Gas water heaters are expensive

[Hall]

They would not sell it to me because I don't have a gas-fitter's licence.

Is that a Canadian thing, provincial, or local ?

 

[Number_35]

Is that a Canadian thing, provincial, or local ?

Provincial, I think. Highly annoying, in any case. I get the need for an inspection - and HD could ask for ID, and send same to our public gas utility, who could contact the buyer to arrange connection and inspection.

 

[JTK]

Nope and nope.

On this particular unit, access to inside is not easy. I just went out in the dark, pried out the viewing window for the pilot, put a long BIC inside, to the pilot port, and got it to light off. Immediate crisis averted. Still thinking about a new unit, though. We'll see how I feel in a couple of days. Got lots of other things on this house that need attention also.

I'd be curious to see a picture of the working bits of this unit. The whole burner assembly should be removable, viewing window and all.

 

[RBT]

My .02 - anything involving a gas appliance in the house should be installed by a professional. A colleague at work lives in a very high end neighborhood where a large home recently exploded, leaving nothing but the front steps, literally. Family was in Europe at the time. Came back to a hole in the ground. Bad natural gas installation was the fire marshal's determination.

None of that means don't shop around a bit, but this isn't changing a light switch, a bad installation can cause an explosion.