I found a leak from the bottom of my 10 year old water heater yesterday. I knew enough that at that age, the tank liner was likely leaking and a new unit was needed. My google search turned up Empire. I called and the service tech got out promptly to inspect the unit. He confirmed that it needed replacement. However, his quote for everything was over $2,000 plus tax. A 15% discount on that if I signed up for a service plan. I paid him $31.14 for the service call and sent him on his way. I got ahold of someone today that wil provide the same for less than 700 all in.
To be clear, I have no issues with the guy who came out personally. It's the margin they wanted for the work.