My First Pit Rant in a Long Time: #%*@!&# Water Heater and #%*@!&# Plumber!

[HeyHomie]

My hot water heater went out!

[Gallagher]
Why do they put a hot water heater in your house when you DON'T NEED TO HEAT HOT WATER!
[/Gallagher]

I called a plumber to take a look at it see what he can do. Very nice guy, that plumber. He put little booties over his shoes so he wouldn't have to walk over my carpet. He smiled and said "Hi Kitty!" at Rastakitty, who responded by hissing at him and stomping away in a kitty huff. Very polite the whole time, he was.

And then he shows me an estimate: $295! Uh, Mr. Plumber guy, I can buy a new water heater at Sears for $150. Does the plumbing industry think we're a bunch of gullible simpletons who will pay more for a repair than for a new product? Or was it just this one guy?

Either way, it looks like Mrs. Rastahomie and I are doing the pour-boiling-water-into-a-bathtub-full-of-cold-water method of bathing ourselves until Wednesday, when I have the night off and my stepdad and I can install it.

Damn water heater. GGGGRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

[Whack-a-Mole]

Originally posted by rastahomie
And then he shows me an estimate: $295! Uh, Mr. Plumber guy, I can buy a new water heater at Sears for $150. Does the plumbing industry think we're a bunch of gullible simpletons who will pay more for a repair than for a new product? Or was it just this one guy?

Just a guess but it probably goes something like this:

New hot water heater at Sears: $150
Installation of new hot water heater: $300

[saepiroth]

or, more like this;

for new hot water heater; 150$
when you decide to install it yourself; 0$
when you chop off your pinky and have to get an ambulance; 1500$
the whole damn thing from the perspective of the plumber; priceless


some things money can't buy. for everything else, there's chopping off your own fingers.

[Fledermaus]

some things money can't buy. for everything else, there's chopping off your own fingers.

This is my new motto in life. Thanks, saepiroth.

[Skelji]

Originally posted by rastahomie
And then he shows me an estimate: $295! Uh, Mr. Plumber guy, I can buy a new water heater at Sears for $150. Does the plumbing industry think we're a bunch of gullible simpletons who will pay more for a repair than for a new product? Or was it just this one guy?

Is that $295 just for labor? If it includes the heater, that's a reasonable estimate. Plumbers are no different than auto mechanics, doctors, or any other profession involving repair in one form or another. If you're not capable of fixing the problem yourself, you'll have to pay for someone else's labor, which often equals or exceeds the price of the materials.

You also need to consider what you're getting for $150 at Sears vs. what the plumber will install. $150 will probably buy you a low-end water heater with a 5 year warranty. Like everything else in life, you get what you pay for.

I worked in a plumbing supply house at one time - 5 year heaters are not that good, and you'll be looking at replacing it probably in 5 years or less. The plumber will likely install a better quality heater than Sears carries, and with a better warranty, and he'll take care of any post-installation problems. No matter who replaces it, you'll be better off with a heater that has a 10-year warranty.

Keep in mind that for this type of job, a plumber's labor charges include: picking up your new heater from a supply house and bringing it in the house, draining the old heater and removing it, various fittings required to adapt your current pipe configuration to the new heater (no, water heaters are not one universal size), and the actual installation.

It's not that difficult to install a water heater - IF you know what you're doing. If you don't, there are a number of things that can go wrong - water leaks from pipe fittings, a leaky tank because you cracked the glass lining when it was bounced around in transport, frying electric elements or problems with the gas hookup, etc.

I'm all for DIY - I learned how to do all this stuff because I wasn't about to pay jacked up labor charges. However, most people are clueless when it comes to home repairs, and that's why these guys charge what they do: because they can.

[waxteeth]

Originally posted by saepiroth
for new hot water heater; 150$
when you decide to install it yourself; 0$
when you chop off your pinky and have to get an ambulance; 1500$
the whole damn thing from the perspective of the plumber; priceless

Awesome!

[saepiroth]

thank you, thank you. you're too kind.