I purchased a Whirlpool water heater about 9 months ago. The thermocouple went out and was replaced, but about three to four months went out again. Very disgusting.

Talked to tech & checked the manual for testing the thermocouple on my natural gas water heater. Everything checked out fine but pilot wouldnt stay lit. Tested thermal switch.... everything. They said replace the valve/thermostat. Still no dice. Turns out the thermocouple was cracked on the inside near the burner assembly & would give passing readings on the voltmeter 9 out of 10 times. If you have any pilot problems, replace the thermocouple first. Was only 10 bucks. I keep a spare now. Dont forget to vacuum any dust from the fine mesh screen on the very bottom. Fresh air supply.

We purchased an energy efficient Whirlpool water heater on 10-20-2005. This water heater has been serviced at least if not more than three times. The computer box on the top has been replaced twice each time leaving my garage flooded. This time the water is running from the thermostat box again the garage is flooded. I called for service and the representative was very nice and understanding. He gave us the information to pick up a replacement heater. The complaint is the mess that it made. I have already filed a previous claim with my homeowners insurance for the damage. I would like to know why I have to file repeated claims with the risk of losing my homeowners insurance because of the repeated damage caused by Whirlpools obvious defective water heater? I would appreciate some resolution from Whirlpool for the damage this water heater has caused. The replacement heater is fine but I would ask that the to company consider some compensation of the water damage this heater has caused again.

I purchased a 12 year warranty, high end Whirlpool WATER HEATER (OR SO I THOUGHT AT THE TIME) through Lowes in 2014. Model ND50T122-403. Six years and multiple service calls later it is broken again, this time for the final time. I am ripping this garbage out. So livid with this company that could give a rip about their customers. Three years in to my 12 year warranty it started giving me problems. Horrible HORRIBLE customer service. They will insult your intelligence. Whirlpool will not honor the warranty or stand behind their product. They just take your money and basically give a shrug of the shoulders or worse blame you for THEIR TERRIBLE product failing. It may be unscrupulous and unethical but I guess saves them a pile of money which is what they seem to only be out.The Service Tech that came for the 4th time to repair it says they see this all the time in Whirlpool water heaters. Its a Design Flaw they say. I dont know about all that. I just know when I have been swindled. The electronics are garbage. The pilot light when it goes out is not easily reset as others have mentioned on this site. Will stay lit for while and then shuts down. Whirlpool says, despite reams of evidence to the contrary it must be a safety issue in the install, which they have absolutely zero evidence of therefore, they are not honoring the warranty. They are Blaming the installers, according to our service techs who tried to order the part thats supposed to be under warranty.The original installers, by the way were from Lowes, the outfit that sold me this hot mess. Another Class action lawsuit seems ripe. Or perhaps the consumer protection division from each states Attorneys General would be interested in protecting their citizens from practices like this. Lowes is complicit in allowing it, failing to protect their customers and not calling Whirlpool out for it. I cant think of a more deserving target of consumer protection than Whirlpool. A truly horrible, expensive experience. See the Whirlpool logo and RUN - - DO NOT WALK -- THE OTHER WAY!

Product number 0733318 Terrible water heater - Check valve went after 2 years. Replacement has to be shipped from TN. $30 to next day it or else I can take cold showers for a week. Warranty does not cover shipping or installation. My opinion, buy puts on WHR. Absolutely crappy product.

Note that most of the complaints are about gas water heaters, but the electric water heaters dont seem to be much better. Mine, barely made 4 yrs old and both elements and thermostat went. Had plumbers in for estimates in to repair - much cheaper to install a new one (No...not a Whirlpool!). Very disappointed in the product.

In 2007 and 2008, I purchased 7 natural gas heaters: 1 for my home and 6 for rental properties. I have had nothing but problems from all of them. Two of them failed this weekend (one 40-gallon and one 50-gallon). I called the 800 number and have to pay $63.50 for parts for the 40-gallon and was given a PO number to pick up parts for the 50-gallon at Lowes. They do not have the parts. I have spent over $250,000 at Lowes since 2000. I have all Whirlpool appliances in rentals and my own home. The discussion I had at two Lowes stores today really showed me how they take care of their customers. I told both stores that I will never buy the Whirlpool brand again!

On May 25, 2008, I bought a Whirpool Model# BFG1J4040T3NOV 40 gallon natural gas hot water tank. The pilot light went out today, Sept. 26, 2011, and it will not re-light. This was bought at Lowes and was rated as a 12-year warranty on the tank and parts. This is premature failure of a product that is listed as 12 years. Due to all the other similar complaints of this Whirlpool hot water tank, I would like my money back ($455.81) plus installation or a new tank installed.

The 12 year warranty, means nothing. The heater only worked for 30 months, and then its upper sensor fault code flashes, and the heater shut down. I called Whirlpool, and they have me use an ohm meter to help troubleshoot the problem. So if you are not handy, you are out of luck. They decided it was my control unit that is defective. They will send me the part free, but I have to pay shipping and installation. What a deal, and what kind of management would dream up of this. The heater is marketed as a 12 year warranty model (only on the tank). Would anyone, having been through this, buy another Whirlpool product?

I just wanted to post a quick response to a problem that so many people are having with their Whirlpool FG1H5040T3NOV Hot Water Heater. The biggest problem is the Pilot Light Wont Stay Lit. Ive had this water heater for many years now (since 2005) and two days ago we didnt have any hot water. I checked the heater and found that the pilot light was out and that when I lit the pilot light with the igniter, it wouldnt stay light. This could have been a number of problems causing this issue but heres what I did to get it fixed. I looked around on the internet and saw that many people had this same problem and several years ago Whirlpool gave out warranty replacement upgrade kits to fix it. I called Whirlpool support, gave them my serial number and mentioned the upgraded kit. Unfortunately, my 9-year warranty expired a few months ago and I am no longer able to get the upgrade kit for free. Apparently this upgrade kit was part of a settlement for this water heater that was sold through Lowes. The upgrade kit has a few enhancements including an adapter to allow the use of a standard right hand threaded thermocouple as well as a larger pilot light window and added safety thermal switch. This is definitely an improvement over the old.Anyway, I looked at Lowes website for this upgrade kit and their description and internal part number is slightly different but it is the same thing as confirmed by Whirlpool. Whirlpools part number is 6910813 for the conversion kit. Lowes calls this part American Water Heater Company Gas Enhancement Kit 5040T NG. This kit is only $35 which isnt bad. So, I went to Lowes, purchased the kit. The instructions are included and are even good for a novice. It took me about an hour to complete the changeover. Youll need to remove the old burner and orifice to use them on the new kit. I then checked for gas leaks. I lit the pilot and when I turned on the heater, the burner lit right up. All is good now!

We bought our house in December 2010 and the water heater (fg1f4034t3NOV) just started to give me fits. I had the same pilot light problems everyone else encountered. The person at the 877-251-1679 number gave me a good tip and that may have fixed the problem in the short-term. They told me theres a screen for venting on the bottom of the unit and to use a bottle brush after turning off the unit to clean the screen. I did this yesterday and the pilot light has stayed lit. I called the toll-free number and was told the water heater was out of warranty, but they could send me the part to fix the heater at half-price. I ordered it and they waived ground shipping. I hope to have the situation fixed soon. I’m very pleased with the level of service.

My 4-year old water heater has upper/lower sensor issues for the fourth time this year. The rep was supposed to send replacement parts to arrive today (day four with no hot water), but the wrong ones were shipped. A different rep called and offered to exchange the unit for a new one. The expense to me will be $350-$450 for the plumber to uninstall my unit, take it to Lowes and bring the new one back to install. The plumber suggested I take my $450 and just buy a new non-Whirlpool unit. He knew immediately that I had a Whirlpool hot water heater because its the most common repaired vendor. Whirlpool should be covering this expense for re-installation of their inferior product. Poor customer service. Day 4 with no hot water during the holidays with no solution in sight short of me purchasing a new hot water heater. Whirlpool finally got the right parts to me and I paid a plumber $190 to install. One week to the day later, my pilot light will not stay lit. No change in ventilation since it has been installed. I will say I have been dealing with their rep Chris on the phone who is extremely nice and I feel sorry for him. But we all have the exact same issue which is not being resolved.

