Help to get new water heater

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GeorgiaCorgi

Member
So there's water coming from the bottom of my water heater. I'm pretty sure that isn't something that can be easily fixed. The water heater is from 2007 and came with my house so it's fairly old.

So what's the best way to get a decent deal on a replacement? Do I just buy from lowes and pay them to install it and haul away the old one? Should I call an independent plumber? Are there better stores than Lowes around the area?

Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
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imaref

Active Member
A few years ago when I had to replace my water heater, I stopped by the post office and picked up a change of address welcome kit packet--they had a 10% coupon for Home Depot. Drove up to home depot and got a Rheem Performance Platinum .93 energy efficient water heater (included a 12 year warranty). Loaded it up, unpacked it at home and drained my old water heater. Used a local independent plumber to install--made a big difference in price because I had already drained the old one so he and his worker were done in less than 30 minutes, and they didn't charge to take away the old one (they sell it for scrap). Note that if you don't already have a thermal expansion tank it is a requirement and you'll have to pay extra for that. Also, we don't use that much hot water so I got the 40 gallon size. We've never, ever run out of hot water (3 adults). Also check to see if SMECO is currently doing water heater rebates--I got that as well at the time.
 
GURPS

GURPS

INGSOC
PREMO Member
GeorgiaCorgi said:
So what's the best way to get a decent deal on a replacement?
Click to expand...


Call around check prices, check customer reviews, talk to your neighbors ...... I'm guessing you are not personally up for the task ?

If that water heater is a 2007 you did good, the unit lasted that long ... usually 5 - 10 yrs max .,.. I saw a couple that were 15 yrs old

I'd say don't go with the bargain basement estimate ... back when I did plumbing it the cost was a package deal


  1. Water Heater
  2. 2 hours labor
  3. Materials [ were not itemized ]


unless something really went wrong - like an old DC house with Iron Pipe that falls appart when you start taking bits apart 2 hours covered most things that came up during the install process
 
W

wubbles

Active Member
It cost me close to $2000 in labor to get a $900 Rheem water heater installed by Boothe's. It was a little over half a day of labor from start to finish. I am sure I got hosed with the markup but it was extremely convenient and they were able to have everything done within a day of me calling. I know all jobs aren't the same due to different variables but I hope this at least helps you set expectations if you're interested in paying the luxury tax. I don't think my job was particularly complicated as all the work was contained within the same space, no new holes or pipe laying. All they had to do was yank the old tank out, adjust some of the piping in the closet and drop in the new one.
 
Sneakers

Sneakers

Just sneakin' around....
GURPS said:
usually 5 - 10 yrs max .,.. I saw a couple that were 15 yrs old
Click to expand...
I'm on borrowed time. Using the same water heater as when I moved into the house in '94, and no idea how long it had been in service before that.

To the OP: I too sense you need someone to provide/install as you're not up for that. Go to Lowes, Home Depot, local plumbers, etc.. and ask some question to help get the right replacement, and get a few total cost estimates to remove/replace. Consider the warranty of the new unit.
 
LightRoasted

LightRoasted

If I may ...
If I may ...

Tip-O-The-Day ...

One should have preventive maintenance performed on their water heater to prevent corrosion. Such as the periodic replacement of the anode rod.
 
LightRoasted

LightRoasted

If I may ...
If I may ...

wubbles said:
It cost me close to $2000 in labor to get a $900 Rheem water heater installed by Boothe's. It was a little over half a day of labor from start to finish. I am sure I got hosed with the markup but it was extremely convenient and they were able to have everything done within a day of me calling. I know all jobs aren't the same due to different variables but I hope this at least helps you set expectations if you're interested in paying the luxury tax. I don't think my job was particularly complicated as all the work was contained within the same space, no new holes or pipe laying. All they had to do was yank the old tank out, adjust some of the piping in the closet and drop in the new one.
Click to expand...
Holy crap! $2000 for labor? Let's see. Turn circuit breaker off. Turn water valve to heater off. Drain water heater. Disconnect electric feed and intake water and output water lines. Remove old water heater. Then reverse procedure with new water heater. Open water value to heater and allow water to fully fill tank while having other spigots open. Close other spigots when full. Turn circuit breaker back on and allow water to heat. That, is not a $2000 job.
 
