Tankless water heater?

[leonie]

Anyone got one? What do you think of it? How’s your utility bill effected (with gas or electric)?

We are thinking about getting one with our tax refund.

 

[msugeotech]

Anyone got one? What do you think of it? How’s your utility bill effected (with gas or electric)?

We are thinking about getting one with our tax refund.

i know 2 people who have them and love them. gas only no such thing as electric tankless heaters unless they’ve changed. i think the brand they have is Rinnai.

 

[gelsbern]

i know 2 people who have them and love them. gas only no such thing as electric tankless heaters unless they’ve changed. i think the brand they have is Rinnai.

I am waiting for my water heater to die so I can put one in. From the people I know who have one the cost benefits are tremendous.

Although I hear installing one is a tankless job.

 

[Nechasin]

i know 2 people who have them and love them. gas only no such thing as electric tankless heaters unless they’ve changed. i think the brand they have is Rinnai.

They do have electric tankless heaters now, but they don’t work as well as gas. You will want to have an expert look at your house to make sure that it will work. If your house is too big, tankless water heaters don’t work well.

 

[YADA]

We have a Bosch Tankless [propane] sized for two major uses …

We live in the country, with spring water - storage tanks - pressure tank … 2400 sf house - 3.5 baths … we wish we had a little more water pressure [husband could not convince plumber to put in larger pipes to increase pressure … smaller pipes increases velocity larger increases pressure - not sure why that is such an obsticle for some … oh well ]

We love our tankless water heater … we do not have a garage so the Water heater is in the laundry room just off the kitchen and on the wall over the laundry room sink … it makes a groaning noise when it first kicks on … you get used to it …

it takes a while to get hot water to the farthest bath room but not much more than the wait in any house that has a distance from the water heater to the point of use …

We run hot water into the kitchen sink before starting the dish washer so the water is hot and more flow when the dish washer first starts … [our dish washer instructions recommended this and with the tankless we thought it made real sense as the water heats as it flows through - though we had not ever done that before]

Because pressure is an issue for us we have noticed a cool down that quickly recovers at times … we think it is related to the pressure tank when we have larger use … it drops then the pressure tank - water pump starts to increase … it has not been a real problem …

We had one in a rental house [1200 sf] located in the garage … other than not being sized for two uses, we really like it …

unlimited hot water … can take multiple showers, wash dishes, laundry … no wait for the tak to fill and reheat …

Economical … PLUS check with your state … we got a rebate for installing one that covered about a third of the cost - since we were buiding the house - we were going to install a water heater … we also bought ours before we actually were ready to install … it was on sale … with the rebate that helped alot …

I really like the idea of not heating water when it is not being used …

 

[Geremia]

We are thinking about getting one with our tax refund.

They might be cost-effective with a tax refund, but without one, they take many years to pay for themselves, so they are not as economical. If you want to save the US economy, do not play into its government’s “eco-friendly” tax refunds because, in the long run, they hurt both our economy and the environment.

 

[ELKnight]

Anyone got one? What do you think of it? How’s your utility bill effected (with gas or electric)?

We are thinking about getting one with our tax refund.

Call some plumbers and ask what they think. Our plumber said they break all the time, and that he was on his way to fix one that was only 2 weeks old.

 

[YADA]

They might be cost-effective with a tax refund, but without one, they take many years to pay for themselves, so they are not as economical. If you want to save the US economy, do not play into its government’s “eco-friendly” tax refunds because, in the long run, they hurt both our economy and the environment.

I would do price comparisons … they used to cost substantially more than conventional water heaters … I do not think that is the case anymore … as for taking many years to pay for themselves … that may depend upon whether you are replacing one [as we were building a house we were going to purchase a water heater - the only decision was which one] … or your olderone is nearing the end of its life … etc …

Not sure what you mean about eco-friendly tax refunds …

Many new appliances use less energy and therefore cost less … I would not replace an appliance unnecessarily … I would not throw away a working appliance for a new one … But if replacement of an appliance is necessary I will make a decision that considers energy efficiency … and if I had enough money to re-do a kitchen at will * I would donate the used working appliances to those in need …

and if the state energy department provides an incentive to buy energy efficient appliances - then I would take the incentive and feel no guilt …*

 

[YADA]

Call some plumbers and ask what they think. Our plumber said they break all the time, and that he was on his way to fix one that was only 2 weeks old.

I do not know about them breaking “all the time” … I lived in a rental for over a year that had a tankless H2O heater … it never broke during the time we lived there … and in a rental … well - one would not think a landlord would keep a unit that “broke all the time” … rather they would want something reliable …

We did have to replace a computer circuit board in the unit we had installed in the house we built … but the company sent it [under warranty] and my husband replaced it with little difficulty … it is over two years old now and that has been the only issue …

All of the literature [unbiased reports] say that they last longer than the tanks …

We have had to make repairs to and replace H2O heaters - those with tanks - over the years … in an area with hard water, we had to replace the electrical heating unit about every 18 months … it just would get corroded … after replacing it one time the Unit caught on fire … … so every appliance can have problems … We had a dishwasher once that only lasted about 4 years … we were so glad to replace it - it was sooo noisy … we bought a kenmore at Sears … not expensive but so much nicer and quieter! … Never had a dishwasher die that soon but hey that is the way it goes …

 

[leonie]

Our water heater is fine, but we run out of hot water pretty often. With six kids and ourselves, we have to run alot of showers.

