replacing broken water heater with new water heater – new water heater must meet new requirements?
My old water heater broke down yesterday and I called Home Depot to replace it. The contractor came with the new water heater and before he installed anything.. said that my current water heater setup was not up to code. I assume this is some sort of building code / requirement. I wasn’t too sure if it’s even possible for him to charge additional fees which was not mentioned to me over the phone by Home Depot. The problem is, if I didn’t let him do the work, I’ll be without hot water for the next 3 days. ( I also have a baby at home, so not having hot water is IMPOSSIBLE). The additional charge came out to 1.00 + the cost of the water heater. The contractor said, the 1.00 is for labor / parts so that the new water heater is up to California code, includes a permit for the local building inspector to come and sign off if work was done correctly.
My question is… Does the new installation have to meet the new California building code?
My old water heater was install in1979
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Tagged with: baby at home • building inspector • california building code • california code • home depot • hot water • new california • new water • old water • water heater
First, understand that the old heater lasted a VERY long time (28 years, well beyond normal) and codes have changed significantly since 1979, for the better. Virtually all code changes regarding hot water heaters have been written to improve safety and energy efficiency. In all likelihood your ventilation setup was not up to current code. Also, you may have been required to have the new heater raised off the floor. There are also new codes regarding various piping connections, backflow preventors, grounding, clearances, and fire hazard issues for both gas and electric heaters. Frankly, the extra $591 sounds like you got off cheap. Don’t worry, he wasn’t trying to rip you off, he did the right thing and so did you by paying him for necessary work.