Kenmore 80 gal. Tall Electric Water Heater (32184)
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Kenmore 80 gal. Tall Electric Water Heater (32184) Reviews


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3.22 of 5 (by 18 reviewers)
Rating Summary | 56% of reviewers recommend (10 out of 18)

Pros
  • sears honored the 12 year warranty (2)
  • we had hot water when this worked. (1)
  • it lasted 5 years. (1)
  • after the unit was verified to be bad (1)
  • plenty of hot water (1)
Cons
  • service calls are not under warranty. (2)
  • plan budget to repair often. (1)
  • cost me more than the cost of the unit (1)
  • smellyhot water (1)
Most Helpful Favorable Review

“The Kenmore 80 gal. electric water heater has easy installation.”

This water heater was easy to install. I previously had a 40 gal. water heater for a household of 9 people, including 2 teenage girls. Needless to say we needed a larger hot water tank. We found the Kenmore to have a better price and better warranty than the 2 other brands we looked into. I've never... read full review »
Posted on Feb 02, 2011
Most Helpful Critical Review

“Problematic- required several service calls and replacement”

We purchased this model in Oct 2004 believing we were getting the best but have been dissappointed by several problems.   Five years later, we're now replacing the unit.  The first service repair within the first 3 years when the emergency shut off "feature" kept tripping turning off the heater.   Sears...

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Posted on Nov 14, 2009

Kenmore 80 gal. Tall Electric Water Heater (32184) Reviews

Displaying reviews 1 - 13 of 18 in total

“Good water heater”

It was easy to install. Plenty of hot water. Just recently installed so will know more later on.
Posted on Jan 19, 2011

“Get the extended warrenty”

Installed in May of 2009, now NO hot water...WHY? The heating unit has failed after only 7 months of use. There is something just not right. This is my second unit. The first lasted 8 years and the leaked from the bottom. The unit was replaced free but coat me $80.00 the have someone to verify the unit was leaking and another $480.00 to have it installed. We went 8 days before the entire process was completed.Together the cost was more that the cost of the entire unit. It seems that this is just another way to get more money out of the customers, one way or another. 
Posted on Dec 28, 2009

“Sears power miser 12 80 gallon”

Unit installed with little problems. Finding a flexible hose as indicated in the instructions is not possible!! The ones I found were to stiff and flow restrictive. Would like to have a light or something to indicate that it is on and working!!
Posted on Jun 11, 2009

“Sears Power Miser 12”

This model was installed as a warranty item on 12/7/04 and is now leaking and needs replacement. I am very unhappy with this performance since the model has a 12 year warranty and lasted only 4.5 years. As it was a replacement for an earlier Sears HW heater, the original warranty has expired, thus we need to buy a new heater and pay for installation again. I would not recommend this model to anyone.
Posted on May 04, 2009

“Very happy with it”

I bought this water heater nearly 2 years ago, and it has been a great performer. It replaced a 20-year old Vaughn of the same size. The WH is on a separate meter, so I know exactly how much power it uses, and the new one uses about 20% less power than the old one! The electricity savings, about $6 a month, will actually pay for this water heater in about 8 years! My ONLY complaint is that Sears does not deliver water heaters. I can't quite figure out why... the truck is coming to my town anyway; presumably there is space on it; the water heaters come from the same warehouse as the other appliances;... read full review »
Posted on Feb 18, 2009

“Great water heater at a good price”

A great product at a good price - I checked on line for pricing and also the big box stores (and it was also in stock). Make sure you have enough room for this water heater and reinforce the floor if needed (it is heavy - even empty!). I was impressed it included the T&P value in the box. I had to use a washing machine pan under it, since I couldn't find a water heater pan big enough @ Lowe's or HD. The instruction manual is clear and helpful.
Posted on Feb 03, 2009

“Great Product, Very Efficient”

I bought this unit in 2002 and it has worked flawlessly for nearly six years. It is extremely well insulated, so well that it is cold to the touch on the outside. This means heat is not escaping and you are not using hardly any energy to keep the water warm. It is my second Sears unit - the one before lasted 15 years before leaking. Highly recommended.
Posted on Dec 06, 2007

“”

We had this water heater installed when we bought our house 4 years ago and have had no problems untill now.  Unfortunatly the heating element went out, when i went to buy a replacement i found i couldnt buy one. So i called around in all the surrounding areas and sears stores, again with no luck. No sears store carries a replacement element.  I also sopke with 3 service companies who stated to me that the replacement elements (off brand) would not work in the kenmore brand.  I found the only way to get a replacement element was to go online or call the sears parts and service department. ...

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Posted on Aug 15, 2009

“Leaked After Two Years”

Was working great from mid 2005 to mid 2007. A leak developed at the top of the tank. Fortunately it was a rather slow leak and did not do too much damage. Disappointed - will have to live with the same model as a replacement. Fortunately I purchased the extended warranty.
Posted on Aug 14, 2007

“best ever... yeah best ever”

got it.. installed it... love it.. flawless workability. hot water all the time. i love this water heater. best water heater that i've seen
Posted on Nov 14, 2008

“no where near 80 gals of hot water”

Purchased thinking it was the best available......when hot water ran out after 1 5 minute shower,called for service.......serviceman ststed that the heater could be run at 110vac or 220vac,and that heater was set for 110vac......I later found this to be a lie as it is only able torun at 220vac.........sometimes the hot water lasts for 10 minutes before getting cold,but not very often.will let it sit for 2 hours before it will provide 1 more shower.......very disappointed with Sears/Kenmore.......never again!!!!
Posted on Feb 03, 2012

“1 year in, good so far.”

I installed this water heater myself using crimp style connections on year ago.  The old 20 year old heater (still working when I replaced) was soldered, I simply cut the old connections and used the old wiring as well.  Overall, an easy install.  Heater gives you the option to only connect two of the three electrical connections  to save on energy use, but I found that you need to run at full 240V for effective recovery.   So far the heater is working fine.  Hopefully it will last at least 12 years total. 
Posted on Jan 31, 2012

“Not energy efficient and not 80 gallons of hot water”

This is without a doubt the worst house utility purchase I have ever made.  Our old 50 gallon propane water heater gave up the ghost about 2 years ago.  We have an 80 gallon jacuzzi which we could never fill with hot water from the old water heater.  For that reason and because propane costs had risen so much, we decided to add 230V electrical wiring and buy this water heater from Sears.  We had the electrician put in the jumper that permits fast hot water recovery.  First, my guess is that the energy efficiency rating for this water heater probably comes only when set at the lowest 120 degree...

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Posted on Dec 15, 2011

Reviews of Kenmore 80 gal. Tall Electric Water Heater (32184)

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