I bought a brand new Whirlpool hot water heater on 11/15/08 at Lowes. Thinking I was buying a reliable brand, I took it home and installed it. Everything was fine for about 2 minutes, then the flame went out and wouldn't relight. After trying for 5 hours to get it to light, I went to the local hardware store and bought another brand. Installed it and it works flawlessly. When I contacted Lowes about returning it, they told me they needed an RA number to return it. When I finally got ahold of someone at Whirlpool, they said that since it was installed they couldn't give me my money back. I think this is a bunch of BS. Google Whirlpool hot water heater lawsuit and see what comes up. Their product isn't worth the materials they are made from.