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Hello,
My 50 gal (gas) water heater is about 8.5 years old and don't know much about it's maint history. And it's in the attic. In the master bath garden tub hot water faucet (which is high flow and closest to the heater) we see light brown water.
Anyways, I want to replace it. Any recommendations of specific brand/model (No, please don't suggest tankless option not willing to spend more).
I recommend against buying a water heater from big box stores. The GE water heater with 7-year warranty I bought from the orange big box store in 2009 recently had a non-repairable leak. Both GE and the store gave me runarounds. GE told me to bring the water heater to the store and they would give me a replacement. Problem is the store no longer carries GE water heater products and has switched to Rheem. The store wouldn't give me a new one. I decided to bite the bullet and bought one directly from Rheem so that I wouldn't have to go through the BS games again should something breaks.
I personally like Bradford White. They have the best quality control in the industry.
Note that the new minimum energy standards for water heaters went into effect last week. 50 gallon gas water heaters now are required to have a minimum energy factor of 0.60, increased from 0.58.
First and foremost let me say that putting a water heater in the attic is the most asinine thing I've ever seen in house construction.
OK- Moving right along! Everybody is suggesting this brand or that- well folks, have you every seen the construction of a water heater (strictly talking gas here)? They're all pretty much exactly the same. As a matter of fact, the controller unit is made by one of three companies here in the US. They all have to meet a certain minimum energy standard (which was just increased this month), and every manufacturer offers the same type of warranty. I think "BRAND" makes little to no difference. And yes, there will be the naysayers that will try and persuade you that this or that brand is junk- whatever!
IF! And this is a really big IF- I had to put a W/H in an attic I'd be more concerned about its efficiency in an unconditioned space. While most W/H's are in a basement, or closet, they have the benefit of being in a conditioned or semi-conditioned space. This tempers the extreme shift in ambient temperatures found in an attic.
Some may say that during the summertime the W/H doesn't work as hard as in the winter, so that offsets the extremes- bullmalarky! What do you think that foam insulation is for?
So, with all of this in mind I'd be looking for a HE W/H. Something in the 90% efficiency range. With that I would know I'm getting the best bang for my buck considering the environment the W/H is in.
However, at 8-1/2yrs I would hardly think that you're about to find yourself without hot water. Unless you have extremely hard water, or frequent interruptions in service- amounting to excessive sediment. Flushing a W/H will certainly rid the W/H of most of the sediment, but it certainly won't do anything for a hard water condition.
As far as in the attic... can't do much now. Relocation will be a big proj.
By he, do you mean high efficiency? Note that if you want a 50 gallon water heater with an energy factor above 0.62 (current minimum federal standard is 0.60), you will need to buy either a power vented model or models with either integrated flue dampers or baffle blowers, which will require external electricity. Power vented models, as well as models with baffle blowers, will often be more expensive to buy than a tankless model while having inferior efficiency.
As far as in the attic... can't do much now. Relocation will be a big proj.
Are you doing it yourself? If not, it wouldn't hurt to get quotes to relocate it from a few plumbers, assuming there is a better location for it in your home. I had my WH relocated, granted it was not from an attic (laundry room to garage) but they had to go into the attic to run the new pipes and such. The cost wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected.
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