Rheem Residential Power-Vent Water Heaters to Offer Remote, Push-Button ControlNew Wired Remote Water Heater Control Allows Users to Adjust Temperature and Monitor Operations on an LCD Display Anywhere in the Home

June, 2009 -- Consumers will soon enjoy remote, fingertip control of their domestic hot water from virtually anywhere inside the home. Rheem Water Heating recently announced that a wired remote control with a liquid crystal display screen (LCD) will be offered on its 40-gallon and 50-gallon, tall and short, power-vent gas-fired water heaters. Available in late July 2009, the remote-controlled water heaters will be Energy Star-compliant, displaying the insignia on the exterior of the units, which will be distinctively identifiable with its black top and bottom pans and white jacket.

Mountable in any living area, the Wired Remote Water Heater Control communicates with a Honeywell Control Valve inside the water heater. Rather than rotating a control knob right on the unit, as is typically done on conventional heaters, the user simply pushes buttons on the LCD device to adjust water temperature or monitor 14 diagnostic check points. Settings are clearly readable on the backlit LCD display.

The new control offers several other key features:

Rheem's LCD Remote-Controlled Water Heater

• Available hot water display: Besides the basic on-off indicator and temperature reading, the LCD screen provides a simple three-level bar graph for an at-a-glance indication of how much hot water remains in the tank. After an especially heavy use of hot water, the homeowner can readily see whether the tank is ready for the next usage or needs time to recover.
• Adjustable set-point: Water heaters leave the factory with their set-points at 120°F, but the homeowner can adjust the water temperature up or down at the digital display.
• Automatic "scald warning": Setting the water temperature above 120°F triggers an alert on the LCD screen, calling attention to a potential hot-water risk.
• Vacation mode option: Instead of dialing down the water temperature at the heater, here again a homeowner can make the adjustment remotely at the LCD device.
• Control lockout: Because the control remains automatically locked, inadvertent changes to water heater settings are easily avoided. To unlock the control, the user must depress the "up" and "down" temperature buttons for a full five seconds.
• "Service Needed" indicator: If a failure occurs anywhere in the system, a "Service Needed" message is automatically displayed on the LCD screen. The user or service technician can then display the specific failure code and quickly identify the problem in need of remedy, saving service time and cost.

A power-vent water heater requires normal line voltage to operate its blower. Using a 24-volt transformer in the water heater, the new power vent with electronic control taps that same electrical power supply to run its electronics.

About Rheem Manufacturing Company

Rheem Manufacturing Company (www.rheem.com ) is a privately held company with headquarters in Atlanta. In its 82nd year of operation, the company manufactures a full-line of high-quality residential and commercial heating and cooling systems; tank, tankless and solar water heaters; swimming pool heaters and commercial boilers throughout North America and world markets. The premium brands of Rheem Manufacturing Company include Raypak, Ruud and Rheem. Rheem Manufacturing Company is the official heating, cooling and water heating supplier to Richard Childress Racing and Kevin Harvick Inc. as well as the major associate sponsor of the No. 29 Sprint Cup® car driven by Kevin Harvick, 2007 Daytona 500 Champion, 2007 Craftsman Truck Series Champion and 2006 Busch Series Champion. Rheem is also the primary sponsor of Kevin Harvick Inc.'s No. 33 and No. 77 cars in Nationwide® Series and sponsor of KHI's 2 and 33 entries in The Craftsman Truck Series.