Donna,

I just attach a short section of garden hose and then open the bottom drain
for a minute or so every few months to keep the sediment to a minimum in my
gas HWH tank. I am fortunate enough to have a floor drain there in my
basement so this is fairly easy to do.

Also, if you can find a tank with the exact same dimension (Height x Width)
and that has the gas inlet, exhaust flue, cold water inlet, and hot water
outlet all located in exactly the same position/heights (or as near as
possible), then it makes the installation much simpler.

I also agree with the suggestion of installing the fiberglass "blanket"
insulation regardless of which model you choose to make it as efficient as
possible.

Good luck!

Bob

"Donna Ohl, Grady Volunteer Coordinator" wrote in
message . ..
On Sun, 10 Feb 2008 22:20:41 -0700, Rick Blaine wrote:

- The Home Depot guy tried to sell me on the maintenance-free ones
(He said they had a fan that stirred up the sediment)
- Some folks recommended "better" valves for cleaning out the sediment

Donna