I need to replace my water heater. Shopping around I notice that they come with either a 6 year, 9 year or 12 year warranty. They are priced at about $360, $470 and $580 respectively. I’m wondering if these aren’t really the same units with the only difference being the warranty length (and price). After all, a water heater is pretty simple. What can they do differently?
My current unit lasted 16 years, and I doubt that the builder used a top of the line model. Will the six year model last another 16 years?
They’re the same water heater with longer warranties, but also (IIRC) better insulation. Again, IIRC, the better insulation means less cycling which means they’ll hold up longer which is why the company will back them for longer.
When I got a new water heater I think I just went with the middle one and promised myself I’d change out the anode every few years. That was about 5 years ago and I still haven’t done it. I do have a spare anode, I should see if I can get the original one loose.
Water heaters have a sacrificial anode rod, that is consumed by the galvanic electro-chemical reaction in the water heater. It’s made of a material that corrodes ‘faster’ than the working parts of the heater, so they are preserved while this anode rod is ‘sacrificed’.
The plumber that installed my new water heater a few years ago stated that one of the differences is the size of the sacrificial rod – ‘if it has a 9-year warranty, they build it with a rod that will last 10 years, until it’s out of warranty’.
There are a few differences besides the better insulation. The 9 year and 12 year models have heavier anode rods, which help keep the tank and the elements (if you’re getting an electric model) from corroding. The 9 year and 12 year models also tend to have heavier elements inside, once again designed for a longer service life. They also contain a sediment build-up prevention system, which is simply some baffles in the cold water inlet tube (also called a dip tube) that creates a swirling action as the water enters the tank, which disturbs any sediment on the bottom of the tank and helps prevent a layer of sludge accumulating at the bottom of the tank. This can speed corrosion over time, and can adversely affect the efficiency of gas and propane powered water heater models, since there’s now an additional layer of crud between the burner and the water it needs to heat.
Water heater service life is something that’s something that’s difficult to predict, since it depends on several variables, water quality among them. If your current water heater lasted 16 years, you definitely got your money’s worth. Mine lasted pretty much six years to the day before it started to corrode around the inlet and outlet nipples at the top of the tank and started to leak. Having the longer warranty does offer some peace of mind if you intend to be in your current home for a while, since warranty replacements are simple if you’re buying from one of the major home improvement chains. If it fails within the warranty period, you bring back the defective tank to the store you bought it from, and they’ll exchange it for an identical item. If you don’t have the receipt to show the date of purchase, they go by the date of manufacture on the serial number sticker to determine whether it’s still under warranty. Home centers sell a lot of water heaters and turn their product over quickly, so the date of manufacture is usually only a couple of months off from your date of purchase.
I’m an HVAC & Plumbing contractor, although my background is heavily oriented towards HVAC.
That said, we still replace 3-4 water heaters a month. My experience is that WHs last 8-12 years on average, although we see WHs that are 12-15 all the time. Still, I think 16 years is an outlier of sorts. Maybe you’ll get another 16 years----and it would be great if you did----but I wouldn’t count on it.
As I said, I am much more knowledgeable about HVAC equipment, so keep that in mind, but I have had boodles of trouble servicing Whirlpool. Combustion air problems, & burner assemblies seem to always have problems. I thought it was me, but I talked to a couple plumber friends and they all they say the same thing: stay away from Whirlpool.
I use Rheem and I like them. I’ve heard very good things about Bradford White (from plumbers) and I’m investigating whether to switch. I just saw an ABC segment on a house where every single product—down to the nails—were US made. Bradford White is US made. (although I don’t know about the others yet)
Whirlpool is Lowe’s brand, and they are actually manufactured by the American Water Heater company. Home Depot carries GE branded water heaters, which are manufactured by Rheem. Menard’s carries Richmond, which I believe are also a Rheem brand. I’ll second that Rheem and Bradford White make a very good product. If you’re interested in a Bradford White, however, you’ll likely have to call around to your local plumbing supply houses to see if any of them are a dealer, since they aren’t carried by any of the home centers that I’m aware of.