When the new water heater arrived, the old one was removed, stripped of it's heating elements and thermostats (because they were still in good working order and you never know if they might be needed sometime!) and delegated to the hot water heater graveyard...
The new one was installed into it's corner, and it began doing it's duty like a champ...
The hot water temperature in the milk house needs to be steadily between 170 - 180 degrees F to properly sanitize the milking equipment and pipeline. The proper temperature was confirmed, and the new hot water was deemed to be in good working order...