I bought a Whirlpool water heater in 2009. I paid $588.46 at Lowes. Turns out it is in a class action lawsuit for faulty thermocouple. I was given a coupon from Whirlpool for 2 new thermocouples as part of the class action lawsuit. The thermocouple goes out on it every 1-3 months. You never know when youre going to have a cold shower getting ready for work in the morning. I literally could have bought a new water heater for what Ive spent on thermocouples the last few years. The last two times it went out, I had to replace it twice within 1 day. Im sick of replacing it and have decided to install a new hot water heater. I am disgusted with Whirlpool and tried to contact them about it but have gotten no response. I will never buy another Whirlpool product and would not recommend them to anyone!

I purchased a Whirlpool hot water gas heater with a six-year warranty. It only lasted three years. When I called for an RA#, I was told, Well, well send you a part after you get a plumber and pay for it. Meanwhile, there is water all over the cellar floor. I called again and was told the same thing. Two weeks of no hot water and no help from Whirlpool. I will never order anything Whirlpool ever again. They stink.

I have fought with this issue hundreds of times over the last 3 years. My old water heater work fine until it started leaking, I bought a Whirlpool 40 gal gas hot water heater from Lowes. Worked fine for the first month, then this pilot light issue started popping up intermittently. Now the damn thing doesnt want to light at all. I WOULD NEVER BUY ANOTHER WHIRLPOOL PRODUCT THE REST OF MY LIFE, and I will tell everyone I know that WHIRLPOOL Products are not quality products. DO NOT BUY. There have been so many class action lawsuits about this product and Whirlpool keeps on selling this junk. Im so frustrated with WHIRLPOOL customer support I cant think straight. To reduce your headaches in life, do not buy Whirlpool products as they are junk and their customer support is terrible also.

We bought the Whirlpool water heater and not long after, it quit heating. After many phone calls, we finally got a response and were told to get the replacement thermocouple. We did this and it was the wrong part. We found out that we had to have a right hand thread thermocouple. Now, the heater is out of warranty and we cannot keep it lit at all. It takes at least 3-4 times before it will light once and then it goes out every time the hot water is used.

Thermal couple went out and nobody has one. You have to get it from whirlpool. This could be a easy fix with buying a $6.00 thermal couple but the one on mine has left handed threads. I took it to several parts places and they all said you have to buy it from whirlpool so you have to call the 1 800 number and they ask you how soon do you want it, 5 to 6 days to take a shower for $10 shipping, or $20 for 3 to 4 days without a shower or $32 for overnight? This ** should be free if they are the only ones that have it. I never heard of this crap before. The funny thing is they told me I should replace my water heater since the warranty is expired. Dont worry I will buy a new one someday and it will be anything but a whirlpool. I will never buy anything whirlpool again and make sure my family never buys whirlpool.

We had Lowes install a Whirlpool model Nu40T121-403 natural gas water heater early October 2012. The temp controller went out in October of 2014. I replaced the controller myself at a cost of $30 for overnight UPS from the manufacturer, American Water Heater. The controller went out again almost exactly one year later and I again replaced it for the $30 shipping charge. In both instances the customer service person told me the malfunction was probably due to my not flushing the heater annually, causing a sediment buildup. The water to the heater not only flushed annually, but is filtered through a water softener and there was absolutely no evidence of sediment in the drain water or on the part of the control that is in the tank. Now it has stopped working a third time. I called Lowes about replacing it, but they only carry Whirlpool, so wont be buying a replacement from them.

Do not buy whirlpool water heater!!! It will only last 3 years.

I purchased a Whirlpool Flame Lock gas water heater with a 12 year warranty from Lowes in November 2011. It lasted almost 6 years. Called Whirlpool Support and no one in my area is a certified repair facility. Closest one is 45 miles away, and he wont drive up to check out my water heater because Im too far away. Called someone in town. He came out, looked at it for 2 minutes, and said he never saw a water heater like this, but Sears may carry parts. Charged me $50 for service call. Sears couldnt find the model number in their parts catalogs. I dont have a manometer (What is it?) so I cant do diagnostic tests on it myself. Cant find out anything about them online except complaints from other steamed customers about this crappy product. Whirlpool Support wouldnt do anything else for me except say they were sorry I got stuck with a bad product of theirs. It was made for Whirlpool by US Craftmaster Water Heaters Co.

I purchased a Whirlpool hot water heater 2010 and it started having problems 2014. I called customer service. They informed me my 6 year warranty was only for parts and I had to pay for a certified repairman to come and do diagnostic tests and they will pay for parts only. I said the repairman is half the price as the hot water heater and then he has to come install it. Woman on the phone was just as ready to get off the phone as I was! Save yourself and just buy a new one NOT WHIRLPOOL!!!!!!

Hot water heater model #0833T402747 purchased late 2008 - Several service calls had to be made to a plumber, due to this unit not working. The door assembly was shipped to me by Whirlpool. I had to pay again for the plumber to install this part. Hes been here 3-4 times since I bought the unit. Last Wednesday, May 2, 2012, no hot water again. The same plumber came out and said the door assembly had again gone bad. Whirlpool was contacted on Thursday morning and would not agree to do anything. They were given my plumbers name and number and I never heard back from them. I contacted Lowes in Acworth, GA and they agreed to replace the hot water heater. So now Im forced to pay for another install. I requested that Whirlpool pay this expense, and their representative, **, said no. I intend to sue them for all monies spent on this lemon and due to this lemon, I will never buy another Whirlpool product of any kind. I have told family and friends and theyve agreed that due to the bad product and worse customer service, they will also stay away from purchasing anything made by this company. Whirlpool certainly wont be hurt by me and me alone. But Ill make sure that anyone I run into at Lowes or anywhere else is even looking at a Whirlpool product will get an earful from me. This is the type of customer service that consumers dont have to put up with anymore. There are many resources on the internet to get the word out and I intend to spend a great deal of my time doing just that.

Bought Whirlpool 30 gal propane water heater in Feb, it lasted until May before the unit died. Paid for the extended plan warranty (NEVER do that!). Called support and they said they could send someone out in a little over a week (week with no hot water). The week goes by and on the day it was suppose to be repaired the guy calls and says his van broke down (this was a Friday, getting that early weekend). The earliest they can reschedule is in another week (over 2 weeks no hot water). Called Lowes to see if I can just return it (extended plan and all), no, you need a return code from the whirlpool customer support. Call the Whirlpool number again to ask for a return code, no, it is a repairable problem (even though no one will come repair it). Lesson learned, will never buy Whirlpool or anything over $50 from Lowes again.

After reading many of the 1,500 +/- complaints about this inferior product, I guess I should consider myself lucky. Ours didnt fail until this past Saturday, March 22, 2014. We purchased this Whirlpool (American Water Heater Company) water heater FG1H4040T3NOV at Lowes, and had it professionally installed, in October 2004, and we have had no issues until this past Saturday when we woke up to no hot water. After checking for the obvious, and finding no apparent cause for the failure, I considered it a fluke and relighted the pilot. The pilot took a few attempts to light, but it lit, and the burners came on.Three days later, we woke to no hot water again. This time, we placed a service call to the company that did the initial install. The technician came out, and after his inspection he informed me that the thermocouple/burner assembly needed to be replaced. He also informed me that this is a well-known issue, and Whirlpool has been sending out free updated replacement parts. He called Whirlpool, only to be told that they are no longer offering free, updated parts. Whirlpool also cited that the water heater was out of warranty (by less than 5 months). He gave me Whirlpools number, so I could contact them myself.As I smelled a rat, I began to do some online research about this issue, and, to my chagrin, I found out that I was far from alone with this issue. As of this writing, 1,500+ consumer and professional complaints, a settled class-action lawsuit, etc., etc. I contacted Whirlpool, explained my situation to the support rep, and, he proceeded to tell me that he couldnt help me with free replacement parts, due to the warranty being expired (less than 5 months). I argued with him, stating that this is not a warranty issue, but is in-fact a design/manufacturing defect issue, that has resulted in a redesign/re-manufacture. I cited the myriad of online data and negative testimonials, and I reminded him about the settled class-action lawsuit on this very topic. He acknowledged all of the above, was unimpressed, and offered to sell me the parts.After 15 minutes of back and forth, I asked to be escalated to the next level. But, of course the supervisor was unavailable, and If Id care to leave my name and number... yeah, right. Bottom line, Im very angry! I paid good money to Lowes for Whirlpools product, with a nine-year warranty. I had it professionally installed, and we have no hot water due to poorly designed parts. And... I am being forced to purchase the redesigned parts. Its truly unsatisfying to be an American consumer these days!