Grumpy

Grumpy

Well-Known Member
wubbles said:
It cost me close to $2000 in labor to get a $900 Rheem water heater installed by Boothe's. It was a little over half a day of labor from start to finish. I am sure I got hosed with the markup but it was extremely convenient and they were able to have everything done within a day of me calling. I know all jobs aren't the same due to different variables but I hope this at least helps you set expectations if you're interested in paying the luxury tax. I don't think my job was particularly complicated as all the work was contained within the same space, no new holes or pipe laying. All they had to do was yank the old tank out, adjust some of the piping in the closet and drop in the new one.
Click to expand...
IMO, you did get hosed..I've replaced my electric HW heater twice and it never took me more than 3 hours. Even if it was a gas heater, it shouldn't have cost that much..Disclaimer - no idea what HW heaters cost nowadays, last replacement here was 10 years ago and it was 50 gal at $400
 
L'Town.girl

L'Town.girl

Well-Known Member
FWIW I recently had to replace my hot water heater. Old one was 10 y/o and electric. Went to Lowes. Plumbing associate on duty was very helpful. Purchased a new tank. Plus needed parts for hook up. I took in some pictures of my old stuff so that helped with determining what exactly was needed. Disconnected the old tank ( thanks YouTube! ). Slide in new tank. Hooked it up. Filled. Powered up. Boom. Hot water. Trust me, if I could do it, anyone could. Hauled old tank to dump. All in all, with driving, shopping, it took about 3.5 hours. Every now and then, Lowe's comes through for me 😉
 
W

wubbles

Active Member
LightRoasted said:
If I may ...


Holy crap! $2000 for labor? Let's see. Turn circuit breaker off. Turn water valve to heater off. Drain water heater. Disconnect electric feed and intake water and output water lines. Remove old water heater. Then reverse procedure with new water heater. Open water value to heater and allow water to fully fill tank while having other spigots open. Close other spigots when full. Turn circuit breaker back on and allow water to heat. That, is not a $2000 job.
Click to expand...

It probably makes very little difference, but it runs on gas. They definitely made a pretty penny on a clueless moron like myself.
 
Ken King

Ken King

A little rusty but not crusty
PREMO Member
GeorgiaCorgi said:
So there's water coming from the bottom of my water heater. I'm pretty sure that isn't something that can be easily fixed. The water heater is from 2007 and came with my house so it's fairly old.

So what's the best way to get a decent deal on a replacement? Do I just buy from lowes and pay them to install it and haul away the old one? Should I call an independent plumber? Are there better stores than Lowes around the area?

Any help is greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
If you have water coming out of the bottom of the heater you should immediately close the heater's inlet water valve and shut off power to the heater. Next, grab a hose and hook it up to the heater drain, run the hose outside, open that drain valve and drain your tank. Or you could end up with a rather large mess should the leak (assumed rusted out area) expand.
 
Rommey

Rommey

Well-Known Member
Depending on your county, you might also be required to install an expansion tank. The tank itself isn't expensive, but a plumber is going to need to makeup the connections, so expect a couple hundred on top of the water heater.
 
black dog

black dog

Free America
wubbles said:
It probably makes very little difference, but it runs on gas. They definitely made a pretty penny on a clueless moron like myself.
Click to expand...

Sometimes it makes lots of difference.
Was the old heater up to todays code?
Was it the same size ie height/width?
Was it an orphan vent?
Did it have the right size and correct venting?
Was it a Power Vent heater?
 
black dog

black dog

Free America
Rommey said:
Depending on your county, you might also be required to install an expansion tank. The tank itself isn't expensive, but a plumber is going to need to makeup the connections, so expect a couple hundred on top of the water heater.
Click to expand...

I would bet that Calvert still has that along with a separate T&P valve if the house is plumbed in cpvc.
It did 10 years ago...
 
G

GeorgiaCorgi

Member
Thank you for all of the replies. Looks like I should buy a unit and try to get a plumber to install. I think the biggest issue for us will be moving the water heaters in and out of the basement as I am sure they weigh more than a hundred pounds.

I did notice the main brand that lowes carries has a lot of negative reviews on their website.
 
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