Oh, the joys of home ownership! Upon return from our trip to Carson City, and CA, I detected a small leak from the bottom of our house water heater. That's not a good thing, and is only a precursor to potential serious problems, like a flood in the garage. Our next door neighbors, Tony & Michelle had a similar issue not too long ago with their water heater, and the result was water damage.. The scary part of that story, is that both houses were built at about the same time, approx. 9 years ago. 
Not wanting to deal with water damage, I called a local plumber who I've had good luck with in the past, and got a quote yesterday. Their price was $1,150 installed, with a 6 year warranty. Thinking that was on the high side, and not knowing the cost of water heaters, Patty and I took a ride out to Lowe's. After a discussion with a sales rep, we made the purchase. Total price - $570.84 including installation, with the same 6 year warranty. For those that don't know it, Lowe's gives all veterans a 10% discount with proof of service (DD214 or retired military ID). The savings on this purchase alone was $59.98. Over the years, I've saved hundreds at Lowe's, and a copy of my DD214 is always present in the glove box of my truck. Our local Home Depot would sometimes do the military discount, but often they would not. Usually, it was a hassle, so I decided years ago to take my business where my military service was appreciated. The discount is an added bonus.If we only lived here in Lake Havasu City during the summer, when it's always well above 100 degrees, we could almost do without a water heater. The ground is so hot, that even running just the cold water, it comes out of the tap lukewarm. Most folks in the plumbing & water business agree, because the water is so full of minerals here in the desert, water heaters have a life expectancy of 6-8 years. Ours made it about 9 years, so I guess I should be happy?
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