Earlier this week I inspected a 1949 house. The furnace dates 1980 and is going strong. The water heater though, WOW. When I first saw it I thought “Wow, That thing must be older than me (1962).” After some internet research and deductive reasoning This Handley Brown water heater may be original to the house.
Definitely needs a combustion test (assuming it’s gas) to ensure the burner is firing safely. It’s old, it can either work another 5 years or start leaking at anytime.