I purchased the unit in May 2012. Right out of the box on the first day, the tank was leaking water from where pressure relief valve screws into the tank. Whirlpool replaced the part from my local Lowe’s store which I had to go get on my dime and install myself to solve the problem. Its now the 2nd week of January and the water heater is dead. I didnt even get 8 months out of this water heater that has a 12 year warranty. The electronic thermostat died, and I will be going 3 to 4 days without hot water until Whirlpool can ship me another thermostat. Nothing like taking an ice cold shower in the middle of winter. Like I said, buyers beware!

Purchased a brand new Whirlpool hot water heater, but it has never worked properly. The 1-800 help line has been no help at all. Every call results in another step we have to complete before they can fix the problem. Bottom line - never, ever, ever buy a Whirlpool product. They dont know the meaning of customer service.

I purchased for over a thousand dollars a whirlpool propane hot water tank. Three months later the safety heat thing that turns it off is defective yet I have to pay for shipping on this. Then again every three months. Its been a year and a half and the damn thing just blew up and almost took my house with it. I paid for a product that works not one that needs replaced yearly. But do they care? Nope. 2 weeks before someone can even look at it. I plan on reviewing until whirlpool isnt purchased by anyone again. This is a brand that was supposed to be quality, instead its just a scam!

I purchased a 50-gallon Whirlpool natural gas water heater (12 year warranty) from Lowes approx 2.5 years ago. Just before Thanksgiving, the pilot light started going out once a day, then twice a day. Now, I can light the pilot light in Pilot mode but as soon as I release the red button, the flame goes out. I called Whirlpool and received phone troubleshooting support resulting in a recommendation to pick up a new thermocoupler from Lowes which I did. While searching for someone to install (unfortunately Im not that handy), I ran into the thousands of complaints filed about the very same problem Im having over a number of years and right up to todays date. I called Whirlpool back and got the same song and dance. Theyd be happy to help me troubleshoot if I can get the required meters etc. to test devices, do draft tests, etc. They claimed the problems were fixed with the newer model that I have but certainly cant explain why I have exactly the same issue. What they are not willing to do is stand behind their product and get me hot water. Tried calling Lowes and got the response that I have to deal with Whirlpool. It appears that this newer BFG model is just as flawed as the older model and the warranty is pretty much worthless other than getting a few parts. I used to think that Whirlpool products were reasonably good, however, I will never purchase another.

This Whirlpool Water heater was purchased through Lowes on March 29, 2011. This past weekend, water started leaking out of the thermostat/natural gas control located on the side of the tank. I called a plumber to take a look. He stated that a new thermostat/natural gas control was needed. Although the tank has a 12 year warranty, this item does not. Whirlpool did agree to replace the part but would charge me $30 to overnight the item which still would have taken 4 days because of a weekend. To install the item would have cost me almost $500.00.To purchase a new Rheem Water heater was $999. I chose the second choice as the first choice would have still left me with a subpar water heater obviously already out of warranty. The reason for my review is that I saw the number of complaints on the failure of this part. When I purchased this water heater, it was the better model due to the 12 year tank warranty. What use is the tank warranty when the other items dont last? There should be some type of reimbursement but Im not holding my breath. Please buy a contractor grade water heater and not the cheaper models.

This is my second water heater in three years. The problem is the thermocouple thermostat. Also, when I drain the water, it comes out of the heater black because of the corrosion in side. I spoke to people in the company, and they were nasty to me. This happened to my two heaters in 2 1/2 years. Please, do not buy a Whirlpool heater.

I purchased a 40-gal Whirlpool water heater model 40t91-403 last week and paid a plumber to have it installed. The old one (GE 40 gal) worked fine except for a leak. The new one used all of the old connections except the 2-inch in and out pipes. Same connections, hot, cold and gas. At first I got about a quart of hot water and then all cold. Whirlpool changed the valve and cold water pipe (inside the tank) and still the same. They are trying to tell me that the tank is fine - I have a plumbing problem. Two plumbers have told me different, but still they insist. Yes, I am upset. The old GE, even with a leak, performed better!

I purchased a Whirlpool water heater and after working fine for about 2 1/2 years, I began having problems with it staying lit. I dealt with troubleshooting beginning in January of 2012 and finally in March of 2012, I was sent some replacement parts. The unit worked fine through the summer and once the weather started getting cold in October of 2012, I began to have problems with the unit again. After a couple of months complaining and threatening to file a BBB complaint, I was sent all of the parts left to change on the water heater. And I was told after the parts were changed if the unit still did not work, that it was probably a venting issue and that I would be responsible for that issue and the unit was not defective. I received the parts on 12/04/12 and they were changed out the same day. Now the unit will light when I hold down the button to light it but once I let go, the pilot light goes out. At least before changing out the parts, the unit was able to be turned on and sometimes it would work and other times it didnt, but now it will not light at all. This is very frustrating because the unit is under warranty and Whirlpool has for an entire year fought me tooth and nail just to send me the parts for the unit, only for the unit to still not work. I have a family and it is discouraging to not know when you are going to have hot water, having to constantly fix the unit or to call Whirlpool to troubleshoot and finally for the unit to still not work after replacing the parts. It looks like I will not have any hot water at all now.

I purchased a 30 gallon gas hot water heater from Lowes in 2013. Within the first 3 months, it went out. I contacted whirlpool who troubleshot the heater 4 different times. Final contact was in early 2014, I requested a tech to look at the heater. Was informed it is now over a year old, it would be at my cost. Replacement parts $30. Shipping the water heater is great if you like cold showers. After a little searching, I find they know this water heater is junk as does Lowes but dont care.

Ive had my Whirlpool water heater for almost 4 years now and for the last year and a half, I had to have the pilot light lit at least 5 times. I finally got so frustrated around the 3 times and called the company. They gave me instructions on how to light it and to ensure no draft was around the tank. A couple of weeks ago, it went out again and I called. This time I was told to replace the thermocouple. I did that and guess what? Still no hot water. Im a single parent with 2 kids and weve been boiling water just to bath.A service tech came out and told me I need to replace the tank altogether. I called Whirlpool service and they told me it was nothing they can do. Like many of you, I got this tank from Lowes and they will not do anything about it either. Its hurtful and stressful that doing a holiday season, I have to decide to either buy a hot water tank or give my kids a good Christmas. I know several friends and family who has had their tanks a lot longer with no problem. My problem is its a crappy Whirlpool brand with poor customer service.

I replaced my hot water heater after 22 years and no problems. We got a 50 gal. gas heater from Lowe’s in 6/2008. In 1/2012, we had no pilot light and an alarm on high temp sensor. Whirlpool sent a new sensor and control valve to replace the bad unit. Here we go again, on 3/2013 - same parts same problems. We now have the cost again to have the parts installed for the second time. I have spent 1/2 the cost to have the parts put in than the cost for the heater. I will never pay for any Whirlpool product again. They are plain junk!

NU40T61-403 have had problems since day one. First problem was while heating up would make loud humming noise. Whirlpool sent out plumber. He adjusted plate under tank. That worked for about 2 months. Then pilot started going out. They send same plumber out again, also sent replacement part. Problem was fixed however about 2 months after that started leaking and flooding our garage. Called company again, was told that is no longer under warranty and stated we need a thermal expansion tank. I stated “why would we need this? This unit is only a little over a year old. Im not going to purchase another tank. A water heater should not overheat like this.” Long story short my husband has been burnt severely from the pressure build up as he was out in our garage walking past the tank when it decided to release pressure even though no water was being used at that time. He ended up at the ER with 2nd-3rd degree burns. I called Whirlpool again and was only told we need to install the expansion tank. Im so unhappy with this product I will never buy anything made by whirlpool again.....

We have had this water heater for less than 5 years. It was purchased new from Lowe’s. This is the second time we have had to replace the thermocouple and are told that we have to order the part from Whirlpool. Really? What do we do for hot water in the meantime? This is a very disappointing response from Whirlpool and Lowe’s. I will never again purchase anything from either company. We had to buy a new heater today, pay for installation and permits. This is a rip-off by Whirlpool and Lowe’s.

Electric hot water heater model E40H6-45-100 - Purchased at Lowes. Husband installed, tank filled, no hot water coming through house lines. Called support center several times after trying each recommendation that did not work. They kept saying it was a plumbing problem. My husband is very smart when it comes to electrical and plumbing. He has done numerous repairs to our homes over the last 30 years we have been married. He knows what he is talking about and told the support tech that he believed it was a faulty water heater. She immediately said the units are all tested before they leave the factory. The final step was to remove the nipple that the hot water flows through out of the tank and remove the two black bellows. Now my husband can see directly through the piece but also decides to put his finger through the the open whole on the top of the tank and cannot get his finger through - it is blocked. He gets a flashlight and a screw driver. Puts the screw driver through a thin plate that was blocking where the water should be coming through. He can now actually see the water in the tank. This was the whole problem! So they could not have tested this tank. They did give us a ref number to take parts back to store to replace parts we already bought and cannot use. Its the time and energy on whats suppose to be an easy job that counts. Will not recommend Whirlpool products to anyone and probably will not purchase any in the future. Ours was not as bad as most of the other reviews I read but wanted to advise others who may think about what brand to purchase.

