Why
I don't recommend Rheem water heaters
I answered questions on the internet since 2009 ...
originally working for other websites, then realized 1000s of
people had the same or similar question... So I put my answers on my own webpage and included illustration, resources, and detail
... creating waterheatertimer.org .... and now I have a trafficked
site
...
What I discovered from experience was that RHEEM had more
problems ... and almost exclusively ALL water heater questions involved rheem
... I can't remember an AO Smith question
.. same with Bradford White, or other brand aside from the generic
tankless units flooding the market...
I know from research that Rheem is one of the big 3 manufacturers,
but they don't sell more heaters than AO Smith (except rheem tankless) Resource: Water heater market profile 2009- pdf ...
and certainly rheem does not sell more of anything to match the
percentage of problems they create with the public.... with non-generic
designs, proprietary parts, sketchy customer service, and a website
devoid of resources other than buy-buy-buy ...
They purged their site of repair resources in '2008,' and I barely
caught the tail when they still had a few pdfs, but nothing of value.
Many or most their manuals don’t include a section on basic maintenance ... Instead telling customers to call for service This ratchets up cost and confusion .... and lowers the quality of their product. The
Rheem strategy is to end DIY. And sure gas appliances are
dangerous ... but an infomed, educated public make better choices...
and there's better choices than Rheem.. Resource: Which is the best gas water heater
Contrast Rheem resources with AO Smith and Bradford White, who are
likewise major water heater manufacturers. AO Smith and Bradford White post service
manuals. Even State water heater company posts troubleshoot resources, and manuals with maintenance and general repairs. Resource: Water heater service manuals
1st recent problem with Rheem/ 2019:
The
following images show a new Rheem lox Nox heater with
failed sensor. Error code 9 on the honeywell gas control valve.
Rheem didn't have part in stock, and refused full replacement warranty
over a potentially glitchy heater
Email
arrived at waterheatertimer with pics showing the sensor by-passed with a
resistor ... The resistance value 5.39 to 5.9 ohms ... violating safety
feature...
I
suggested instead of operating a gas appliance with non-code repair,
that the person fire up the heater once a day to make a full tank of
hot water, then leave water heater turned OFF rest of day until part
arrives... play it safe with a new heater ... especially a glitchy one
...
2nd recent problem with Rheem/ 2019: Dennis emailed:
I have a Rheem XG40T06EC36U1 40 gallon N. Gas water heater with a
WV8840C1406 Honeywell thermostat / gas valve control. Is there a
way to check the temperature calibration of this device? It's
only 2 years old and it seems to be very slow to kick on to maintain
temperature when hot water is drawn from the tank. I have to have
it set between "C" and Very Hot to take comfortable shower. I
have drained and flushed the tank. I have never seen much
particulate come out. I suspect the control is being slow to
respond to the drop in water temperature as cold water enters to
replenish the tank.
My answer: Check temperature calibration
with some high school science .... for example take a temperature
reading of water from drain valve when the gas burner activates, and
2nd reading when it turns off... The calibration parameters for
mechamical thermostats are typically 15-25° ... but if you're
lucky, you might be able to make a claim based on your science. Here's a calibration resource ... I don't think they put this in manuals today Resource: thermostat calibration range/ pdf
Another
chance for science: The real thing to check is delivery, which rheem
will probably emphasize ... you should be able to draw 28 gallons (70%)
of 'usable' (104°) hot water from a 40 gallon tank before the cold
water mixes with the remaining stored water below the 25°F limit ...
called draw efficiency .... but typically the burner should activate
sooner than that. If your tank can deliver 28 gallons, but
you're still complaining, then the manufacturer can claim the problem
is you installed too small a heater for the demand.... and of
course a new 50 gallon heater would have a functioning thermostat
Dennis emailed again:
I called Rheem, they said if I paid for an authorized Service
Technician to make a house call and they determined the Thermostat was
not performing to standard, they would refund the price of the part
after they received it and confirmed it was defective. I said I
could install the part myself, and return the defective one to them for
reimbursement of the price of the part. They said they would only
warranty the price of the replacement part if it was installed by an
authorized service technician at my expense. Lesson learned, I'll never buy any Rheem product again, and will tell that to everyone I know. I'll buy a replacement Honeywell assembly and replace it myself.
2nd answer from me: The standard warranty for all heaters is parts and labor during 1 year, and afterwards parts only...
There are two types of honeywell gas controls: Power vent and low nox models use one type.. tank has to emptied and entire valve body is replaced Another type for standard atmospheric vent ... parts are modular and body of valve is not removed from tank Resource: How to replace Honeywell gas control valve
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My response might end
up in spam folder, check email folders
I know from research that Rheem is one of the big 3 manufacturers,
but they don't sell more heaters than AO Smith (except rheem tankless) 
