Tankless water heaters...

[47straight]

My water tank needs replacing. I've decided to go tankless. Can anyone offer me enough advice to not get screwed?

[soonerboomer93]

depending on how big your house is,tankless might not be that great.

I have a tankless and well, it's good, but it takes noticably longer for the hot water to flow, then if I had a tank.

[KRYPTON]

We had one installed to replace two heaters that were installed in series (!?!). Both had failed, aged six years and three months. Six year warranty. BRILLIANT ENGINEERING GENIUS!

Anyway... we contacted some guys in Houston who advertise themselves as specialists in tankless installations. It wasn't cheap but it's a solid installation and, if the heater is sized right, it never runs out. The thing's supposed to last 15-20 years too, and it's the size of a backpack.

SB93's problem might involve either an undersized heater, or perhaps a long run of pipe before it gets to the tap. Sounds more like the undersized heater.

[VeeJay]

A good friend of mine is a Product Manager with Rheem and was on a nationally syndicated radio program last week talking about...tankless water heaters.

Glad to be of help.

Seriously - http://www.palomatankless.com/

[OklahomaTuba]

If they try to sell you a tank with it, don't buy it!

[TUSooner]

Make sure you get the right kind of thermostat regulator dealy, or it will either not come on at all or it will only come on scalding hot.
That's all I understand from hearing two colleagues compare notes.

[sanantoniosooner]

I've heard a lot of bad stuff about the longevity of them and they are expensive to repair.

That's all I've got for you.

[Oldnslo]

Tanks for the memories!

you've got to be sure you have adequate venting to handle all of them massive BTU's you're going to be pulling. I considered it when we replaced our HWH. Went with a 75 gallon hi return (or whatever they call it) tank. Something like 40K BTU because the vents wouldn't work for the brazillion BTUs the tankless needs.

[Stoop Dawg]

SB93's problem might involve either an undersized heater, or perhaps a long run of pipe before it gets to the tap.

We've got a tank and it takes forever to get hot water to our master bathroom. It's a long run of pipe. We've considered getting a "mini heater" or something. It's a serious waste of water every morning.

[Mjcpr]

We're lucky to have the HWH's that we have, it's a tankless job.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Sold a few of them when I worked at Locke Supply..Didnt have any complaints from customers on them..

[Animal Mother]

We're lucky to have the HWH's that we have, it's a tankless job.


I was just wondering why you need to heat hot water???

[phead903]

You need to make sure that you have an adequate gas supply line. In a retrofit application, most houses need a larger gas supply line in order to supply enough fuel to feed the burners in a tankless (on-demand) water heater. And as mentioned before, you need to make sure the venting is done properly. Tankless Water heaters need to be vented like a gas furnace, which is different from a standard gas fired water heater.

Just make sure you find a contractor that you trust and you should be ok. By the way, I work fro Rheem, so I would also recommend the Rheem products:D .

[soonerboomer93]

We had one installed to replace two heaters that were installed in series (!?!). Both had failed, aged six years and three months. Six year warranty. BRILLIANT ENGINEERING GENIUS!

Anyway... we contacted some guys in Houston who advertise themselves as specialists in tankless installations. It wasn't cheap but it's a solid installation and, if the heater is sized right, it never runs out. The thing's supposed to last 15-20 years too, and it's the size of a backpack.

SB93's problem might involve either an undersized heater, or perhaps a long run of pipe before it gets to the tap. Sounds more like the undersized heater.

actually, the little tankless unit also heats my apartment in the winter since it's in floor heating in use. It just takes a bit longer for it to warm up then getting it from a tank.

[Mixer!]

We're lucky to have the HWH's that we have, it's a tankless job.BOOOO!

[StoopTroup]

Friday Night Drunkyfest would be nothing without being tanked.

[47straight]

Thanks everyone for the input.

My house is small enough that I don't think I'll have too much of a delay problem.

I do worry about the gas line throughput, esp. since it will be a retrofit. I guess I will have to bite the bullet if I need a bigger pipe. I am hoping that it will be ok b/c when the house was built, it had the HVAC, stove, 2 furnaces and outdoor appliances on gas.

Roger the needing a reliable contractor, that's the X factor in all this.

[47straight]

The final estimate is around 3,000. :stunned:

If any of your kiddos don't go to college, send em to plumbing school for sure. Less ways to die than an electrician. I don't feel like tackling gas line work so I can't do it myself.

1100 for the unit. I could get by on a smaller one to save 200 bucks, but I may add on to the house later or the next buyer might want to. I won't have to augment the gas line coming into the house.

Rennai seems to be the higher quality brand unit.