Since you didn't have the smell before you went away you may have sulfur reducing bacteria in the electric WH. Check the toilet tanks to see if there's any slimy stuff in there. Note what the temp setting is on both WHers. Turn the temp on both water heaters up to 140 for 2 hours. Be VERY careful if using hot water during this time cause it will be REALLY hot but best not to use any hot water during this 2 hours.. After 2 hours set the temp on both WHers back to where it was. Open all the faucets everywhere till the smell is gone. If that doesn't solve the problem then your entire plumbing system will need to be sanitized. If you have water treatment equipment that will need to be sanitized also.

Hi Sara in philly.....I'm just outside Philly - Chester County. If you search on "water heater forum" you will find some great forums with lots of info including some on how to self-diagnose things with your heater. I'm assuming some here will feel it's best to get a plumber to do this, BUT, from reading what the pros suggest, some things can be self-diagnosed with the proper tool - a measuring device of some sort, I think, that measures the junk in the tank....There's also a step-by-step site on things to check out with problem water heaters, but unfortunately, I didn't save the site. There's a wealth of info to learn on those sites. Good luck.

What is all the hot water needed for? A gas heater doesn't have to be in a well ventilated space because waste gases must be vented to the outdoors. It just needs source air and that's very easily done. Running a gas line is never a structural issue...it's a money issue. If two 50 gal units is a small fortune to operate...wouldn't one be 1/2 a small fortune? Still sound like a lot. I mean it's not like the second unit would cost 2x,4x,10x more than the first unit. That is kind of the deal if you want lots and lots of hot water on demand...it costs money. Solar can get you lots of pretty cheap hot water, at least DIY. The units you buy seem kind of expensive to me for what they are.

Since this is being covered by my home warranty I can't change the size. I am currently the only one using the unit but that will increase to 2 people but no more than that. I take really long showers and have been ok with hot water so far. I've heard that Bradford White is a good brand but haven't really heard anything about the State brand. I searched online and most ppl say BW is better. I just want to make sure I'm not getting cheated especially since it is a warranty call. Say they install the State and it fails in 5 years and I have to pay out of pocket to replace it all over again vs paying a little more now for the BW and it lasting 10 years. I plan to be in this place long term. Again, I don't know how much more the BW will be. The dispatcher said it wasn't an option since the diameters are 20-22" and wouldn't leave enough space between the wall. I called BW and they only have 1 30 gallon model and its 20" compared to the State they're going to use that is 19". After I hear back from you guys I'll ask the plumber for the State model number so I can look up the yellow tag and get info on the energy usage. I've already called them about 20 times to get this approved/resolved. What do you think?