GE water heater age by serial number

The serial number is on the rating label on the tank. GE tank water heaters were built by Rheem, so the serial follows Rheem’s layout, usually after a prefix such as GE or GENG: month and year on older heaters, week and year since 2012.

Decode a GE serial number

Look for “Serial”, “Serial No.” or “S/N” on the rating plate. It is not the model number. What you type stays in your browser.

How to read a GE serial number

GE has used 2 serial formats. Find the one that matches the shape of your serial.

Built since 2012

Plant letter, then week and year

The letter just before the digits is the plant. The first two digits after it are the week and the next two are the year.

Shape: one letter, then nine digits. A brand prefix such as GE or RHUN can come first.

Mplant14week12year09135
Example: serial M141209135 reads as week 14 of 2012 (around April).

Rheem changed over one plant at a time: Mexicali in April 2012, Nuevo Laredo in June 2012 and the others later. A serial from 2012 or 2013 can therefore be in either layout. Plant letters: A Montgomery, Alabama; C Canada; M Mexicali; Q Nuevo Laredo; W Water Heater Innovations.

Built until 2012 or 2013

Month and year, first four digits

Skip any letters at the start. The first two digits are the month and the next two are the year.

Shape: four digits, a letter and five digits, or ten digits. Up to five letters such as RH, RHLN or GENG can come first.

RH08month06yearB17262
Example: serial RH0806B17262 reads as August 2006.

Where to find the serial number

The serial is on the rating label on the tank jacket.

Newer Rheem-built GE plates print the manufacture date in a “Mfg Date” field.

If the serial number does not decode

  • GE-brand tank water heaters sold from the late 1990s were built by Rheem under licence, and the serial follows Rheem’s formats. GeoSpring heat-pump water heaters, and the gas water heaters GE Appliances has built in Camden, South Carolina since 2022, are made by GE Appliances itself. Their serial numbers are not covered by these formats.
  • The small print on the plate names the company that built the heater.

What the age tells you

EquipmentTypical service life
Tank water heater10 to 15 years
Tankless water heaterabout 20 years

About GE

GE Appliances has been owned by Haier since 2016 and uses the GE name under licence. Its major appliances share one two-letter date code. GE-brand tank water heaters were built by Rheem and follow Rheem’s serial system instead.

Brands that share this serial system: Rheem, Ruud, Richmond.

Questions and answers

Which characters in a GE serial number show the date?

The letter just before the digits is the plant. The first two digits after it are the week and the next two are the year. This applies to units built since 2012.

Why does my GE serial number look different?

GE has used 2 serial formats: plant letter, then week and year (built since 2012); month and year, first four digits (built until 2012 or 2013). The decoder tries each one.

Who makes GE water heaters?

GE-brand tank water heaters sold from the late 1990s were built by Rheem under licence, and the serial follows Rheem’s formats. GeoSpring heat-pump water heaters, and the gas water heaters GE Appliances has built in Camden, South Carolina since 2022, are made by GE Appliances itself. Their serial numbers are not covered by these formats.

How do I tell the two layouts apart?

Look at where the letter sits. One letter followed by nine digits is the newer layout: the first two digits are the week and the next two the year. Four digits followed by a letter and five more digits is the older layout: the first two digits are the month and the next two the year. Letters in front of the four digits, such as RH or GENG, are a brand and fuel prefix and are skipped.

Sources

Formats last checked against these sources on October 5, 2026. Found a serial that does not fit? Send a correction. How formats are verified: method and sources.