Need help with indirect fired water heater selection

[Gpag]

I have a Weil McLain Gold Plus 40 gallon indirect oil fired water heater which, judging from the water on the basement floor and the leak at the bottom, needs to be replaced. I haven't had to buy a water heater for 15 years and have no idea what features to insist on, which features are nice to have but not necessary. I don't know which manufacturers to consider and which ones to stay away from.
The 40 gallon has always met our needs so I'm not looking to go with a higher capacity.
Can you help point me in the right direction?
Thanks

 

[RonAKA]

Not sure what you mean by indirect fired water heater. I recently had a natural gas fire water heater with a forced ventilation fan fail. The temperature controller failed on high temperature and had to be replaced at a significant cost - $420. If you don't need a forced vent type, I would avoid them. A water heater should never fail due to rust and leakage if you inspect and replace the anode rod regularly. That is probably what caused your heater to fail. If you remove the rod (1 1/16" hex) on the top of the heater and pull it out you will know. If the magnesium is all gone, or if the center steel rod has corroded and the rod fallen off then you can be sure that was the cause.

 

[Mitchell-DIY-Guy]

I have a Weil McLain Gold Plus 40 gallon indirect oil fired water heater…

If I’m not mistaken isn’t this basically a storage tank with some tank to boiler controls? Your actual water heating is done by a heat exchanger in your oil fired burner/boiler, and the tank thermostat tells the oil burner when to kick on.

I’d go with what’s most similar to what you’ve had, and one compatible with your boiler. Fifteen years is a good life.

BTW when #2 home heating oil was $5/gallon last year, I bypassed my dad’s hot water system in his boiler and installed a 50 gallon electric water heater. He’s happier with lower oil bills, even if the electric bill went up a bit.

 

[Arctic trouble]

Weil has a great warranty. Helped a friend recently replace one under warranty. He was not the original purchaser 2nd or 3rd house owner no receipts and indirect was over 7 years old. Weil supplied a new indirect with minimal effort and no out of pocket.
Triangle tubes sound great but I dont like how particular they are in how you initially fill, seems like they may be too fragile for me.