[steve86]

My goodness, the labor for venting my 175,000 BTU Bosch AquaStar was only $100 (new vent through the roof), but that was in 1999. My, how labor costs have increased.

[Myrddin]

My heater is in the basement, dead center. The vents go up through the basement, 1st floor, 2nd floor, then to the roof. Much cutting to make new room for larger diameter pipes all the way up. I didn't figure the extra cost would be amortized over the life of the heater. It would have been exceptionally cheap to do the same upgrade to my old house in Mira Mesa. I replaced that one as well. The "extra" work that time was getting the building permit, adding the earthquake bracing and having the inspector come out. No big deal. I've replaced 5 or 6 heaters since I was a teen at home.