I filed a complaint late Oct. 4, 2011 about a problem I was having with one of my Whirlpool water heaters. Chris from Whirlpool emailed and phoned me twice within 12 hours! He was courteous and very helpful. He shipped the parts that I needed overnight. They came in this evening, I installed them and everything is working great! Thanks to Whirlpool and Chris, we now have hot water!

I originally purchased a Whirlpool hot water heater in 2005. After numerous problems Whirlpool agreed to replace January 2010. With the new hot water heater, everything was fine for the first two years. Now about every 6 months, we are having the thermocouple and the igniter. Each time you order the part, the part is free but you have to pay $30.00 for shipping. I am tired of dealing with this. We have decided even though we still have a warranty left on the hot water tank we are going to purchase a different one and never ever buy another Whirlpool product. They do not stand behind their products.

I am having problems with my Whirlpool Water Heater. The pilot light goes off often and now it wont stay lit at all. I checked the thermocouple and measured the voltage, it is 19+ mV. So according to the manual, the gas valve/thermostat must have gone bad. I called the company and they gave me a name of the contractor but asked me to pay for the labor cost. This is a 50 gallon, 12-year rated heater bought from Lows in 2008. The heaters model number is BFG1J5040T3NOV. This thing has some serious quality issues.

Bought a whirlpool water heater less than two years ago and it has already failed. I could not find parts for it and was told by a lowes employee that I would have to call whirlpool on the 5th of July (three days away) to order any parts. I tried three plumbers in the Indianapolis area and they all told me that I would be better off replacing it with a different brand. I just put in a new rheem in its place. I will never buy another thing from whirlpool. They are no good.

Over the course of the 9 years that I had this hot water heater, I had to have the smart control box on top of the water heater replaced 3 times for burning up. The wires in the smart control box literally burned up and melted together. I am thankful that I was home each time it occurred, because if I had been at work when it burned up and not able to shut off breaker to it, as I did every time this happened, my home may have burned down because of it. I did just get Whirlpool to replace this hot water heater with a brand new one. However I have now paid installation costs twice. Thats not right. I had to pay a plumbing company $725.00 today to just install this new one. I bought the highest priced hot water heater that was also considered top of the line 9 years ago. I did this because Whirlpool is a reputable company and it came with a lifetime warranty. This doesnt make me happy and satisfied though when I have had to pay to have it installed twice. The installation costs more than the price of the brand new hot water heater! I also called around and did my homework first. The company that installed it was actually the lowest price of all of them.

We purchased a Whirlpool hot water heater approximately 4-5 years ago and have had problems with the pilot staying lit. I contacted Whirlpool and their trouble shooting included doing a draft test (I am a teacher not a plumber) and removing the closet door that houses the unit. I am very frustrated by this entire ordeal and would like if they would replace the entire unit. At this point I dont want another Whirlpool product. The plumber made a service call at 12 noon and by 3:30 we had luke warm water and by 6:00 pm the water was ice cold! I will never recommend any Whirlpool products.

Purchased a whirlpool water heater 04/08/2005 and it worked for a short time. It had a 6 year warranty. I had to replace the thermocoupler assembly 1 time and it worked fine until last week. 09/02/1011, 4 months after warranty ran out, the unit started leaking severely from the top ? (Could of understood the bottom) here. After investigating further and being told to basically pound salt by the warranty number I called, I removed the top cove r(glued on by spray in insulation) and carved away the spray in insulation. All the bosses/threaded fittings for the inlet outlet and anode rod were all leaking under the insulation where it could not be seen! I know for a fact this unit was leaking long before the warranty expired! But because of the way it is built it is impossible to see it!. I strongly feel this was a manufacturing defect and there are hundreds if not thousands of these units in people houses all over the country!

So, I have a house full of relatives from out of town staying over and as luck would have it, my Whirlpool water heater (model # BFG1F4033T3NOV) which I had installed 15 months ago, decided to stop working. The pilot light went out and would not stay lit no matter how long I held the red restart button. I called Whirlpool customer service and was informed straight away that their computer system was down and they wouldnt be able to order parts if I needed them (great start right?). I explained to the woman on the phone what my issue was and also told her that after searching online, Ive found that this is a common failure with these hot water heaters that Lowes sells where the thermal couple is defective and needs to be replaced. She began to inform me that before any parts was ordered (which she couldnt do because the computers were down), I would have to clean the vent openings on the bottom of the HW heater. No big deal. Then, Id have to have my gas line pressure verified by my gas company (what?). If both were found to be fine, Id have to confirm that my flue is at least three feet above my roof line before they would send me parts to repair my unit. This is about where I lost my mind.I run the RMA/Customer service department in my company and if anyone has issues with our products, we ship first and ask questions later. How can a company with known defective products give their customers the runaround and basically tell them that they are screwed until they can take off time from work for a gas co. to come to their home and will also have to have flue replaced before theyll warranty their product?! Whirlpool should be ashamed of themselves and Lowes should distance themselves from such a crappy company with substandard products and shoddy warranty practices. Ill never buy another Whirlpool product as long as I live and will warn anyone away from this company.

I purchased a Whirlpool gas hot water heater in July 2012 and have had to replace the control/pilot light mechanism every 6 months since then. Whirlpools customer service is the worst service in the world. They are rude. I have followed their instructions every time and have been accused of being uncooperative. I paid $350 to $400 for my heater and just spent $200.00 to have a plumber put apple cider vinegar in my tank.I was told by Whirlpool that the calcium sediment was causing the problem... I drained this tank twice and there was no sediment in the tank. This is evidently a common error for Whirlpool tanks. I will never purchase any Whirlpool product again and will tell others that their products are crap. The worst part was the inconsiderate customer service. I dont know who trains them, but they need to fire the entire bunch. Shame on you Whirlpool!

I bought Whirlpool gas water heater on July 2009. It keeps going out. It is not working. I found out you cant even get parts for fixing it. The dealers told me its junk. I was told to buy a new one. Then, I found out its been in class action lawsuit. How did I get to buy it after it was recalled? I dont know what to do.

I purchased a Whirlpool 50 gallon gas hot water heater 3 years ago. I have 3 daughters all in school age. When my old one finally quit due to tank failure and out of warranty, I went to Lowes and bought a 6 year warranty hot water heater costing around $600. Now I figured you get what you pay for RIGHT! WRONG! So about 2 years ago the pilot light started to just go out on occasion, a bit of an inconvenience but there was no default code warning me of any other issues. So typically we just relight it. I called Whirlpool to get help with this issue, but they wanted me to pay for a technician to diagnose the problem. Um isnt that what the warranty is for? I said dont bother. Im not paying $150 for someone to tell me what I already know. Ill just keep relighting it myself. So finally the pilot light goes out for the 100th time but this time I go to reignite it and BOOM! It sounded like a twelve gauge shot gun going off in my face! Then it flutters flames into the chimney of the hot water heater. Scared the crap out of me at first. But it finally stopped and run fine. Well Im laying in bed a few nights later and woke up to a loud thumping noise, I go down stairs and it stops. The following day Im in the kitchen and THUMP THUMP THUMP BURP BURP BURP. Run over to the hot water heater closet and theres the flames shooting out of the gas valve into the hot water heater then BOOM! Its out! The valve unit finally took a crap I guess. I call Whirlpool again to get my warranty - this time it definitely needs to be replaced. So the guy tells me the parts are covered in the warranty but a technician needs to look at it first and the technician Ill have to pay.. Excuse me but what the ** did you just say? I have to pay for a technician to look at your failing part? No I dont think so! Just send me the part - Ill replace it myself. Im a millwright electrician by trade. I specialize in power plants and refineries. Im sure this little gas valve wont be a problem. I spoke with these idiots on a Friday and he said I could have it ground shipped for free and it should be here in 5-6 days or pay extra for quicker delivery. What the hell did he just say? I could pay extra for quicker delivery on Whirlpools faulty part? ** whirlpool should be saying Well have the part overnight to you.Now since it was a 3 day weekend theres no sense in me paying $40 to have it delivered 3 day because it still wouldnt arrive until close to the five day. So I just looked to see where my damn part is because it shouldve been here by now according to the guy on the phone. NOPE! Its set to be delivered in 5 more ** days. DONT BUY A WHIRLPOOL PRODUCT. THEY DO NOT PRACTICE ETHICS.

