§ 05 Equipment age
How old is my Bradford White water heater?
The first letter is the year and the second letter is the month. Year letters repeat every 20 years (A = 2004 or 2024) and skip I, O, Q, R, U and V; month letters run A (January) to M (December) and skip I.
Serial diagram · Bradford White water heaters
Type the serial
The first letter is the year and the second letter is the month. Year letters repeat every 20 years (A = 2004 or 2024) and skip I, O, Q, R, U and V; month letters run A (January) to M (December) and skip I.
Manufacturer-documented format
The Bradford White date code
“The first two characters of the serial number represent the year and month of manufacture.”
| Serial | Made | How | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| KC1234567 | March 2013 or March 2033 | K is 2013 (or 2033) in Bradford White’s year table; C is March. | Worked by casaq from the OEM table (illustrative serial) |
| XL1234567 | November 2021 or November 2041 | X is 2021 (or 2041); L is November. | Worked by casaq from the OEM table (illustrative serial) |
| CA1234567 | January 2006 or January 2026 | C is 2006 or 2026, so check the tank’s condition and install records; A is January. | Worked by casaq from the OEM table (illustrative serial) |
Bradford White’s table starts at 2004. A tank older than that used the same letters in an earlier cycle, which the page does not document.
Lifespan
How long a water heater lasts
About 15 years on average. An average across tank water heaters, from DOE’s survival analysis of national survey data. Hard water, sediment and a failed anode shorten it; it is not a guarantee.
“DOE estimates the average product lifetime to be around 15 years for storage water heaters.”