Hot water replacement checklist for Warragul homes

Before you agree to a new hot water system, photograph the old unit’s data plate, count the people in the house, check where the new unit will sit and what power is there, and confirm rebate eligibility before anything is installed. During the job, check the old unit is removed and the installer scans any rebate QR code first. Afterwards, keep the compliance certificate, warranty papers and rebate paperwork together.

Use the list below in order. It suits a planned upgrade, and most of it still applies when a tank has failed on a cold Warragul morning and you need to move quickly. The plumbers who receive enquiries from this site are independent businesses that quote and install under their own names.

Why work through a checklist at all?

A hot water replacement looks simple, but a few missed questions cause most of the regret: a unit too small for the household, a heat pump placed under a bedroom window, a rebate lost because the quote was signed too early, or a missing certificate when the house is sold. Ten minutes with this list before you sign avoids most of that.

Before you agree to anything

1. Photograph the data plate on the old unit

The data plate is the label on the side of the tank or inside the cover of an instantaneous unit. It shows the brand, model, capacity in litres, fuel type and often the manufacture date. A clear photo lets a plumber tell you whether the unit is worth repairing and what size the replacement should be. The hot water systems page covers the repair versus replace decision itself.

2. Work out how old the system is

Age matters for rebates as well as reliability. Solar Victoria’s hot water rebate requires the system being replaced to be at least three years old from its purchase date. The Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU) program requires the existing system to be at least two years old. If you cannot find a receipt, the manufacture date on the data plate is a starting point.

3. Count the household, now and in a few years

List how many people live in the house, how many showers run in the morning, and whether a baby, teenagers or a granny flat are on the way. A plumber sizes the unit from this, and a tank that runs cold halfway through the second shower is a sign it was sized too small.

4. Note where the unit sits and how easy it is to reach

Write down whether the current unit is outside against a wall, in a laundry, in the roof or under the house, and how far it is from the bathroom. Take a wide photo showing the space around it, any steps, a narrow side path or a locked gate. Heat pumps also make a fan noise, so note how close the spot is to bedrooms, both yours and the neighbours’.

5. Check the power supply at the switchboard

An electric storage or heat pump unit needs a suitable circuit. Photograph your switchboard with the door open, and note whether you have rooftop solar. With solar, a heat pump or a timer can be set to run during the day. If the house runs on a single small supply, the plumber may need an electrician as well.

6. Know what the 2027 rule means for your fuel choice

From 1 March 2027, an end-of-life gas water heater in an existing Victorian home must be replaced with an electric system. Our 2027 gas hot water rule guide explains who it applies to and what it leaves alone.

7. Check rebate eligibility before signing a quote

The two state programs work differently, and the order of steps matters.

Program	Age of old system	How the saving is applied	Main trap
Solar Victoria hot water rebate	At least 3 years	Retailer uploads the quote; you get pre-approval and a QR code	Accepting a quote or paying a non-refundable deposit before eligibility is confirmed
Victorian Energy Upgrades	At least 2 years	Accredited provider includes the discount in the quote	Installing first and asking later, since retrospective discounts are typically not possible

For the Solar Victoria rebate, Solar Victoria’s own steps are: choose an eligible product, ask an authorised retailer for a written quote that it uploads to the Solar Victoria portal, get pre-approval, upload your eligibility documents, then wait for confirmation and a QR code. Eligibility also depends on being the owner-occupier, household income and property value caps, and the address not having had a Solar Homes hot water or battery rebate before. Rebate amounts change, so check the current figure on the program sites instead of trusting a number in an advert. The heat pump hot water page walks through how the claims are made when a heat pump is the choice.

8. Ask for an itemised written quote

Ask each plumber to list:

• The make, model and capacity of the new unit.
• Installation labour, including any tempering valve, isolation valves and pipe changes.
• Electrical work, if needed, and who does it.
• Removal and disposal of the old unit.
• The compliance certificate.
• The warranty on the tank and on the labour, in writing.

The plumbing cost guide has published ranges you can compare the total against. If you are ready to price it now, ask for an itemised hot water replacement quote and attach the photos from steps 1, 4 and 5.

9. Check the plumber’s licence

Search the Building and Plumbing Commission’s find and check a practitioner tool for the name or licence number on the quote. Gas work needs a gasfitting licence class, and the gas fitting page explains the classes in more detail.

What should you check on installation day?

10. Scan the QR code before work starts

If you are claiming the Solar Victoria rebate, the installer must scan your QR code on site before any work begins. Solar Victoria says installation should be finished within 120 days of the code being sent.

11. Confirm the old unit’s fate

Agree beforehand whether the old tank leaves with the plumber or stays for you to dispose of. A full storage tank is heavy and awkward to move, so get the removal written into the quote.

12. Ask to see the settings

Before the plumber leaves, ask how to reset the unit, where the isolation valve and relief valve are, and how the timer or solar setting works on a heat pump. Take a photo of the settings screen.

13. Know the emergency path if the old unit failed

Solar Victoria allows an emergency installation when a system breaks down or is unsafe. You tell an authorised retailer that you intend to apply, confirm you meet the criteria, install, then apply online and tick the emergency installation box. You still have to prove eligibility as soon as possible afterwards.

What should you keep after the job is finished?

14. Get the compliance certificate

A compliance certificate is needed whenever the job’s total value goes past a set dollar amount, and at any value for installing or replacing a Type A gas appliance. A licensed plumber has to give it to you within five days of finishing. The compliance certificate guide explains what it should list.

15. File everything in one place

Keep the certificate, the itemised invoice, the warranty card, the rebate or discount paperwork and the photos of the data plate together. A buyer, insurer or future plumber may ask for them.

16. Register the warranty

Some makers ask you to register the unit. Note the registration date and the installer’s details on the warranty card.

A short version to print

Stage	Check
Before	Data plate photo, age, household size, location photo, switchboard photo, fuel rule, rebate eligibility, itemised quote, licence check
During	QR code scanned first, old unit removal agreed, settings explained
After	Compliance certificate, invoice, warranty, rebate papers filed

Next step

Put together the data plate photo, the household size, a wide shot of where the unit sits, a switchboard photo and a note on whether you have solar. Add whether the old unit is gas, electric or solar, and whether it has already failed. Then start a hot water replacement enquiry with those photos, and an independent installer can quote on a like-for-like or electric replacement.

Send a job enquiry