A. O. SMITH MHE6-40R-045D 1**
0.95 UEF DOE CCD · 2026-09-19Grade G: where this UEF sits among the 426 models in its class, lowest (G) to highest (A). A position, not an official label. How the grade is set
An electric tank, medium draw pattern (a typical three- or four-person household, about 55 gallons on a busy morning).
The A. O. SMITH MHE6-40R-045D 1**, an electric tank, uses 3,419 kWh of electricity a year at the medium draw pattern, the standard daily hot-water usage DOE tests against. If you are verifying that rating, it sits 112 kWh below the 3,531 kWh median of the 426 electric tank models at the same draw pattern.
Energy use per year
3,419 kWh a year
Computed by this site from the registry's UEF and the federal test's daily hot-water draw for this draw pattern. What it costs depends on the electricity rate where you live.
That is below the median of 3,531 kWh for the 426 models registered in the same heater type and draw pattern; it ranks 133 of 426, lowest energy first.
Solid line: this model (3,419 kWh). Dashed line: the class median.
Min 773 kWh Median 3,531 kWh Max 3,569 kWh
What it costs to run where you live
What the registry files
- UEF (Uniform Energy Factor) how much hot water you get for each unit of energy the heater uses
- 0.95 DOE CCD · 2026-09-19 Compared only with other models registered as an electric tank at the medium draw pattern.
- Draw Pattern the standard daily usage profile DOE tests the unit against
- Medium DOE CCD · 2026-09-19
- First Hour Rating how many gallons of hot water the unit can deliver in one hour, starting from a full tank
- 54 gal DOE CCD · 2026-09-19
- Rated Storage Volume the tank size in gallons
- 36 gal DOE CCD · 2026-09-19
What it costs to install
$1,610–$2,452 installed
Not a quote — a modeled range of what installers have charged for this class of unit; your price will vary with labor rates, access, and local code requirements.
Escalation indexes: equipment (BLS PPI) latest available: August 2026; labor (BLS ECI) latest available: April 2026 to June 2026.
NLR REMDB (BLS PPI/ECI escalated) · 2026-04-01Safety record
No CPSC recall names this model.
Checked against the CPSC recall database. CPSC does not publish a model-level match for this product category, so this list is curated by hand from the manufacturer's recall filings.
CPSC · 2026-09-24What these figures mean
How this compares
The closest models in the same class — same fuel, type and draw pattern.
Keep going
How every figure on this page is calculated
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Find what replaces your water heater
Enter the model number off your old unit and see what is on file today, with the yearly cost difference.
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Find a water heater that fits
Three questions — fuel, hot water need, install space — narrow every model on file to the ones that fit.
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What a water heater costs to run
Prices a unit's efficiency against your own utility's filed tariff for your ZIP code.
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Is a 40-gallon water heater enough?
Answered from what models in this size actually file.
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Water heaters
Every model on file with the Department of Energy, by heater type.
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All electric resistance tank water heaters
Electric tanks that file a UEF below 2.0 — heated by elements, not a heat pump.
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Every A. O. SMITH model on file
What this brand files, by heater type.
UEF 0.95 · Grade G Price it on your ZIP
This site calculated the 3,419 kWh figure. It does not come straight from the registry. The calculation uses the registry's UEF, the ratio of hot water delivered to energy used, with the DOE test's daily hot-water draw for the medium pattern. This unit's UEF is 0.95. The medium pattern represents a typical household of several people with a busy morning of hot-water use. Among the 426 electric tank models tested at that pattern, this model ranks 133rd lowest in energy use. The registry source is the DOE CCD, retrieved 2026-09-19. For each step of the conversion, see the page on how the annual cost is calculated.
The 3,419 kWh figure applies only at the medium draw pattern. A household that uses more hot water each day than the test assumes will use more electricity than that figure. A household that uses less will use less. The unit's first hour rating, the gallons of hot water available in the first hour from a full tank, is 54 gallons. Its rated volume is 36 gallons. This rating does not cover a home whose peak morning demand is more than 54 gallons. For a different size or fuel, the selector by fuel, space and size filters the registry. To stay within this unit's class, you can find a same-class replacement by model number.
This page does not state a running cost because it depends on your own electricity tariff. Multiply 3,419 kWh by your rate per kWh to get the yearly running cost at the medium draw pattern. The same applies to the 112 kWh gap below the 3,531 kWh class median: your tariff also sets what that gap is worth. The cost calculator on your own ZIP does this with your local rate. Without your rate, this page cannot give this model's running cost. The installed price range appears in its own block, with its source and date. It is a modeled range of installed costs, not a quote from an installer.
DOE CCD · 2026-09-19