I've never had to service my water heater at any point during its life (I know you're "supposed" to do maintenance annually but we're not one of those households, lol). We've been having trouble with our water heater not staying lit for the past year where the frequency of how often we had to go re-light it had increased to the point where it simply would not stay lit long enough to provide hot water. After taking cold showers for a week and boiling water to do the dishes, we took the chance of ordering this part instead of spending $1-2k for someone to come out to replace it.
By no means would I consider myself "handy" around the house but during this pandemic, spending a couple grand was something I did NOT want to do right now. I felt comfortable to do the replacement myself after watching several YouTube videos and seeing how rather easy it was. While I was following instructions from a YouTube video, my girlfriend was several feet away from me at all times worrying and saying things like "stop, we need a professional!" in which I eventually replied with "OK. Will you pay for it?".
Crickets.
I proceeded with following along in the video and she went and grabbed the provided paper instructions in the box to ensure the steps we're taking in the video are aligned with what's written. She reads loudly, "These steps should be conducted by a licensed professional and should not be attempted by.... " I stopped her and said, "I know... I know... you're right, I'm not disagreeing with you but do you want hot water today or next week?" I can tell she's finally on-board with the idea because now she's pulling up other YouTube videos with better camera angles for us to follow along with.
It took us about an hour to get the pilot assembly replaced but that's including the time it took for -us- to prepare (finding the right tools, going back and forth with each other, etc). The flame re-lit with one click versus the 15-20 that it normally takes. From the time of this review, it's s only been a day since we replaced it but nevertheless, we have hot water now and we're happy. I'm hoping that this will will prolong the life of our water heater for another 6-12 months (if not longer), or at least just until the instability from COVID-19 recovers.
* I have a State branded water heater built in 2006 whose model number is GS650HBRT.
| Manufacturer | A.O. Smith Reliance |
|---|---|
| Item Weight | 10.7 ounces |
| Package Dimensions | 7.09 x 5.71 x 5.63 inches |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Batteries Included? | No |
| Batteries Required? | No |
