Customer Reviews for Rheem Gladiator 40 Gal. Medium 12 Year 5500/5500-Watt Smart Electric Water Heater with Leak Detection and Auto Shutoff

Replaced my water heater with this Rheem 50 gal. Water heater has worked great. I like that it shows the user how much hot water is available through the Rheem app.

Just installed it. Working fine.

Tried two different water heaters and both leaked. Water forced from under flange rings. Had to reseal the t&p valve and another nipple. The water forced from under the insulation somewhere. Don’t know how Rheem is staying in business with all the returns.Third time I went to a plumbing store and purchased a Ruud pro water heater. It has not smart features but No problems with leaking with this one.

Horrible tank. Leaked at top and bottom when put together.

The inlet fitting (3/4 galvanized pipe nipple) installed at the factory leaks where it threads into the tank. This is inside the insulation and the outer metal shell so it took about a half hour after filling to become noticeable. At that point water seeped onto the top of the tank and also started collecting underneath the tank. There is a serious quality control issue. Obviously this was not pressure tested at the factory. I will return this to Home Depot and try another brand.

First time installing a water heater. Got it all hooked up and it started leaking from the drain valve where it threads in to the tank. Customer sevice was helpful and FedEx’d a replacement valve. I didnt feel like waiting for it so I bought a 3.5” galvanized nipple and a ball valve and swapped it out. No more leaks and now I can drain it quicker. The factory drain hardly had any dope on the threads and it was globbed up on the bottom. The fix was pretty easy, but still worth dropping down a star. Other than the leak, it heats my water. I like being able to set a schedule to save a few bucks during low demand periods. It was also missing the “G” on Gladiator, so I have a Ladiator.

Bought the gladiator in October of 2023, since it was installed it kept getting the A103 alarm indicating a leak. There was no leak and the bottom of the tray was completely dry. The sensor rope had no moisture also. After numerous called to Rheem support send parts for replacement. They dispatched a local technician to replace the shutoff valve, the board controller and the plastic sensor rod. Yesterday evening the water heater alarm went off and indicated a A103 error and smoke came out from the upper control board panel, It’s on fire. We turned off the breaker, So lucky we were home able to contain the fire from spreading.

We were excited to receive our new Rheem hot water heater and have it professionally installed. However, the water was mildly warm at best with erratic water temperatures. We called Rheem as instructed and they sent out a technician the same day. He was unable to fix it and a new tank was ordered. The second tank also produced intermittently warm water and its circuit breaker kept tripping. The reason being that there was water (and rust) inside the electrical junction box at the top of the tank! Also, one of the wires had been partially cut by the lid on the box. (See Photos). It was agreed that the second tank would also need to be replaced. Finally, we received a working tank and today, I enjoyed a hot shower for the first time in 16 days! I cannot recommend this Rheem tank even though we ended up with one that seems to be functional. Quality control seems to be an issue.

No problem with Home Depot. Purchase was 04/22 and self installed. It ran trouble free for 18 mos. until it quit. Seemed like a power failure. Rheem cust/SVC helped to troubleshoot. Upper power control failed and a part was sent under warranty. Took :30 to replace and power-up. Rheem CS agent was super helpful and part was sent FedEx. I wouldn’t buy a “smart” water heater for my next replacement.

We have purchased two of these water heaters in a ten day span and both needed to be returned because of leaks.

Bought this water heater two weeks ago TODAY and its already broken… do with that information what you will.

Purposely drove 45 minutes to buy a Rheem. Three trips later water heater was running. First one I picked the most perfect looking box. Opened in basement and the top and bottom of unit was smashed. Second 45 minute trip was returning first water heater. The hot side threads were smooshed and had a hard time hooking up. Top element didn’t work and leaked pretty bad. Third 45 minute trip was to get a new upper heating element and special wrench. Replaced and works. Now bottom element is leaking…

Purposely drove 45 minutes to buy a Rheem. Three trips later water heater was running. First one I picked the most perfect looking box. Opened in basement and the top and bottom of unit was smashed. Second 45 minute trip was returning first water heater. The hot side threads were smooshed and had a hard time hooking up. Top element didn’t work and leaked pretty bad. Third 45 minute trip was to get a new upper heating element and special wrench. Replaced and works. Now bottom element is leaking…

Purposely drove 45 minutes to buy a Rheem. Three trips later water heater was running. First one I picked the most perfect looking box. Opened in basement and the top and bottom of unit was smashed. Second 45 minute trip was returning first water heater. The hot side threads were smooshed and had a hard time hooking up. Top element didn’t work and leaked pretty bad. Third 45 minute trip was to get a new upper heating element and special wrench. Replaced and works. Now bottom element is leaking…

Installed water heater 8/15/23 and as of 12/3/23 seems to have an leak in the tank water heater is wet at bottom were it sits on the floor just noticed it

After a week of use is dead dead dead, already check the main breakers, EVERYTHING and is totally dead… no one answers the phone on Rheem. Im so annoyed right now.