I have bought two Whirlpool water heaters and with each one have had the same problem: the pilot light will not stay on. I have to continually turn the pilot light on each day. I have replaced the entire flame/pilot/thermal couple assembly several times. Each time I use the unit, it works for about 2 weeks, then Im back to turning on the pilot light every day. Im convinced that there is an inherent design flaw that Whirlpool should be forced to deal with. It seems that this should be a fraud case to sell a known, documented, defective product. Shame on you Whirlpool! Its obvious that its all about the money! Band all Whirlpool water heater products!

Gas control not working. I have replaced the thermostat twice in three years. Now, the hot water tank pilot will not light. The igniter works; a new thermostat has been properly installed, and the pilot will not light. The gas is on, and the tank has functioned. I just want a new gas control.

My hot water tank wont stay lit. I replaced the heating element, and the thermo couple. It will light up now but it only stays on for about 10 minutes.

Whirlpool N50T91-403 purchased in Mar 12 had an error code 4. I knew the water heater had a safety installed in it when I was working on the plumbing and allowed it to drain the hot water side down to 16% of capacitance of 50 GL. After the plumbing issue was resolved, I saw the water heater had shut off (thermal protection) but the switch wasnt tripped as far as I could tell. Knowing small processors can only remember anything if they have power, I removed the Honeywell circuit board and with my multimeter probed all of the capacitors contacting them both (-) and (+) and in reverse order. Doing this forces the IC to forget its codes because they require a small amount of voltage to remember them, usually powered by a small capacitor. I reinstalled it and voila! Presto! It works again.

I bought a 40 gallon Whirlpool water heater product no. 0733336 and it completely broke down after one year and three months. No pilot light even. I called the number on the unit and was informed that only the cost of replacement parts would be covered by warranty. I still have to pay someone 60.00 an hour to come out and fix it. Never again will I buy a Whirlpool product.

My Whirlpool water heater had to be replaced. I got a new water heater, and filed a complaint against Chris from your company. Talked to Chris, and he requested for paperwork on the old warranty. I tried to send it through fax number 1 800 999 9210, but got no response. Chris, please reply with the fax number so I can send the info you requested

we bought a hotwater heater and it gets scalding hot set on the low setting, we had the gas valve replaced by a@e paid for by whirlpool. It still gets above 125 degrees,set on vacation with me using it all during the day.I have contacted them several times, they told me to let the hotwater run about 10 minutes everyday, or just turn the heater off and let it cool off. I bought a water heater to use not light the pilot everytime I need hot water.

I purchased a gas hot water heater from Whirlpool. I have had problems with it since it was new. Whirlpool kept sending repair parts, which I installed, until the warranty expired. Now they say “Sorry Charlie, the warranty has expired.” The water heater has never been fixed. They just dragged it along until the warranty expired. Whirlpool has no complaint department or the repair place will not give it to you. They told me there would be no use for a complaint department. They would just tell the same thing the repair was telling me.

Whirlpool water heater FG1F5040T3NOV - I noticed that when I was taking a shower, my hot water wasnt working. I went downstairs and the pilot light on my water heater wasnt on. I tried to restart it. The pilot light wouldnt work or relight. I gave up and contacted a plumber. I dont feel I should have to pay for a plumber when its a product flaw!

Purchased a Whirlpool hot water tank from Lowes 5/12 and have had NOTHING but problems with it since day 2. The tank I replaced was around 20 years old, never a drip, never a problem, it just finally rusted through.. Well this piece of JUNK I had installed is just that JUNK.. I have been in contact with this company many times, they ALWAYS have a new story. I replaced my old thermal expansion tank 3 months after buying this JUNK because I was told it could be that. Well that didnt fix anything and cost me $60.00, then it was pressure relief valve, ok, another $20.00, nope not that. Well back on the phone and emailing this company, now they tell me I am not vented correctly, because with all the repairs being done on this tank, my Son noticed the top plastic pieces melting. Well back on the phone I go, and of course Whirlpool tells me, its me again.. Had piles going into my chimney replaced, no help, replaced thermal expansion tank again, no help, replaced pressure relief valve, no help. So sick of cleaning up water I want to throw up. Well I now know why they say, do not return to store where you purchased it, because it is bad business to have Lowes parking lot, looking like a Whirlpool graveyard for their product. .

Having multiple apartments I have some experience with water heaters, with that being said, old school water heaters would last 30 years with basically no maintenance. Since those old, manual no BS flashing light codes were replaced with Whirlpool brand, I see constant problems. Honeywell valve/motherboards was the worst thing that could have been put on any equipment. More or less they all failed within few months past warranty expiration date. Replacement part is cost almost half of what brand new product costs. When called customer service, they are aware of said problem but will not help, or recall above product. There are plenty of videos and forums of people complaining about the same issue. Being poorly treated by customer service, I know that I will no longer be spending my money on whirlpool brand. 3 years off of the water heater is a joke.

I would not buy any Honeywell electronic water heater thermostat. Has failed two times. I have to pay for a new one to be mailed and for repair. A bad product from all the reviews. Honeywell is claiming they do not service it anymore and gave me a Sears telephone number. Servicemen have said it is a crap product and fails all the time.

We purchased a Whirlpool Energy Smart Electric Hot Water Heater with a 12-year warranty from Lowes on August 30, 2010. The water heater stopped working and the green light was flashing three times. We contacted Whirlpool since it was less than two years old and they were very rude to us. They told us it was the sensors and we would have to change them out. We waited while they sent the sensors to us. We installed them and it still would not work. It continued to flash three times just as before. We contacted Lowes where we purchased it and they were extremely apologetic and said they would be glad to replace it if we could get an RA number from Whirlpool, but that many others have been having a hard time dealing with Whirlpool. We contacted the rude people at Whirlpool again. They said they were not surprised that the sensors did not fix it. We asked for an RA number so we could get a replacement (after all, it did have a 12-year warranty). Now we were days later with still no hot water. Now this rude technician said it was probably the control board. I asked him if we were going to have to be without hot water until we changed every part on the unit. At this point, we just took the hot water heater out, put it on the curb, and went and purchased a different brand. Whirlpool has lost us as customers for life. If their other products are as horrible as that hot water heater, I wouldnt take any if they paid me to. They were by far the rudest and most hateful people we have ever dealt with and life is too short to be treated that way. I predict they will be out of business in no time with the garbage they are putting out.

After proudly bringing home a new Whirlpool gas hot water heater NU40T61-403 day 2 no hot water. Wait 10 min and reset. This became a 3 times a week habit and now it will not relight. The repairman they sent out wanted us to rebuild our house to conform to code. Our old heater worked fine in this location. After talking to their tech, they sent us new parts overnight. Still cannot get this thing to light. All we want is hot water!!! Calls to the tech line end one way, it has to be your fault. I worked for The Gas Company!

Extremely disappointed!! We purchased this water heater about 4 years ago and for the past year we have to manually turn on the burner. Its been a nightmare! We called Lowes to purchase the parts, but they do not sell the parts. There was a nine year warranty. Our last water heater lasted about 11 years. Its such a shame that this one is giving us problems just after 3 years. Im really considering just buying another one. I dont want to continue struggling with this one. Its been a bad purchase and coming to find out that Im not the only one with this problem. If its a defect Whirlpool should at least replace them for the inconvenience. They should take responsibility for selling defective products.

Whirlpool N50T61-403 - I bought this thing today 8.21.14 from Lowes. It is a Whirlpool 50-Gal water heater (6th sense) and was going to have it installed by their installer, but elected after seeing it was very similar to lining up with my old unit. I got it in and then filled it. After filling, I lit the pilot light per the instructions then turned the knob for heating it up. Success, the flame spread across the burners...then went out. The steady blink changed to the 2 blink code indicating a bad thermopile. It did not work - right out of the box. No plumber near me carries the part. Whirlpool has thus been pretty good about it offering to have someone come out at their cost... But if no one has the parts, that is no good. I am moving from this house so if we can get it to work, its the problem for the next owner. If not - Ill have to get an RMA and go back to Lowes... Then try the Rheem from Home Depot. Will see if they will overnight a part tomorrow. I found the other reviews - and I dont like it that this thing appears to have difficulty right out of the box.