So, if we can replace the current one with one that will give us better hot water service and will save money on our gas bill, it might be a smart move.

It would be nice to do an upgrade…

 

[Gertabelle]

Great thread! I was just talking to a friend about getting a tankless. Anyone know what they cost?

Also, and this is a bit off topic, does anyone know anything about solar panels to supply energy to a water heater. I have solard panels on my home, and two water heaters in the basement. The home inspector told me that one of them was connected to the solar panels on the roof, but that the system was “broken.” I didn’t have money even to have someone come look at it when I bought the house. Now I’m wondering whether to repair the solar system, or donate that and get a tankless.

Anyway, thanks for the tankless discussion!

Gertie

 

[TravisandJill]

we were just talking about getting a tankless water heater but I didnt know that they dont work well with electric. Our subdivision doesn’t have a gas line Bummer

 

[YADA]

Here is a link to the Bosch site:

boschhotwater.com/

If yu are running out of hot water … it is nice to have a tankless … you do not run out …

The only time I ever had that experience before the tankless was when I lived in a home that was geothermally heated [even the hot water] … We could shower [me, three kids and my brother], wahs dishes, wash clothes and never run out of hot water … really hot water …

now we have the same experience … showers, dish washer, laundry … no waiting for the tank of water to heat … no running out of hot water as it is used up …

Costs …whole house $600-700 upto $1000 - 1200 dependingon size and model … there are sales and rebates … shop around …

 

[Geremia]

Not sure what you mean about eco-friendly tax refunds …

A free market, in which government minimally intervenes, would allow prices to determine which is the most efficient product, i.e., the most efficient allocation of resources.

 

[BlestOne]

I just want to say thanks for all the info and links for the tankless water heaters. My ds wants to install one for me and I thought it might be a good idea. Can anybody tell me if it can be put in the same general area as the conventional water heater i.e. in my basement… and what kind of ventilation am I gonna need? Is it the same as a regular water heater?

 

[YADA]

A free market, in which government minimally intervenes, would allow prices to determine which is the most efficient product, i.e., the most efficient allocation of resources.

Well, yes, I agree that a free market is best; along with minimal government intervention …

And we made our decision on the tankless hot water tank on its efficiency, reliability and projected life … that said, we also took advantage of the energy rebate …

We pay a high tax rate [yes, I do realize that this money comes from the tax payer - in fact I own a business and realize that ultimately it is the consumer that pays businesses taxes and that people who rent homes also pay property taxes] … and while we coud have not requested the energy rebate, we did … At least that amount of tax money did not get funded to planned parenthood to subsidize the abortion industry …

We live in the world we have, with the rules that exist today … we can work to change them … but every government program /tax policy is in place to affect behavior … as in:

Mortgage interest expense … encourges home ownership. Deductable student loan interest - encourages education …
and the list goes on …

Would a reasonable person make the decision not to deduct mortgage interest because the government should not be in the business of influencing that behavior? …

 

[YADA]

I just want to say thanks for all the info and links for the tankless water heaters. My ds wants to install one for me and I thought it might be a good idea. Can anybody tell me if it can be put in the same general area as the conventional water heater i.e. in my basement… and what kind of ventilation am I gonna need? Is it the same as a regular water heater?

In the house we rented the tankless H2O heater was located in the garage …

In our new house we located it in the corner of the laundry room … we had to intall it lower on the wall than I really wanted bt we had to meet the code and the distance to the eaves on the out side dictated its location …

The one we installed is vented to the out side [exhaust] on th eback side of the house and cented to the outside on the side of the house for the fresh air intake … this was a real efficient installation as the piping for the vents is just through the wall …

I believe the venting in that rental went up and through the roof for the exhaust and out through the wall for the intke … but we have not lied there for several years and I am going from what I rememeber …

 

[manualman]

Our builder found a different high efficiency solution. We have a 50 gallon tank gas water heater with an electric fan exhaust system. Our furnace is also power exhausted so our house has absolutely no chimney. Eliminating the chimney flue eliminates a HUGE heat loss during the winter and a tank designed for power blower exhaust seems to have a VERY high recovery rate too. We’ve never run out of hot water, even when family is staying over and we have 11 people using hot water.

What I would like to have is an auxilliary electric point source water heater under my kitchen sink. It could reheat the cooled water in the hot water line until hot water from the main water heater arrives at the tap. That would prevent a lot of wasted water AND eliminate that irritating wait for hot water. $200 plus wiring a 240 volt outlet.

 

[lizaanne]

I just want to say thanks for all the info and links for the tankless water heaters. My ds wants to install one for me and I thought it might be a good idea. Can anybody tell me if it can be put in the same general area as the conventional water heater i.e. in my basement… and what kind of ventilation am I gonna need? Is it the same as a regular water heater?

My mom has one, but theirs is electric. You will need an electrician and a plumber to install it - it’s not only a plumbing job.

They have had to replace theirs twice in about four years. Not sure what brand it is, but over all they love it!!

~Liza

 

[Alexandra]

We lived with one for about 5 years and had no problems with it. It does have it’s quirks though. Unlimited hot water for one project at a time, in other words you couldn’t run the dishwasher and the washing machine at the same time, but one after the other was fine. Also if someone turned on the water in the kitchen while you were using it in the bathroom, it would fool the machine and it would kick back to cold water. All you had to do was turn the water off and back on again. But we absolutely loved the endless supply of water. Ours had a freestanding pilot light so worked when the electricity was off.