If I get a water heater from a plumber or from Home Depot, how do I compare them?

Question

If I buy a Rheem/GE water heater at Home Depot, I can compare a bunch of different water heaters there, and choose which one I like best according to its features, such as how fast it heats the water, how good its warranty is, etc. But if I buy a water heater from a plumber, I just get a total cost including installation, and no information at all about what water heater I'm getting. Even if the plumber gives me the model number of the one he plans to install, it's different than the model numbers at Home Depot. For example, some of the model numbers at Home Depot start with 42V but the ones from the plumber seem to start with 82V. Are 42V and 82V equivalent, or is 82V old, or what?

Answer 1

Most professionals will install a better product than you can get.  The difference in numbers is what market they are made for. The numbers that matter are the size, recovery rate, and energy cost per year.  Most heaters come off the same assembly line, so there is not much difference in the name brands, other than the above mentioned specifications.  

They all last 10 to 20 years.  

Just ask the plumber how much for installation only?  Most will cut a deal to sell you their heater.  I used to install 3 to 4 heaters a day.  

Answer 2

A good plumber should be able to give you the years of warranty...the btu recovery rate name/size and all.

The brand name should have a web sight and his model number should be in their info. Match the warrenty years and the BTU recovery rate. IE..

A 40 gallon heater with a 12 year warranty and a 37,000 BTU recovery.