpool is good or crap for a water heater.

the house is 2400sq ft L shape with 3 family members 2 full bathrooms and dishwasher on a slab.

[HeyBub]

Why filter hot water? You don't drink or cook with it.

Hot water does what it does (wash - humans, pets, dishes, clothes) then goes down the drain.

Further, that your existing heater has lasted 30 years speaks well of the water in your area. That is, your water source contains very little debris, chemicals, or other noxious substances. I doubt your water quality will improve much by being filtered.

As to choice of brands, I think the major brands are virtually interchangable. Water heaters have improved in efficiency during these years, so you should see a significant saving in energy costs.

[ransley]

Have they improved in efficency, show me I dont see it. I see bs advertising and labels but certified EF ratings are different. EF- Energy Factor is tank efficency and what I see is 55-65 EF tanks sold everywhere where on a 55 EF tank 45c of every dollar is wasted heating water. A whole house sediment filter should reduce some scale but why not filter all inside house water it might help the inline clothes washer filters from being clogged, if you get clogged sink strainers there is debris in the water.

[trader4]

I replaced mine about 8 years ago. Went with an average model State, from HD, nothing special. It was a good deal at the time. Of course now with the recent increase in energy prices, you should factor in how much you could save with a high efficiency heater vs the increased upfront cost.

About 4 years after buying it, the thermocouple failed. I called up State, it was under warranty, and they sent me a new one for free, no shipping, had it in 2 days. Since then it's been fine. I check the anode every couple years and last check it was about half gone. Within a couple years, I'll replace the anode and see if that gets me longer tank life.

[Claude Hopper]

If you have gas I would go with a tankless gas unit. Why maintain 40 gallons of hot water 24 hours a day when a tankless only runs when you actually use hot water.

[trader4]

Maybe because the tankless typically costs a lot more upfront, may require an increased size gas line to support, and isn't without it's own drawbacks, like many units not responding and turning on to small water flow?

[RLM]

I'm with you Ransley. Hot, softened water uses less soap, leaves clothes and bed linen, towels, softer(more fluff) when dried Beside the fact that you would need a "licensed plumber" to bypass the hot water tank and isolate it from the incoming water supply. Damn expensive when the water tank is on the other side of the house from the input of the softener as mine is.

I chose to by salt. It's cheap and worthy of wars being fought over it. A true essential.

Or get Joe the labourer to install it and hope it's done right when you go to sell your home.

1. Anything worth doing the first time deserves to be done right, at that time. 2. A true professional does the job right the first time and makes it look easy.
2. Doing things over, is twice the expense and a waste of time.

Just three of my little axioms.

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Registered Linux user 297687

[HeyBub]

I agree about the water softener. But the OP said "filter" not "soften."

[flir67]

I think filtered water is better than not filtered water. not sure of where the inline pipe is in the house as we are on a slab and wall to wall carpet, built 1979. so I would like to filter the hot water and not use a softener at this point. the water heater is in the laundry room and not the attic.

[Claude Hopper]

Well you don't want it turning on for drips do you?

[retired54]

Well softening is essentially filtering because it removes the minerals.

There is very good reasons to soften hot water. Mainly you don't have to drain your water heater every 6 months. Your shower stays cleaner and the fixtures don't get mineral deposits. You do drink it if you use hot water to cook with. (like I do). And of course there is the clothes. You can use less detergent and they do come out softer

Soft water is dirt cheap too after installation.

Olddog

[flir67]

thanks I think I'll do water filtering then..

[retired54]

thanks I think I'll do water filtering then..

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If you do go with a water softener make sure you have a separate hose for the yard and if you're on a low sodium diet you should have a water filter for drinking water that removes the residual salt.

Watering plants with softened water is not a good idea because the residual salt builds up in the soil. It's a very small amount but it builds up over the years.

Olddog

[RLM]

Even more of a reason to forgo the expense of re-plumbing.

[ransley]

Ao Smith is a brand that makes quality home and commercial use, and has condensing Energy Star tanks.

[HeyBub]

But filtering is not softening, else the carbon-granule thingies would be called 'softeners' instead of 'filters.'

But the OP wasn't talking about 'softening' (though that may be what he meant). He specifically said 'filter.'

[retired54]

Well like I said softening is filtering. On mine it runs through a carbon "filter" first. The end result is the same as filtering. I'd MUCH rather use a water softener. MUCH cheaper. Those filters are expensive to replace.

Olddog

[flir67]

what does everyone think of buying a water heater and putting brass ballvalve's on it before install? anyone every do this?

and a curved anondized stick ?

[trader4]

It can be a good idea to replace the cheap drain valve with a good quality one, to prevent future problems. For that application, I'd use a gate type valve though. I'm not too keen on using a valve on hot water where if you turn it a 1/4 turn it goes from off to full on.

I guess you mean replace the one it comes with so that it's easier to replace due to overhead clearance? I wouldn't do that. Anodes aren't cheap and most people never replace or check them at all. If you do check it, which is probably a good idea, and it needs to be replaced, there won't be much of it left, so you should be able to easily break or cut it to get out.

[Zz Yzx]

DAGS on "Whirlpool water heater", you'll get A LOT of complaints. I put a new "EnergySmart, FlameLock" gas heater in two years ago, it's worked flawlessly until last weekend. Then, itstill made hot water, but I had to restart the pilot after every batch; I got the error code "upper sensor failure", whih I think refers to a thermocouple. IDAGS, and found A LOT of the same complaint. and refernces to non-standard replacement parts (left-hand threads). I fiddled with mine without really doing anything, but it 's back to working.

Google is your friend.

-Zz