AVOID Whirlpool water heaters - Bought two 12 year warranty water heaters from Lowe’s in 2014. Model NU50T121-403 from Whirlpool. Thermocouple went out within the first 4 months. Called WP, they gave me a number to call for an authorized contractor to come out. Made certain to tell me that PARTS were covered, but not labor. $300 for the labor and two days later, hot water is back on. SAME THING happens again 6 months later, then AGAIN in Sept of this year. So 3 guys have been out to all replace the same part. This morning, hot water is out. Both tanks. Can’t keep pilot light lit. Called WP. They gave me more numbers of authorized contractors. No hot water and now I’ve got another $300 I owe to fix the SAME BROKEN PART. I wonder if this is how their last class action lawsuit got started?

I have 2 rent houses. I purchased 2 Whirlpool gas water heaters with a 6 year warranty, from Lowes in 2010 and 2011. The warranty just expired on 1 and almost expired on the other. I read the reviews and decided I would not spend my time to get a part, I did not want to put any more money into a bad product. Both water heaters leaked at the Honeywell gas control valve without any warning and flooded both properties. I replaced these with Rheem gas water heaters from Home Depot.

I have had my water heater for 5 years and the repair is going to be close to $300.00! Whirlpool offered to send me the part and if I want hot water tomorrow I can pay $30.00 for shipping! $10.00 for standard ground! My other water heater was builder grade and lasted 12 years! Go figure.

I have had to replace my Whirlpool 50-gallon hot water heater 2 times. First time it broke, it caused thousands of dollars’ worth of damages plus Im out a $760.00 deductible. I had the last one just over 1 month and couldnt exchange it at Lowe’s because it’s a few days over a month. So I had to get return authorization before I could return it again. I went through speaking to a hateful CSR. After calling back again, the lady, a real nice lady, helped me. I will never buy another Whirlpool product again, and if anyone is smart, they will stay away from them too. Hateful, hateful CSR. Beware.

I purchased the hot water tank from Lowes 3 years for over $500.00 within the first year, I experienced issues. I have the same pilot light problems as everybody else. I have hired a plumber four or 5 times to clean and blow everything out as instructed by Whirlpool. The hot water heater will not stay lit. The plumber has replaced every part possible two times. Customer service continues to inform me to do this and that and everything has already been done. I am without hot water again with children in the house. Once again, we are boiling hot water so that we can bathe--total inconvenience. This product is defective, and has cost me money to hire a plumber each time. I would never recommend this product to anyone!

They stink. Major issues with most all of these Whirlpool water heaters. I have had issues with 3 different units. I own properties and these are pure junk. Cant find parts and have to pay for shipping on warranty parts! 2 years old units junked, Ridiculous... never buy Whirlpool!

Pulled a track home water heater out to replace with a Whirlpool 12 year smart heater. Well within 4 years with tank flush every year the water coming out of my hot water tap looks like mud. We have whole house water filters and when you drain the sink there is a layer of rust. I called and asked them what I should do and they told me to flush it with apple vinegar. Did this but a week later it was back. Called again and was told to do it three times with apple vinegar. There was nothing about this in the care manual about apple vinegar. I will never buy Whirlpool again NEVER!

Purchased 9/23/2013 on 5/20/2014 no hot water. Called Whirlpool, unit has a 6 yr warranty. Brian advised me no one close to our area to service. He told me to contact a local plumber, they would pay for parts and $75.00 in labor. I attempted a couple of calls and could not find a plumber that was willing to come out and let us pay just the difference, after parts and $75.00 in labor and them bill Whirlpool for the remainder. They wanted between $225.00 and $300.00 plus parts. Lowes where we purchased the water heater told me to call Whirlpool back and get an RA# and they would be happy to exchange the water heater. I called Whirlpool and they (Leigh) refused but did say they would pay 200.00 in labor plus the cost of parts. The unit was only $231.23, but they would rather pay upwards of $300.00 than just let us get a new one. I asked Leigh if this made sense to her, she said it did. I guess Im just ignorant because it doesnt make sense to me. Whirlpool COULD NOT even find a plumber that would come out to our small town to do repairs under their OUTSTANDING WARRANTY. I have laughed at these people and cried over this whole situation. I can honestly say I will NEVER buy another Whirlpool product and will let everyone I know and even some I dont know (lol) how horrible this experience has been.

People should consider themselves lucky to get 2 yrs, 1yr, 6 mos out of these pieces of junk. Mine replaced an 8 year old Bradford White that was originally installed when the house was built. Funny thing, we had the exact same BW in our last house. Same problem after exactly 8 years - tank leaked. Anyway, this Whirlpool 40 gal gas was installed by a professional plumber ($200) and ran fine for 6 days before the pilot went out the 1st time. In the next 10 days it went out 9 more times until it wouldnt stay lit at all. I would light the pilot and it would be out in 5 min or less. I watched for the error code the last time - 2 flashes which indicated thermocouple low voltage. This is totally ridiculous. After research - which I should have done before I bought - it looks like a total bad design problem with associated customer service nightmares and much additional cost to the customer. AND EVERYONE WHO MAKES AND SELLS THESE THINGS KNOWS ABOUT IT. Attempting to fix this thing - even IF labor was included - looks like throwing good money after bad. When are these companies going to be held accountable for producing cheap poorly designed products and then let the consumer foot the cost of labor and/or replacement. You can say all you want about less government but this is just a small example of what you get when you have less government. Doing further research, it looks like NO manufacturer of gas water heaters can produce a reliable product now. So now, Im installing a Bradford White ELECTRIC water heater. Thats and extra $250 for the electrical service that needs to go in. AND additional for the actual install by a plumber. At least Lowes is not giving me a hard time about getting all my money back for the Whirlpool since its less than 30 days since the purchase. I guess I should consider myself lucky it malfunctioned almost immediately. Total out of pocket on the initial Whirlpool install: $560. Total out of pocket with reinstall of BW Electric: $1000. My time spent on this mess: priceless. At least we will have hot water, even though it will cost more per month in electricity to do it. Thanks Whirlpool - stay classy.

I bought a 6 year warrantied Whirlpool hot water heater Model N50T61-403, product number 0733318, at Lowes Home Improvement Center and for three years the pilot light fails to stay lit. I have talked with Whirlpool 1-877-817-6750, the number on the unit, many times. I went through the troubleshooting checklist and verified all requirements. I paid a plumber $150 to check it out and he said I needed a larger supply line and venting the closet door would help. I did this and pilot still goes out periodically. Whirlpool sent me a new gas valve and it cost me another $150 to have it installed. The plumber said everything is good. But the pilot is still going out. Called Whirlpool again and talked with them for 24 minutes. The woman on the line was telling me I needed a certain amount of oxygen for this 40,000 BTU model. She was giving me minimum requirements for square or cubic feet of house with 8 inch ceilings. Yes, she said 8 inch ceilings 4 or 5 times as we went over the requirements. I got so frustrated asking her what she was talking about and she hung up on me. I called back and asked for a supervisor and a different woman had me hold on, came back and said a supervisor would call me. I did get a call back and the supervisor wanted to send me another gas valve and a burner assembly. I told him the burner assembly is working fine and I have a new gas valve. I asked him to send me a $150 along with it to pay the plumber. He said they only warranty the parts. So, am I supposed to have $450 in labor plus my time in this product on top of the original cost? I said no thank you and asked him if he would accept this as a solution if he were the customer and he said this is not a personal discussion. I know his answer. I am never buying a Whirlpool product again. But now I need to buy a new, good brand, water heater to replace the Whirlpool piece of junk. Bad product, bad company, bad warranty. I got screwed by Whirlpool once but never again.

First of all, Whirlpool is fully aware of the problems with water heaters and intentionally places requirements on the consumer until they give up. This info from a distributor. I bought 30 gal. gas water heater 7 months ago. Six days ago the pilot light went out. Went to Lowes (purchased there) and bought a replacement. Wrong one. Returned to store and was told they dont stock repair parts, call factory. Monday called warranty number. They offers to send thermopile, it would arrive in 5 days. I paid $30 for overnight. Plumber installed new part. Still doesnt work. Whirlpool says have the plumber call them theyll walk him through troubleshooting. I ask, Whos paying the plumber? They reply, You are. Plumber calls Whirlpool. They tell him to clean the screen. He does. They tell him to disassemble the burner. I stop plumber. I ask Whirlpool, What if its not the burner? They reply, Then well troubleshoot something else. Meanwhile Im 5 days without hot water. I go to Lowes where heater was purchased. The manager thought it funny Im another victim. I ask, Why doesnt Lowes stock heater parts? He says because Whirlpool doesnt let them carry parts. Im beat. I surrender. Parts from Whirlpool would take another 5 days and theres no assurance itll work. Lowes refuses to assist.I go to Sutherlands and buy a $450 Rheem on recommendation from plumber. Manager from Sutherlands hears my sad story and writes on receipt: Any warranty failure and Sutherlands will replace water heater free. He signs his name on receipt. I pay plumber to swap out heaters. Anybody want a 7 month old Whirlpool water heater. Like new. Cheap! By the way... I originally went to a major appliance parts store asking for a thermocouple for a Whirlpool. The three guys at the counter started laughing Hey we got another one looking for Whirlpool parts. They didnt have them either. Lesson learned.

