I chose and paid extra for the top-of-the-line heater with the twelve year warranty. The quote said the water heater would be $549 but with installation and all the extra stuff we "needed," our total was $956. If I wanted the the top-of-the-line heater with the twelve year warranty, that was another $100, bringing the total to $1056.
The day of the installation after the guy took out my old water heater and installed the new one, I was told that I needed to replace our existing water pressure regulator. I balked at this, especially because of his timing. He waited until after installing the water heater instead of telling me before he began. It seemed to be a ploy to extort more money from me. I tried to avoid paying for this extra. Then he wrote a note on my receipt saying that if I did not replace the regulator the warranty would be void. Under duress, I agreed and paid the total of $1326.
Since I am not sure that I needed the water pressure regulator I was forced to buy for an additional $270 on the initial installation date, I do not trust Payless water heaters. I also think they did a little price gouging since it took about 10 minutes of labor to install the regulator, and a friend told me he bought one at the hardware store for $50.
Two years later, I noticed there was no hot water. I went into the utility room and smelled gas. I called a plumber, and he came right over. He inspected the heater and determined that the heater could not be repaired and needed to be replaced. He shut off the heater and the gas and water going to it. Because of the previous experience with Payless Water Heaters, I did not want to have them handle the replacement. The plumber took the heater in to exchange it. The staff at the place where he exchanged the unit made a photocopy of my receipt because they thought it was interesting. Bradford White, the manufacturer of the water heater, does not offer a water heater with a 12 year warranty. The heater that had been installed in our home was a water heater that comes with a 6 year warranty. I guess we were lucky it only took two years for the heater to fail, so it was still under warranty. Not really. We got a "free" replacement heater from the manufacturer, but we had to pay for professional installation.
If you are looking to replace your water heater, I suggest you avoid Payless Water Heaters.
Let me be clear about whom I am speaking. The company has contractor number 836216 is owned by Scott Oksas and the salesman who set me up was Bryan Oksas.
They are located in Valencia, but they have several addresses set up in the area. Check the contractor number and you will find they are all the same
Pros: Not in my opinion.
Cons: Probably.
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