I'm looking for recommendations for a gas water heater. Do you know of a good brand (and product line) that you'd recommend? Any general tips on selecting a water heater would be helpful too.
Thanks in advance.
A little more info would be helpful. Are you replacing an existing tank? Is it serving your needs as far as how much hot water it delivers? Then stay with that size. No sense heating more water than you are going to use. If you frequently run out of hot water, then go for a larger tank. Look for one with the highest energy rating / lowests cosst per year of ownership.
Yes. Does that affect the consideration in some way?
As Mark suggested it makes the decision easier if you are replacing an existing tank. If the tank size you have is supplying enough hot water then stick with the same size; if it is not then get a larger one. Look for energy star ratings and pick the most efficient one that is in your price range, it will save you some cash over time with lower utility bills.
But before you do, measure the size of the closet that contains the water heater, including the height. And look at the height at which the water inlet and outlet pipes come through the wall. You might have plenty of ceiling height, but if you're replacing a 40 gallon with a 50 and the pipes come out of the wall at about the height of the existing
40, you're going to have to tear open the wall and move the pipes higher up in order to get a taller water heater in there. (Even if you're replacing a 40 gallon tank with another 40 gallon tank, check the height of the tank and where the pipes come out of the wall. Not all 40 gallon tanks are the same dimensions.)
There is not much difference from one manufacturer to another, but your needs may be better met by one model or another. Tell us more about what your needs and concerns are. For example.
What size do you have now?
How old is it?
Why are you replacing it?
How well has it met your needs?
Are you willing to pay a little more now and save money later on operational cost? Are you paying more or less than average to gas?
How many in your family?
Do you need lots of water all at once? (The washer running and two people showering at once.)
Is there a lot of down time (like we use it in the morning and not again until everyone gets home)
i get them at my ace hardware ,40 gal gas, they last about 10-15 years and are 150.00 . rheem brand.
I have a garden variety State that is about 6 years old now that I bought at HD. A year ago, the thermocouple went bad. I diagnosed it and called State up and got someone right away. They had a new thermocouple on my door in 2 days for free, no shipping charge, no return of old part.
I looked at paying more for higher efficiency units, but concluded it didn't appear to be worth it. Of course, now gas is more expensive, so it might. You should also consider if there is any reason to go with direct vent. For example, if your furnace is near the end of it's life and you're going to go with a 90%+ new furnace shortly, having a direct vent water heater means you would no longer need the chimney, don't have to worry about it possibly needing a liner when you switch furnaces, etc.
Also, make sure you consider where water will do from a leaking unit and use an appropriate drain pan solution.
Bigger is always better:) So a 50 gallon tank is prefered over a 40 gallon, for say laundry. plus a larger tank experiences less thermal stress from heating and cooling completely when you run out of hot water.
Buy the longest warranty you can, normally 12 years, longer warranty means less overall cost per year. plus better quality, pricer tanks more likely to have brass drain valves, cheap tanks tend to have plastic valves:( real junk they break easy and often drip after just opening once.
most tanks are about 40,000 BTU, some cheap tanks 34,000 BTU
I prefer my 75,000 BTU tank 75 gallon tank. It cost more, but no cold showers here.:)
Dont stress too mucxh about what you buy, confirm it will fit the space. do replace the vent pipe they rust over time, and check out the chimney or have it iunspected to make sure its safe. bad chimney caps can be dangerous, detoriated linings etc.
Think of this.......
most people dont have to buy a tank till they are at least 20 years old.
by 70 most dont need to buy one again.
So they need to buy one for 50 years MAX.
say the average tank lasts 10 years, if you buy good quality.
so you buy 5 tanks in a lifetime, and probably less. because previous owner just installed one, lived for a time in a apartment or rental, etc etc.
hot water tanks are a minor inconvenience and overall minor cost too.
figure 500 bucks for new tank installed, 10 year life of 12 year warranty tank.
50 bucks a year. less than one nice candy bar cost per week.
They are no longer $150. New safety standards (can't remember the acronym) have pushed the base price up to around $225.
JK
This would be the BBQ style lighter and the plastic dust skirt that goes around the base?
Yes.
Basically it shuts down the pilot if there is a buildup of combustible gas under the water heater. I think this required modification came out 2-3 years ago. I used to be able to get a 40 gallon heater for around $125 at Menards. I would guess that the higher cost of metal is another reason that they cost more, but they jumped at least $75 when this feature was added.
JK
I"m sort of compulsive, so I wanted a wh that would fit the current pipes. LOL. I had AOSmith, but I had, still have, the impression that a WH would be more expensive at plumbing supply store. Any truth to that?
I looked a few places and none matched until I got to Sears. They call them Sears brand, but the pipes were in the same place and the same distance from each other as AOSmith from 28 years ago, and the owners manuals have the exact same format.
My 3BR 2 1/2 bath townhouse came with an 80, that's eighty gallon wh. I presume they all did but it's conceivable the first owner, who bought pretty early, ordered something special, even though he was single. I thought if I went to 52, it would be plenty (I"m single) and I'd have enough room to get between my wh and furnace and try to fix the condensate leak from the AC. IIRC, I ended up fixing the AC when the WH was out altogether, so it didn't even matter that it was smaller. But I am better able to get behind the furnace now, which is almost a foot from the wall. And I have more storage for scrap wood on both sides of the WH while still keeping the wood a foot from the furnace.
Yes, Definitely get one from your local Ace or Murphyor HD or whatever is handy. Because they also will most likely carry parts for this same brand.
This may help you to research a bit:
Maybe next time.
Hadn't thought about that.
Kills it for me too. :)
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