How old is my U.S. Craftmaster water heater?

By Dana Whitlock. Updated October 2026. Widely documented.

U.S. Craftmaster tanks come out of American Water Heater's plants, and they carry the same year-then-week date code. A serial of 0120102140 belongs to a tank built in the 20th week of 2001, around the middle of May.

There is no official U.S. Craftmaster decoder, so the format is Widely documented here. A 2001 federal recall that named U.S. Craftmaster directly ties the brand to the year-week code, and inspector charts list American and U.S. Craftmaster together under the same rule.

Where to find the label on a U.S. Craftmaster water heater

The serial and model are on a data plate on the front of the tank. If yours sits in a closet or garage alcove, a flashlight is handy. You can read everything from outside the tank. Leave the burner access panel and any electrical cover where they are.

How to read the code

Treat the first pair of digits as the year and the second pair as the week number. 89 at the front means 1989, 06 after it means the sixth week, so 8906 is early February 1989, as in InterNACHI's chart. Newer tanks follow the same order, with a longer production number after the date block that may include a letter. If you want a month, week 01 to 04 is January, 22 to 26 is June, and 48 to 53 is December.

Real serials in this code

When the format changed

U.S. Craftmaster serials have kept the same year-week order for as long as inspectors have documented them. The 2001 burner recall that covered U.S. Craftmaster gas units identified them by serials beginning 0124 to 0127, sold from June to September 2001. A month reading would make that June 1924 to 1927, so the week reading is the only one that fits. Since two-digit years only repeat every 100 years, a tank that reads as 1924 or 2089 has been read backward. For warranty purposes, U.S. Craftmaster's website offers product registration with the serial.

Who makes U.S. Craftmaster

U.S. Craftmaster is built by American Water Heater and listed among A.O. Smith's water heater brands. Two other names share its serial code exactly: American and Whirlpool. A.O. Smith, State and Reliance tanks made since about 2008 open with the same year-week digits as well, so a 2019 recall could identify units from all six of those brands, plus Kenmore, by first four digits between 1115 and 1631.

How sure is this?

Widely documented. U.S. Craftmaster doesn't publish this code; it comes from recall notices, service literature and inspector references. We tested the american water heater rules against 6 serials, 4 of them with a date known from a recall notice, a printed label date or the maker. None decoded to a wrong year; codes whose year mark repeats show every possible reading. Always confirm with U.S. Craftmaster's warranty page before you spend money on the answer.

Quick notes

• If the tank came with a rental or a new home, the serial is often the only reliable age record. Photograph it.
• Registering a U.S. Craftmaster unit with the serial puts the install date on file for later claims.
• If the decoded week and the move-in date suggest the tank is older than about 12 to 15 years, budget for replacement before it fails.
• A gas unit with a serial starting 0124 to 0127 falls in the 2001 burner recall range. Check the notice with your model number.