tankless/on demand water heaters?

Question

Does anybody have one? What are the pros and cons? Any advice and details would be appreciated.

Answer 1

I do not have one but have worked with them & installed them. The only positive thing that i can see is saving space, People will say that they don,t cost as much to operate because you don,t have a tank of water to heat. I believe that there is very little savings. They usally have a higher btu burner that is necessary to heat the water instantly, thus when the unit is running it burns more propane than than the tank style heater, Also there are more things that can go wrong with them & because of the design of the heater with many 90 degree turns in the piping, it would more than likely cause water pressure problems on the hot water side if you are using more than one faucet at the same time

Answer 2

The pros are this: It heats the water when you need it. That's about it.

The cons: Initial cost can be about 2-3 times more that a conventional heater, more if you have a plumber that is inexperienced with tankless heaters.
If you have more than 2 people, the demand will not keep up and you will not get enough out water when needed, i.e.: washing clothes, doing dishes, taking a shower, etc.

There is a common fallacy that tankless heaters are the end all to hot water. You need to assess your situation and make a determination from there. Hope this helps and good luck.

Answer 3

Tankless water heaters are to die for – but they are not for everyone. A tankless water heater stores no hot water and is triggered to come on by water flowing through it. Once the demand is sensed, it begins heating up. Full bore capacity can normally take five to seven seconds. No a big deal huh?

Now, assume your kitchen sink currently takes 4 seconds from the time you turn on the tap to the time you get hot water. This is the travel distance time from your existing tanked unit. By merely replacing the unit, you need to combine the heat-up time of the tankless PLUS the travel time to get to the fixture. Nine to eleven seconds can seem like an eternity. If budget is not an issue, there are piping & pumping strategies that can eliminate this delay.

On the flip side, in my home I located the unit central to all fixtures and knew of this delay going in to it. I have a gas fired Rinnai brand which I love and wouldn’t have anything but. I’ve substantially dropped my gas bill as I am no longer paying for stored hot water 24 hours a day. The efficiency of these units will smoke any high-efficiency tanked model available.

Always work through a licensed plumber and ignore the units at the big box stores. Although attractively priced, they have higher pressure drops across the units and lower water flow rates. Be sure to check with your local utility about rebates that may be available along with the new 2006 federal tax credit for high efficiency equipment.

Answer 4

Our washing machine and dishwasher make their own hot water. (They are hooked up to cold water taps.) That only really leaves the kitchen sink and two bathrooms. We had electric on demand installed and are thrilled as the electric bills dropped dramatically. Why leave the hot water heater on all day for two showers and the odd dish?????

Answer 5

I don't have one, but I have a friend who does.....

The main advantage is that you only heat the water you need as you need it, so it is cheaper to run. Also you never run out of hot water. I think initially more expensive to install, but more economical in the long run compared with a regular system with a hot water tank.

Answer 6

once you're procuring a tankless, purchase it on line. i have used Takagis for years now in both residential and commercial installs and they are helpful. That stated, the first ingredient to do is be sure that your gasoline and water lines are sized accurate for a tankless. in case you do not comprehend the thanks to objective this, call someone in. The payoff is in about 2 or 3 years, reckoning on incentives and utilization. also, you by no ability run out of warm water.

Answer 7

they are a lot more expensive up front but are great. Awesome for space saving, does not waste fuel by heating an entire water tank

I have a rinnai and love it
www.foreverhotwater.com

Answer 8

like richard55 said there are alot of positives. the only thing is the initial cost and they have to be vented separately.

Answer 9

all good answers, but if you weigh the initial cost of installation, you will have to live a very long time to reclaim your savings.