If also seen first hand the water heater in a crawl space short the wiring. It was my sisters place. Seems crawl spaces because of the extra potential humidity should be required to run a gfi circuit. Is that now Code? And the low location and heater height make it a bitch. I always add, no mater how hard to put in, unions and a valve per supply and demand on any water heater I mess with. The eventual later down the road swaps are a breeze. Cut off valves, unscrew unions, remove, and reinstall. Zero mess and half the time. Plus cut offs that close make any sevice work a breeze.
