I’ve seen this a few times on newer homes in Georgia. It seems to defy all the rules. Are there any plumbers here that can speak to this setup?
It is wrong!..can’t go up, can’t have a “T”, etc.
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That’s exactly what I thought, but since both setups were on newer high-end homes, I wondered if codes were changing.
Definitely not. Where does the pipe go?
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It goes over, through the wall, to the exterior.
That expansion tank needs support.
Requirements to support expansion tanks are new (2018). This may have been acceptable when the water heater was installed. I’ve put hundreds in this way and it’s rock solid.
The discharge piping is a wreck.
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Requirements? The law of gravity is nothing new 
people that did plumbing used to have a lot more common sense and respect for their work. Now they have to stick it into code for new generation. Code is not needed to call something like that out. Anyone who ever had to remove a waterlogged tank a few times knows what I am talking about
I think the new code was implemented because plumbers and home owners are installing these tanks with PEX. I wonder if the static pressure in the expansion tank matches the static water pressure of the house 
I just discovered from an old InterNACHI forum post that the setup pictured is fine in GA:
504.6.1 Relief discharge. The relief valve shall discharge full size, separately to a safe place of
disposal such as a concrete floor, outside the building, an indirect waste receptor, or other
approved location. The discharge shall terminate in a manner that does not cause injury to
occupants in the immediate area or structural damage to the building. The discharge pipe shall
not be trapped. When the relief valve discharge piping goes upward a thermal expansion control
device shall be installed on the cold water distribution or service pipe in accordance with Section
607.3.2 (GA Amendments). Provisions shall be made at the low point to drain the trapped
portion of the discharge pipe.
(Effective January 1, 2005)
Yeah I don’t think so.
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Maryland uses the NSPC. Still no requirement for expansion tank support. Mine was just installed last year, first time it ever had an expansion tank!
Yeah, it seems crazy. I’m not sure what GA was thinking. These discharge pipes often travel up several feet before turning to go through a wall to the outdoors. And if a homeowner doesn’t check the valve “at the low point” (which most won’t), a tank could discharge quite a bit of water before it showed up at the termination point.
Can you publish the source of this code. Doesn’t Georgia follow the IPC?
“A thermal expansion tank shall be supported in accordance with the
manufacturer’s instructions. Thermal expansion tanks shall not be
supported by the piping that connects to such tanks.”
This is interesting because most manufacturers say the smaller tanks can be supported by the piping when in the vertical position.
Mostly, but this is an amendment:
https://www.dca.ga.gov/sites/default/files/2005_ipcamendments.pdf
That’s a 2000 edition. They have adopted a 2012 IPC.
Can you give source of “most manufacturers ”?
That GA amendment is still in effect. It’s in the 2020 edition:
https://www.dca.ga.gov/sites/default/files/ipc_2020_amend_final_version.pdf
You found a newer edition as I had suggested. If you have any questions on the discharge piping it’s best to contact a local plumber for verification.