It occurs to me that there are two ways one might make the decision to replace their water heater.
The first would be a concious awareness that the appliance may be reaching the end of it’s service life and make the proper arrangements.
The second would be to come home and think to oneself; “What is all this water doing on my floor?”
I am thinking the second is the most common.
Not only is there no God, but try finding a plumber on Sunday.
Non-rising water damage is covered by most home owners policies. Leaking water heaters is the major reason for filing such a claim.
I’m planning on moving to a tankless heater in the future.
Benefits: less space taken (I would definitely like the space back in my second bathroom!), no running out of hot water, you don’t heat unused water, average lifetime is double or more that of the average tank’d heater.
Downside: cost. 2-5 times. (Ideally is paid for in the long run.)
Oh, crap. Hang on. I’ll ftp life vests and a raft.