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SaferProducts incident

Official U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission consumer incident report from the SaferProducts.gov public database. Use the verification links below to confirm the record on SaferProducts.gov or via the public database export.

Product

Rheem Performance Platinum Electric Water Heater XE50M12EC55UO

Category

HVAC

Report number

20240520-1A619-4741981

Ownership age

About 107 months to failure (from purchase date when reported)

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20240520-1A619-4741981. Severity: Incident, No Injury. Product: Rheem Performance Platinum Electric Water Heater XE50M12EC55UO (- Rheem Electric Water Heater - 50 Gal. Unit - Gray - "Performance Platinum" - Unit used to heat household water.). Incident: On the morning of March 17th, 2024, we went into our acrid, electric-burning, fume-filled, cloudy garage, attached to our home. I located the source of the smell In the water heater and turned off the power. There was soot and evidence of fire on top of the water heater and a melted area on the electrical connection on the side. This Rheem water heater had been under a CPSC Recall since May 26th, 2016. So, for about eight years we lived with an unsafe control panel causing a constant threat of over-heating and posing a fire and burn hazard. If we hadn't been home on March 17th and had not turned the heater off, the house might very well have burned down. We discovered this recall on the date of the Incident we Just described. There was no previous alert to us from anyone including the CPSC Recall for this Rheem Performance Platinum Water Heater.

This is a consumer incident report published on SaferProducts.gov. CPSC does not guarantee the accuracy of information submitted by people outside of CPSC. It is not automatically an official recall or manufacturer admission.
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Official report number: 20240520-1A619-4741981. Search that ID on SaferProducts.gov or match it in the CPSC public database export to verify this record.