Tankless Hot Water Heaters

[trickydick]

I used to manage a Burger King for the Army and Air Force exchange service on Offut AFB and that store had a gas powered tankless hot water heater, I thought it was the best thing ever(we could run the hot water for an hour and a half and never run out any time of the year). I would love to put one in my current home but its an all electric house and the electric tankless heater take 3 220 lines and are very pricey. I've researched them also and I've never seen one that takes anything more than a standard gas line and a standard 4 inch exhaust vent. Then again I've never seen a 70 gal tank in anyones house except for my mothers that was a solar system.

To sum up, they're great and would have one if my house if was set up with natural gas or propane.

 

[cowadle]

I also live in rural and have Hard well water. I do not have a filter and have no clogging issues at all. I did have to replace the heat exchanger last year "my Fault" and was surprised to see no build up at all in the coil.

 

[Neanderthal]

I also live in rural and have Hard well water. I do not have a filter and have no clogging issues at all. I did have to replace the heat exchanger last year "my Fault" and was surprised to see no build up at all in the coil.

Count your blessings, or find some wood to knock on quick..lol. But, it is an easy fix when it does happen. You can remove the cover and the inline water flow sensor somewhat easily and get any debris out. It's amazing how simple the tankless units are, but efficient.

 

[Lone Wolf '49]

BB, check GC's email for this topic. Since I am the ol' fool I am and know nothing you will see. Thanks. LW and Rory, woof.

 

[GlockPride]

I just had one installed at our place we are building. Rinnai 199k btu unit fed by propane. We'll see how well it works.
Curious, the plumber and the factory sales rep both told me that a plumber should clean and service it once a year. To the tune of $250-300.
Does anyone do this?

 

[BadgeBunny]

BB, check GC's email for this topic. Since I am the ol' fool I am and know nothing you will see. Thanks. LW and Rory, woof.

Will do, grumpy. Sorry we missed you this morning ... We didn't fulfill a single solitary obligation today ...

Thanks to everyone for your answers. You have all given us something to consider.

 

[cowzrul]

I am building a house right now. On the master side we used a propane Rinnia Tankless and on the other side the kids get a 80gal electric. We will see which side works better.

 

[aking]

All tankless waterheater manufacturers do recommend yearly maintenance. If you are just a slight bit machanical you can do it yourself. You can buy the kit from a plumbing supplier. It will have the bucket, pump, solution, hoses and connectors. Basically you unplug the unit, hook up the hoses, turn two valves and let it circulate for an hour. The Bosch unit does take the same size gas line as a tanked heater but do put out less GPM. They will ussually work for but don't expect to run several fixtures at once, especially in the winter. I have not seen a Bosch that has less than a 5" vent. Most residential tanked waterheaters require a 3" vent. I ussually recommend the
Rinnai, Noritz, or Navian brands. They require a larger gas line but will put out more gallons per minute. About 4 years ago the government mandated that tank water heater be more efficiant. Most of your new tanked heaters are losing less than 1 degree an hour if the outside air is 60 degrees cooler than the water in the tank. I sell and install alot of both. I try not to persuade people one way or the other. I just want them to know the facts.

-A tankless waterheater does not provide you with instant hot water.
-A tankless waterheater will provide you with unlimited hot water is sized properly.
-A tankless waterheater should last longer and will have a better warranty.
-A tanked heater is much cheaper to replace.
-To replace a tanked heater with tankless ussually requires a larger gas line and vent. Tankless burners are 160,000 to 200,000 btu's compared to 40,000 for tanked.
-Unlimited hot can sometimes be more expensive than keeping a tank warm.
-Most tankless are eligible for a tax rebate

I have a tankless in my house but as a plumber the installation was cheap. I cannot tell any difference in my gas bill. Most of my customers that do alot of research go back with a tanked heater.

I don't recommend electric tankless. They require 3 or 4 50amp breakers and are very hard to find parts for.

 

[ssgrock3]

a commercial grade rennaii can be had installed for right about $1500. That is what our plumber charges us. my company uses a bunch of them in our homes. I think the unit is an E85 model, but there is a new model like an 89 or something. Money well spent if you want endless hotwater. If I was building, I would have one no doubt!

 

[Sanjuro82]

My brother and I have a plumbing company if anyone needs one installed. Based out of Moore, but we service most of the OKC metro.