I purchased my water heater at Lowes and had it installed professionally. I suspected something was not quite right on numerous occasions because the hot water recovery time seemed excessive. I finally called Whirlpool and they gave me the names and numbers of two companies that were on their list. The first asked for the model number and normal information and never called back. The second showed up spent five minutes charged me 78 dollars and said they could not get the part (gas valve) I needed. And if I could get it from Whirlpool they would charge me 250 to put it on. They also said Whirlpool made horrible water heaters and I should save myself the trouble and just replace it. I have since heard from additional plumbers and the gas company to stay away from Whirlpool. I did have the water heater replaced. When they did it and they drained the old water heater it had so much sludge in it draining it was very difficult. The sludge is mystery since I have a softener in my home and it should have prevented that. The individual from that gas company said that was just one of the many issue others had experienced with these heaters.

Got a Whirlpool hot water heater 5 years ago has 9 year warranty. The threads on the nipple are rusted out and it’s leaking. It has rusted out so badly that it’s leaking. They are refusing to replace it saying it’s a plumbing issue even though the nipples that they installed are what’s leaking.

Water heater purchased in 2011 and is already broken. Called the hotline and they were rude. Told me I need a $199 part. I read all the reviews and it seems that Whirlpool has made a bad name for themselves with the water heaters. They were not willing to work with me.

Chris from Whirlpool contacted me the same day that I filed my complaint. He offered to replace our water heater at no charge. We will pick up our new water heater this weekend and install it. Hopefully, it is designed better than our current water heater.

After 22 years, I replaced my Whirlpool, electric, 50 gallon water heater, due to age and it was still working well. Went to Lowe's and they do not carry Whirlpool any longer, so I purchased and installed an A.O. Smith water heater, electric, 50 gallon water heater, model ES12-50R55DV110. Hoping for as good a product now, as I had from my Whirlpool. Also, I installed myself.

Bought a water heater on May 5th for 539.00 and was unable to get hot water all the time. After many days and dealing with Lowes which did not help and Whirlpool, I discovered that the unit I bought had no dip tube to bring the cold water to the bottom to be heated and thus provide hot water to the hot water outlet on the heater to the rest of the house. People at Lowes had no dip tubes and really have no knowledge of what is going on as the people at Whirlpool whom I called.

Purchased water heater in 2005 with a lifetime warranty. We had our first problem May 30, 2013. Water would not heat above lukewarm. Called Whirlpool. Our plumber and Whirlpool determined that the temp sensor was defective. Plumber took it off and it appeared it had shorted out as the wires were black and plastic coating had slightly melted in one spot. We had replacement part in 24 hours. Licensed Plumber did repair (2 hours @ $75/hr = $150). Second problem occurred October 23, 2013. Not even 5 months later! No hot water. Hit reset button, turned temp up. No change. The diagnostic light on water heater indicated it was the same problem as before. Called Whirlpool. They sent out repair part which arrived in 24 hours. Licensed Plumber repaired (1.5 hours @ $75/hour = $112.50).I took a picture of the melted plastic caps where the wires screw into, of the housing around the wires, of the melted, charcoal crispy black of the Junction Box in the area that was directly above and covered the wires and sensor panel. It was much worse than last time. Plumber said that the part that screwed into the plastic cap had to be pried out and it broke off. You could see that this might be the spot where the problem started. We feel fortunate that we didnt have an electrical fire start from this problem. Something isnt right. Within less than 5 months, we have spent $262.50 to repair a water heater that has a lifetime warranty. Id like to give this 0 stars. Whirlpool owes us $262.50 and it might be more before this is all said and done.

I recently purchased a new Whirlpool propane water heater. Dependable name, dependable product, years of trusted service, right?! We have bought many Whirlpool products over the years but never again. Got it home and installed it. It sounded like a plane taking off, and that was in the garage. Next came the lack of hot water. Mind you, we replaced a 40-gallon tank with a 40-gallon tank and the last one we had lasted 18 years without a problem.Well, same showers as usual, and we were turning up the heat mid-shower and again and again during the shower. Even turning up the heat on the water heater didnt relieve the problem. We are not happy with the product. And, no, there is nothing mechanically wrong with it; its just sub-par. Our water heater from 18 years ago worked more efficiently than this newer model. We called customer service, and we were told that unless there was something mechanically wrong with it, such as a defect, there was nothing we could do. There’s simply no recourse.Shame on Whirlpool for not making a quality product and standing behind it. This was a very expensive purchase - over $500.00. We thought we were buying a quality appliance. Very disappointed, and I will be returning it. I’m never buying another Whirlpool product again. I can only hope that the company we bought it from has a better customer service policy. Very frustrated and disappointed.

I am a Licensed Plumber in Oklahoma, have been for 25 years. Our company will no longer work on Whirlpool water heaters, heres why. I diagnosed a water heater that the pilot would not stay lit, the thermocouple was bad. Whirlpool Tech Support told me to go to Lowes and buy the parts and send them the receipt and they would reimburse me. The customer was furious that I charged them for the part and I told them when I got reimbursed, I would send them the money. Well, I not only never got any money from Whirlpool but I never got paid from the homeowner who was mad at me and I didn’t even sell it to them. Beware, buy Rheem.

I purchased my water heater from Lowes about 11 months ago. The heater worked just fine for about 3-4 months then a popping noise started like a drum. I called Whirlpool and got this song and dance story with several email telling what is needed to do. Whirlpool said it was a water knock and I needed to install some devices on my water line or a tanks which cost a few hundred dollars. I called the plumber and he replace the main control valve. Same problem again so I called several other times and a plumber came and said it was my water pressure in which his gauge was incorrect. I went Lowe’s to complain and they said they would check into the situation and call me. It’s been several days and no results. Still the same problem. The Heater is a piece of trash and would not suggest anyone purchase one. It a total piece of trash and will replace with a premier heater very soon. Requesting Lowe’s replace or will take to Small Claims Court along with reviews pointed here. By the way, they want $450 to install the items on my water line - almost half the price I paid for the heater.

Purchased Whirlpool gas hot water heater from LOWES on 9/25/2016. After the installation, tried to light the pilot light for 90 minutes. Followed the recommended instructions, I could not get it to light. Called LOWES they told me to call Whirlpool. I did so, and told them I will return the heater to LOWES the next day. Whirlpool customer service very bad. Returned the heater to LOWES the next morning, went to a local plumbing shop and purchased a Rheem heater. After installation it lit very first attempt. Now three weeks later I get a letter in mail from collection agency that LOWES turned me in for stopping payment on the check I wrote them. After reading the many negative reviews and they disregard for my and my familys safety, nobody should purchase a Whirlpool gas heater from LOWES.

I purchased a new gas water heater and had it installed by a plumber. It worked for 3 weeks then we lost hot water. I called the 877 number and got shoveled around to 3 or 4 people. I got hung up on twice then spent 45 minutes repeating all the instructions that are on the tank to relight the pilot light. They agreed to send a new valve. The first time, I never received the valve (after 10 days) and had to call back. The second time I called in, I spent 20 minutes trying to get another valve sent. The valve I, finally, received had plumbers dope on the back and clearly was previously used. Had the original plumber replace the faulty valve? And lo and behold, the second valve didnt work either. I have no idea why a gas water heater would have any issues after 3 weeks. I bought it brand new from Lowe’s. It is obvious that Whirlpool makes shoddy products. They have very poor customer service and care little for the customers’ time either in correcting the problem or being without hot water. I have spent over 2 hours with Whirlpool. Only to 3 weeks after the initial call, I still do not have hot water from a heater that is less than 2 months old! I called them on the issue of the second valve not working and they put me on hold (after 10 minutes the line went dead and I was disconnected) despite the fact I asked them not to do that!

