Water heater warranty

[atgcpaul]

Was browsing Amazon and was curious about NG water heaters. In the product description section, it says the warranty is only good if installed by a properly licensed technician.

http://www.amazon.com/Rheem-RHG-PRO50-50...V1QGZ53KXHM5PNN


I think I read the warranty right for another Rheem on HD's website, but don't see the same stipulation.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rheem-Perform...E40U0/204697785

Did Amazon insert that little tidbit on their own or could I really be SOL if I install it myself?

[arthropod98]

that was the case for us with our propane pool heater. if i hooked it up, the warranty would have been voided . . . pretty crappy.

[John Mihich]

IMO that would be a deal breaker. I would pay a little more to buy locally and install myself.

IMO - being licensed does not mean you will do a good job.

[3finger]

Last year, Rheem sent me a new gas valve assembly for a Richmond (made by Rheem) that failed just short of the six year warranty. I had installed it myself. No one ever asked who installed it.

[Bob10]

I have never seen a warranty on WH like that. I have taken back 2 GE units from HD on warranty. I won't be buying anymore from them but never had a problem with the warranty

[doobes]

A. O. Smith is similar. They can be installed by anyone, but warranty service can only be done by their "certified" dealers. Of which there are very few.

Had a local company, who typically only sold A.O. Smith quote one for a replacement last year. When I asked him if his company could perform warranty service he said "well of course". Well of course he couldn't. Doing some spelunking around indicated the A.O. Smith "certified" companies typically charged 2-3 times for labor on warranty parts replacements.

The salesman called me up very apologetic and confirmed my findings. I then asked him to quote a Bradford-White which had no such restrictions. He quoted the B-W, which was only $50 than the A.O. Smith and told me this caused quite a bit of consternation in the office. Evidently they were not aware of A. O. Smith's new policies.

Yea, this is the new wave of "customer relations".

[Estrogen Hostage]

I just went through this with my plumber. He installed a rheem at my house and is having trouble getting them to honor the warranty. The water heater failed when it was less than a-year-old.

[Patsfan]

not gonna read the fine print, but it may be an issue of whether they replace the unit or cover the cost of the unit and install (prorated)

when my electric wh went less than three years after install, ge gave me a new one (Since I did the origianl install, I also had to do the swap.)

they also pro rated the warranty on the "new" one from six years down to three.

[Rickdavis]

so have you bought that? i also need one so i need reviews.

[atgcpaul]

Yes, I bought and installed the Rheem that I linked above. I don't remember when I did it but some time in 2016. We used to have a 40 gallon tank so this one makes plenty of hot water come bath time. So far so good. It was my first time installing a WH but it was simple enough.

Don't know what else to say other than it seems to be doing the job. Two feature I like over my old heater is that I don't need to light the pilot with a match. It has a push button electronic ignition. And when it is running, the heat from the pilot flame generates enough electricity through the thermocouple to make an LED blink the WH status.

Paul