Tim C. wrote:
My 6 year old Rheem 50 gallon gas hot water heater is seeping water
out the top and about to die. The warranty expired last month, of
course. It is installed in a corner of my garage and vents out the
roof of our second story house. We have 3 1/2 baths and a family of
8 and often run out of hot water. We are considering upgrading to a
75 gallon gas model, with higher BTU and larger first hour recovery
specs.
I have found a number of places that sell 75 gallons models, home
depot, sears, lowes, and many different brands, etc. No one seems to
have 75 gallon in stock since it is not a common size, and all say 2 -
3 weeks to special order.
Most of the specs list a 4 inch vent. Currently I have a 3 inch vent
as far as I now. Does this mean the vent size all the way up and
through the roof will have to be upgraded? or can it just be adapted
above the heater from 4 back to 3 inch? I assume that would be unsafe
and violate some codes.
I have thought about a tankless but have pretty much ruled that out
due to higher initial cost and concerns about its ability to keep up
with my family's usage patterns.
Does anyone have any advice on how I can get a 75 gallon in short
order? or any suggested alternatives or advice? I like traditional
gas hot water heaters and I am relunctant to try anything unusual.
Thanks,
Tim C.
You could have a demand high enough to be running out of hot water, but
frankly I doubt it. I suspect the heater you had either was not up to par,
maybe a dip tube problem or just low recovery rate. I suspect that a good
50 gallon is going to handle your needs. The added capacity of 75 vs 50 is
really not going to help that much in my opinion. A good 50 gallon with
better recovery is going to do better in my opinion.
Some other ideas, that will also save you some money. Get some good new
water saving shower heads and monitor where all that water is going. You
could save a lot more than the cost of the water heater if you are really
using that much water.
--
Joseph Meehan
26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math
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