How to read your water heater serial number
Each manufacturer builds its serial number differently, so the same digits can mean different things on different brands. Below is what Rheem and Bradford White publish themselves. Find your brand on the rating label first.
Rheem. Rheem says: "The serial number identification on all Rheem water heating product rating labels contain ten(10) digits." The first two are the month manufactured, the next two the year, then a Plant Line Code and a consecutive serial number. Their example: 12 09 D 01234 is month 12, year 09, plant line code D. Source: Rheem, How to locate and read your Rheem water heating serial numbers.
Bradford White. Bradford White says: "The first two characters of the serial number represent the year and month of manufacture." The first is a letter for the year, the second a letter for the month (A = January through M = December, with no I). Their example: serial number WC9876553 decodes as W (year 2000 or 2020) + C (March). Each year letter fits two years twenty years apart, so use the one that matches the unit. Source: Bradford White, Determining the age of a water heater.
A. O. Smith. A. O. Smith includes a "How to Read the Serial Number" section in its Service and Warranty Guide. I could not read it here, so rather than guess at the code, check the label or A. O. Smith for the date of your unit.
Other brands. Check the label or the manufacturer. Look-alike codes from different brands are easy to misread, and guessing can be off by years.
Rheem, Bradford White and A. O. Smith are trademarks of their respective owners. HomeGear isn't affiliated with or endorsed by them.
Once you know the year, see when a water heater is due to be replaced.
Common questions
- Where is the rating label? It is on the heater itself. Rheem shows label locations for tank, tankless and hybrid models on its page above.
- Is the serial number the same as the model number? No. Both are on the rating label; see how to find a model number.
