[localinsight]

Hi. On 3/5/18 I replaced my water heater following a total failure. Got Plumbing used the same make and model, a Bradford & White 40 gallon gas unit. I live in a condo on a bottom floor, so there is a forced ventilation system to protect the upstairs residents from exhaust. It was expensive but Got Plumbing said that it would be better to use the same model as long as we could get it. I had suggested a different model and a change to the vent system if necessary. So, they procured an identical model and installed it for $1950. This seemed very high to me but since then I have heard from other residents in this complex that replacement will be very expensive, especially because the heaters are on a platform and don't have much clearance for the ventilation system. There is a 6 year warranty.
I assumed the warranty would be administered like an auto warranty. No. Sat morning I saw that my patio was flooded. The tank leaked - apparently rusted. This was 11/23/19. Pretty much 1 and 3/4 years after installation. Clearly the problem was not a faulty install or faulty use. Got Plumbing came out today and installed a new unit (same model). They charged me $200 exchange fee, $10 for parts and $255 for labor. I questioned why this was not all covered under the warranty. He said that would have been an extended warranty. The plumber had me call Bradford and White but they never answered. I tried three times while he was here. I told him that in 2018 I suggested a different heater (preferably less expensive) and that no one mentioned an extended warranty to me.
In fact, no one questioned what type of water heater I should replace the failed one with this time. It seems to me that this was a large failure, due to product quality, manufacture, or assembly.
I am not happy to be using a unit which failed so quickly. I had assumed (LOL) that labor would be covered under the warranty, never mind an exchange fee. Yes, I am new to ownership... had always rented until the housing crisis did me in.
So now I have the same type of water heater which just failed. I have paid $2,415 in just under 2 years. Is there anything I can do about this? Or is this a lesson from the school of Hard Knocks. If so, what is a better way to handle this in the future? If I thought labor and exchange wouldn't be covered, I would not have automatically decided to go with the same unit.
Any thoughts .... please don't be too insulting to me.
Thanks.

[airics]

What does the warranty paperwork say

[gcvt]

You may want to check and see if they had any product recalls in the recent past.

[Packrat1]

Are you using a water softener prior to the water heater? If not, you should we have very hard water here with lots of minerals. No matter what happens you should not give those guys any more business. A check of yelp and nextdoor might be in order in the future. Consider AO Smith or Rheem next time but go online and check the specs first.
A suggestion might be to consider a good quality home warranty.

[ddrhazy]

I know of that type of water heater and they are more expensive than the typical water heater, but they are not much more difficult to install. Their labor is a little high, I recently had a water heater replaced and my plumber charged me $165 for it(honestly I could've connected it myself in 3 hours, lifting it into place is more of the problem than actual install) and I bought the heater myself from Home Depot(picked up a 12 year warranty Rheem for around $800).

The warranty only covers the depreciated cost of the unit. What a rip off. This is American manufacturing and guarantee now I guess.

[WestieJeff]

As ridiculous as it sounds, it is standard operating procedure that water heaters only cover parts (there are a couple who do labor but usually only for a year or two) and they charge an exchange fee to actually utilize the warranty. The supply houses charge the fee to handle actually exchanging the water heater, this is a real and hard cost to the plumber. I am sure there are some plumbers out there that will eat the exchange cost for an in warranty repair.

Bottom line, always ask plumbers what the warranty covers and if there are any additional fees.

A friend of mine warrantied his a year or so ago, which was done through a legit plumbing supply house. They charged him the exchange fee (I think it was $100 or $125) and an additional fee to cover "upgrading" to the new water heater energy efficiency standards which came out recently.

Unfortunately the powered vent water heaters like you have are, as you saw, even more expensive, and I believe more prone to failure.

[Commander666]

I got what sounds like same model installed for about $750.

[Hal Roach]

my Panasonic tankless was 80 bucks..I did DIY. Not familiar with the power vent types..but that sounds sky high. And I have heard people touting that brand, and as usual they were full of air.

[RationalExpectations]

Did you inspect this 2nd unit after it was out? Where was the failure? Did you have them pull out the sacrificial anode rod so you could see it?

I'm wondering if there is some type of active electrolysis going on which completely consumed the sacrificial anode rod prematurely, then going on to spring a leak in the tank.

If that's what happened, you may need an electrician to see if he can find an unusual current draw in the cold or hot water supply or the platform, etc. But that might be looking for a needle in a haystack.

With this new unit just installed, if it were me, I think I would remove its factory installed passive aluminum sacrificial anode rod and replace it with an electrically powered titanium non-sacrificial anode rod called an Impressed-Current Anode to prevent further internal corrosion.

Powered anode frequently asked questions
https://www.amazon.com/Corro-Protec-.../dp/B01H459TAK
https://www.hotwater.com/Water-Heate...-Anode-System/

Before embarking on the above, read up on the web about the purpose of the sacrificial anode rod in a tank-style water heater. Typically around hear they last for 4 to 5-ish years before needing to be replaced.

And my guess is you didn't get a chance to see why it failed so quickly - so my thoughts are just, you know, guesses.

Take care of the tank by attaching a garden hose to the drain at the bottom, run the hose out to the street, and drain about 5 gallons of water every month or so. This flushes out sediment on the inside of the tank. Even once per quarter is better than nothing.

[bayview6]

OP:
please answer the following questions.
1. do you have a water softener?
2. what temperature do you set your hot water tank?
3. do you use a re-circulating pump?