Water Heaters - Gas water heater caputs. Install and removal doable for average DIY?

This old house sure has been keeping us busy lately. We noticed a small leak coming from the bottom of our gas water heater about 4 days ago. The water dried up and we hoped the leak was due to condensation since the weather has been warm one day and freezing cold the next. Well, so much for hope! We wake this morning to find a lot more water under the water heater. We have finished one repair after the other on this home in the last year (even had asbestos abatement team out here) and currently in the middle of a roof replacement so we don’t’ have the money to get a pro out here. Emergency fund go bye bye months ago.

Questions:
Is gas water heater removal and replacement a do it yourself type job?
We were told that we may have a problem finding a new (as in, not 30 years old) compatible water heater. Is this true?


Here are some pics of the water heater. I took them for another project I was doing but I can take more detail pictures if need be. http://www.flickr.com/photos/22289775@N05/

I have the instruction manual that states for models GG and GGL. Brand name is AO Smith Glascote I gas water heater.

Thanks ahead of time,
Melissa

Water heater replacement is certainly in the realm of the DIYer category. If local codes, etc. allow.

Your inlet and outlet lines connect to the water heater via flexible copper lines, so that makes hooking up the new water heater easy. Pay attention to the height of the new unit as too tall a unit will require replumbing. Similar height water heater and the lines will go back a lot easier. You can also add some anti-siphon check valves at the WH inlet and outlet that will save hot water - they stop hot water from thermo-siphoning around the plumbing when not in use. They may come with the new water heater or can be bought for under $10.

The 'unknown' line in your picture is the TPR (temperature-pressure relief valve) drain line. Looks like yours is routed to somewhere else. Many times the TPR valve is on the side of the water heater. Most plumbing codes require the discharge from this valve to be plumbed downward to within a few inches of the floor. Routing this somewhere else is frowned upon because if this line was plugged (by some unknown cause) the TPR becomes ineffective and the water heater can become a bomb of sorts. Not likely, but can, in theory.

The gas supply line to the WH is a stainless steel flex line. Looks like it is next to a washer or dryer. Since it has probably been bumped or moved over time while doing laundry, it would probably be a good idea to replace this with new just to insure no potential cracks would lead to breakage.

The exhaust flue should be easy to reconnect on the new unit. Just be sure and stay with sheet metal flue parts. No foil, no plastic. Shortening the existing flue with tin snips if needed is OK.

The only compatibility issues you might have are the height of the WH in regard to the hot/cold plumbing connections. The pics show the WH much taller than the washer or dryer, so you seem to have a normal WH. Looks to me like it should be an easy job.

Thanks for the info. The temperature-pressure relief valve being on top intimidated me a bit (actually the whole project did) but luckily my mothers fiance has a brother who happens to be a plumber. The company he works for gave us a %20 family discount. He replaced the old unit in no time and moved the temperature pressure relief valve. I'll be sure to look into replacing the gas line. The total cost with the the 20% family discount was $640 and the water heater is not the most efficient but its a thousand times better then what we had. We would have paid far more then that buying the tools we needed and spending hours if not days more to get the job done. So we lucked out!

It's so nice having something new with a warranty in this old, falling apart at the seams home! Slowly, one project at a time we are getting there!

Thanks again!
Melissa

Glad you got that done. And around here, the price you paid would be a very good deal!

I was concerned by the TP valve situation. Under our code ( California ) the TP discharge must go outside, but the problem on your is that the tube runs UP a little bit. That is not allowed, and is dangerous in that condensation or dripping can build up in that belly, block the discharge, and cause a buildup of crud which could interfere with proper operation of the valve.
It sound like your guy took care of that.