I just bought a Whirlpool 50-gallon water heater from Lowes because my old one took a turn for the worse. I brought it home, installed it just as the directions said, and immediately got an FVS fault detected code as soon as I plugged it in and tried to ignite it. This is by far the worst experience I have ever had with an appliance. And wouldnt you know it whirlpool service center is closed on weekends. What an absolute piece of trash. Im draining it and taking it back ASAP. Lowes and Whirlpool just lost my business for good.

I purchased this water heater (Model# E2F40RD045V, Serial# 1122T461615, Product# 0826354) 1 week ago (Oct. 17, 20011) and it has been installed only after 5 days (Oct 25, 2011). It has yet to heat the water more than warm. I called Lowes (Oct. 21, 2011) and tried to return it only to be told that I would have to get an authorization number from Whirlpool. I called and Whirlpool wanted me to trouble shoot the problem. I had to have an OHM meter and amp meter to do so, which means that I needed to have an electrician present to do these test because I dont own any of these things. I was then told that they could send someone to my house, but I may end up paying for this. I then asked to speak to a supervisor and was told that she would tell me the same thing. The call ended when I told them that I guess I would have to do the best I could because I was not getting any help from them. Out of desperation, I went back to Lowes and got a new heating element to try to fix this problem myself. I installed it and it still did not work. I called back the next day and still did not get any help, I was only told that I needed to have these meters on hand to trouble shoot the problem. Why is it that I have to do this? The lady did not seem to care that I did not have any way to handle this problem. I felt that this problem was my burden and not Whirlpools for putting out a defective product. I have in my home about 5 new Whirlpool major appliances and have been a loyal customer for many years but after this incident, never again. I will also be advising my friends how Whirlpool has treated me. I am very disappointed with your customer service or should I say lack of customer service. I was told that had I said that the water heater was leaking, I would have been given an authorization number immediately! I still do not have any hot water as I sit here typing this complaint. I am sure that Whirlpool is really concerned as you have my phone number and address and your representatives are aware that I am very upset but still no one has even tried to help me other than telling me that I have to trouble shoot the problem. As far as your rating go with me you get an F!

My 50 Gallon water heater is still under warranty, model #051718153. The water heater shuts down after a few minutes. Theres a sound of a leak inside the tank. They would not replace the tank; theyd only replace parts. We have already replaced the outer control box and the double burner, and theres nothing else to replace except the tank, which they refuse to do so. If I had called them and said theres water coming out from the heater, theyd have agreed to send me a new tank, but honesty doesnt work.

I purchased a Whirlpool electric water heater in August of 2008. The unit had a 12-year warranty on the tank. On January 21, 2012, I discovered that the water heater sprung a leak somewhere in the tank shell; it’s not the pressure relief valve, thermostat or anode port. The tank was never abused and operated well within its design limits. Not sure what caused it to start leaking into the catch pan and out onto my laundry room floor.I purchased the tank at Lowes and went for the longest tank warranty to reduce replacement intervals. I sent Whirlpool an email on 1/22/2012 explaining my problem and I referenced this site. The next day 1/23/2012 I receive a call from Whirlpool (Chris) asking me about my problem. I explained again and they gave me an RMA number and told me to go to Lowe’s and they would replace my hot water heater. I went straight to Lowe’s customer service and within an hour I was on my way home with a brand new hot water heater. Thank you, Chris, Whirlpool and Lowe’s. I am very happy with my outcome on this issue.

Late on the evening of Monday, January 27, 2014, after springing a leak in my 8-year-old water heater, I purchased a new Whirlpool model N50T61 replacement from Lowes. Installation went smoothly and the unit lit off fine the first time. It heated the initial tank of water rather quickly, but the next morning, I noticed the status light on the control unit was not blinking, which indicated the pilot light had gone out. I relit the pilot light, the water heater fired off and appeared to be working properly. 12 hours later, the status light was out again. I relit the pilot, but within 20 minutes, it went out again.On Wednesday, the 29th, I called Whirlpool customer service and explained to the representative what had been happening. He stated that since the status light was not blinking a code, the problem was either an air supply or venting problem, and he couldnt help me. I relit the water heater again and performed the match smoke test described in the owners manual on the vent connection. It did exactly what the manual said it should do, so I assumed that was not the problem. However, while performing this test, the water heater went out again. This time, being right there when it shut off, I saw the status light blink twice about 5 or 6 times before it quit blinking all together. The two blink error code indicated low millivolt signal from thermopile.I called customer service again and explained to the representative what the first person had told me and also told him the results of my test and that this time, I had observed the two blink error code. He asked if I had a multimeter (which I do), so he had me disconnect the wires for the thermopile, connect the meter to the wires, light the pilot and read the voltage. My meter is an old analog unit, and not capable of reading millivolts (which is what the thermopile output is), and I informed the rep of this, but he had me do it anyway. As I suspected, I saw absolutely no reading on the meter. The service rep stated that he believed the error code and decided to send me a new thermopile assembly. However, their shipping department was closed for the day and I should not expect to see the new part until Friday. This was unacceptable, but he stated that this was the only option available to me.After thinking about this situation for a while, I again called Whirlpool customer service and told the representative that I was not satisfied with the solution previously presented to me and that I wanted a return authorization to take the water heater back to Lowes for replacement. The rep stated he couldnt do that, but said that there were a couple other things I could try. He attempted to explain these procedures to me, but wasnt able to do so clearly. He stated he would email the instructions to me. As of this writing, I still have not received the instructions.In the meantime, I did some internet research and found that Whirlpool water heaters have numerous chronic problems, including the issues I was experiencing. I decided this was not a product I cared to own. I called the Lowes store where I purchased the water heater and spoke with the manager. I explained the entire sequence of events to him, and he told me to bring the water heater back for a full refund. Since my local Lowes store only sells the Whirlpool brand, I took the money and purchased a different brand of water heater from another home improvement store. Needless to say, it will be a cold day in hell before I ever purchase another Whirlpool product.

I have received two bad Whirlpool Water Heaters from Lowes. In the course of a few years, I have received two defective heaters (new). One was even a replacement for one several years old that had failed. Lowes insists that you call an 800 number where someone that speaks poor English tells you that you have done something wrong. I am returning the water heater to Lowes, and purchase a water heater elsewhere. This is a perfect example of how sometimes something that is initially cheaper is not the better value.

Thermocouple failure on a Whirlpool water heater - We are having trouble finding the part to replace it because the thermocouple is threaded left-handed, and Lowes does not seem to have any replacements in stock locally. Meanwhile my tenants are without hot water, and my repair bill is escalating due to labor.

Two water heaters three yrs old that went kaput. Thankfully, they are under warranty. However, the tech that I called out said that his company doesnt work on Whirlpool because they are junky and they try to blame the tech if something doesnt work. I called to get new part, and of course now, I get to pay for labor. The lady on the phone actually suggested that I hire an electrician and replace a breaker instead of receiving parts for Whirlpool. Unbelievable. Needless to say, I echo all of the same concerns as the other posts. Im done with Whirlpool.

I bought this piece of junk heater (serial no. 0804T411536) from Lowes and had their contract plumber install it in or about 2008. Since that time, I have had nothing but trouble with it. It just doesnt stay lit. Every plumber who works on it tells me that they have numerous problems with them and they cannot repair them - the customer has to get the part from Whirlpool. And today the woman I talked to told me that I had to pay the shipping charges, which vary according to how quickly one wants hot water! I personally find that a true rip off. If you cant guarantee the product you put on the market, then dont put it out there. I will never buy another Whirlpool appliance or shop at Lowes!

I purchased model FG1F4040SEPV Whirlpool water heater from Lowes about 5 years ago and have had to literally replace the thermocouple each year. At least 3 of these years we have had to pay someone to fix this for us until we learned to do it on our own. Im very surprised Whirlpool didnt recall these water heaters and make it right for their consumers. What this did for us was confirm that we will never purchase another Whirlpool item ever again. We are switching over to Kenmore!

I purchased Whirlpool electric hot water tank in May 2011 (model no. EEZ80HD055V). The water tank was working fine for four months. It does not work anymore. I tried to get a hold of Whirlpool customer service. But I couldn’t get a hold of customer service at 877-817-6750. It is motel business without hot water. We could not open the business. We tried the best we could, but there is no contact or support from Lowes or Whirlpool. We have no other choice other than replace the hot water tank. We tried to find the right phone number to explain the situation to Whirlpool customer service rep.

I bought an American US Craftmaster water heater in October 2006. I have paid a plumber 3 different times to work on this and the pilot light will not stay lite. I used the replacement parts they sent, followed their technicians directions over the phone, etc. Nothing seems to work. Christmas was not pleasant at my house this year. I’m still taking cold showers.