Water Heater · Bradford White
Bradford White replacement elements
Bradford White sells exclusively through the trade rather than retail, so these tanks are typically professionally installed and tend to appear in better-maintained systems.
Bradford White element specifications
Typical ranges across the Bradford White lines we see most. Always confirm against your own rating plate.
Where to find the data tag on a Bradford White
Rating plate on the side of the jacket. Bradford White serial numbers encode the build date in a distinctive letter-pair format, which is useful for dating the tank when deciding whether to replace both elements.
Model series we supply
- RE Series (residential electric)
- Upright Electric
- AeroTherm (heat pump)
What is specific about Bradford White
Bradford White sells exclusively through the trade rather than retail, so these tanks are typically professionally installed and tend to appear in better-maintained systems. Their serial format encodes manufacture date, which helps decide whether replacing both elements is warranted. The AeroTherm heat pump line uses supplementary elements that behave like other hybrid units, failures show as poor recovery rather than no heat.
How Bradford White elements typically fail
- Standard sediment-related lower element failure in hard water
- Element gasket weeping after a previous replacement was overtightened
- On AeroTherm units, unnoticed backup element failure masked by heat pump operation
Confirm before you order
Test the element before replacing it. A meaningful share of "dead element" calls turn out to be a thermostat, sequencer or limit switch, and the test takes ten minutes with a multimeter. Our resistance test tool tells you what your reading means.
What to send us for a Bradford White quote
- Model and serial from the rating plate
- Voltage and wattage, if legible
- A photo of the old element, especially the terminal end
- What the equipment is doing — or failing to do
If the plate has faded past reading, our model number guide covers the other places manufacturers record it.
Bradford White element questions
How do I read a Bradford White serial number?
Bradford White encodes the manufacture date in the serial's leading letter pair rather than writing it plainly. It is worth decoding before you order, because a tank near the end of its service life may not justify new elements at all.
Why can I not buy Bradford White parts at a retail store?
Bradford White distributes through wholesale and trade channels only. That is exactly the sort of sourcing gap we exist to fill, we match the element by specification, so you are not blocked by a retail counter that does not carry the brand.
Do I need a Bradford White branded element?
Not necessarily. What matters is that wattage, voltage, mount style and sheath material match the original. An element matched correctly on those four points performs identically.
Get a quote
Get a Bradford White element quote
Send the model and serial, or a photo of the rating plate. We confirm the exact fit in writing before anything ships.