"SteveB" wrote in message
news:NyHAd.24313$Cl3.22428@fed1read03...

"Peter Bagrationoff" wrote

Just make sure a
licenced plumber installs it or you won't get the rebate!


A "licensed plumber" installed a new heater for my neighbor, a very anal
type. The neighbor, not the plumber. The nice plumber only charged Dan
$600. Dan, of course, got the heater on sale at Home Depot, so saved a
lot there. And since it was done by a "licensed plumber", it is
warrantied, as Dan explained. Well, the water heater is warrantied, and
Dan would ONLY have to pay the labor to have it changed.

I, on the other hand, change my own. In the family, we have three
residences, and four rental properties. When it starts goofing up, I
shoot it and drag it to the curb. I buy another at HD. Of course, I save
the $600 plumber's labor, and I figure that puts me two water heaters
ahead each time I change one myself, thus giving me a "two water heater
warranty." I like that better because I don't have to keep all those
papers, and I won't go out of business in the next ten years (hopefully)
and leave myself hanging on to a worthless warranty.

If I do go out of business (die) in the meantime, I ain't going to give a
hoot about the water heater anyway. Warranties are like toilet paper.
Good for wiping, and not much else.

$600 to install a water heater in robbery IMO! It's like a 2 hour job if you
take 2 coffee breaks.

Those utility company rebates almost always require that an overpriced
'professional' must do the installation which more than eliminates any
saving.

I replaced mine for $150 and bought the model with the basic warranty 2-4
years IIRC. With an anode rod they produce almost no sediment.