After over a year of dealing with a defective Rheem water heater with no realistic support or resolution from Rheem or Home Depot, I finally purchased a new water heater myself. Unfortunately this was during material shortages and the only thing suitable for my house was another Rheem unit. Now after just a year of use, the bottom element on this unit has overloaded somehow and blown out. Thankfully the neutral wire lost contact and it did not allow the unit to explode or actually catch on fire!

I installed some duplex breakers to make space in the panel (switch from gas to electric) Total amp draw is below panel capacity Ran 10/2 romex from a 30 amp 240v breaker Flush cut copper water lines with an oscillating tool installed 3/4 sweat-in to 3/4 male threaded adapters installed flex lines MOST IMPORTANT: Let water fill the heater until it flows from faucets at SAME RATE AS COLD. took at least an hour! Let it run for 2 hours before powering. Dry start will kill your heater elements!!!

These are pricey but good quality. Could not get the ‘wifi’ connection to it to work but not needed. Be very careful of any water as it will trigger the leak warning. Fortunately still works .

This water heater was bought two years ago, it recently stopped working, when the access panel was opened there was obviously an electrical fire in the unit the plastic and foam was melted. Customer service kept reiterating that it was out of the two year warranty (by two weeks) for labor to be covered on this unit, Don't buy it, unless you want to be paying for repairs. I wish I read the reviews before this was purchased because other people have experienced similar problems with this unit.

This heater replaced a 40 gal Rheem 6 year device that had been installed in 2014. The other one was still chugging along, but it was time to swap out the Anode and flush him again. It was fulla goop and after me taking a bath and the Husband taking a shower he ran out of Hot Water. This 50 is only a couple inches bigger around and a couple inches taller... I went with Smart this time and have programed in daily schedules and weekends. The heater will only setback to 110 via the app and we run it at 115. Seems to trim some $$$ off the Electric Bill. I was going to jump on the heat pump unit, but after realizing our basement is unheated in the winter, discharging cold air down there wouldn't provide any hot water nor save us any $$$. So far so good... I waited until the second power bill arrived. I am hoping to install a timed or push button HOT WATER recirculation loop in the home before winter, and we'll need to bump the temps up 5 degrees most likely.

Terrible product. Rheem 5500 watt water heater purchased in Dec 2022 and Elements Failed in March 2023. Rheem indicates the elements provided in manufacture are a cheap copper but will need stainless steel elements to avoid duplication of failure which Rheem declines responsibility for the reimbursement of the costs of such parts. Product should last longer than 4 months and manufacturer could do much better at providing warranty service when they are knowingly selling substandard products.

After install turned on water and there was a leak out of the top panel. Leak was coming from the heating element. Had to drain the heater and when we pulled it out, it was completely mangled and barely held together. We were lucky to get it out without it breaking. Called Rheem and they were barely helpful. Told us it would take 5-10 business days for them to ship a new one. Fought to get it express shipping and they told us they were doing a one time favor. Quality control and CS was terrible!

Drain valve leaking from threads, small leak didn’t notice at first. Long story short, sealed was applied on the valve body not threads. Factory- Stupid

Warranty replacement on this water heater. Made sure everything tight before install. Immediate leak from the drain valve. Drain - pull valve Threads not taped. threads not "puddy'd large glob of puddy down below the threads- presumably from being pushed out. Obviously no pressure testing occurs. No qc occurs. They can rot with product returns. I cleaned the blue crap off and used fast tape and reinstalled. btw. 3" nipple at install end.

This unit could have burnt down my house! Owned the unit for 6 years but started having water temp issues. Took off the bottom cover to find the insulating foam and safety cover melted together. The black jumper from the thermostat to the heating element (original) was burnt through at the screw connection and the wire insulation was burnt back 3 inches. It appears the stranded wire was improperly attached causing extreme heat and burnt materials. See for yourself from my pictures.

Didn’t want this model but ended up getting an upgrade and man am I happy. Very quiet, plenty of water to run 2 showers and a dishwasher at the same time and no one is affected. Stays hot a long time but the best thing is the app. It’s wifi so I can control the temp at anytime. I can also schedule for when I’m out of town so I don’t waste cost. Great value and highly recommended

This water heater is far better than the one I had. However, that one was gas, had a 5 year warranty, and may have been from 1991. I converted to electric and upped gallons from 40 to 50. Even though it took me a few days to convert to electric and install, I couldn't be happier.

Barely 7 months old before it leaked at the top and shorted out the internal electronics. The Rheem warranty covers replacement with another Rheem unit which I will not do. Replacing it with another piece of junk is a waste of money for yet another installation.