Do tankless water heaters work well?
Posted on | May 16, 2010 | 10 Comments
My fiance and I need to replace our water heater, we’re looking at possibly purchasing a tankless one, but I’m curious to see if anyone has one, and how well they work.
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10 Responses to “Do tankless water heaters work well?”
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May 16th, 2010 @ 8:01 pm
here’s a link on ebay where you can read reviews of them by ebay members
May 16th, 2010 @ 9:01 pm
tankless water heaters are the wave of the future. They are more energy efficient because you are not holding water at a set temperature. You have an endless water supply. It also takes up less space.
May 16th, 2010 @ 9:17 pm
I don’t have one yet, but I will at my next opportunity. They are more energy efficient than tanks, and NEVER run out of hot water.
May 16th, 2010 @ 9:18 pm
Instant (Tankless) Water Heaters have come a long way in the last few years, you can now get some that are 95% efficient, they use a plastic flue pipe, as all the heat is absorbed into the heat exchanger to heat the water.
They can supply not only enough hot water for 2 showers, 1 bath and 4 faucets, but also up to 8 hot water radiators too (central heating), radiators heat up in less than a minute from cold.
Gas is the way to go, as they do need a large amount of instant energy.
May 16th, 2010 @ 9:33 pm
They are commonly known as flash heaters as well. They been used in European countries for decades because of space limitations in apartments and small houses. In fact sometimes they work a little TOO well. The one I had in Portugal would scald you very easily.
May 16th, 2010 @ 10:27 pm
it’s quite convenient to use tankless water heater n the heat is instant.
May 16th, 2010 @ 11:03 pm
Go for it, the initial expense will be recuperated by the energy savings, and the convenience is never running out of hot water. Be sure to get several estimates, the installation can be pricey.
May 16th, 2010 @ 11:10 pm
They work fantastically well. However, they cost more initially, but you will make up for that front-loaded cost within 16-20 months.
May 16th, 2010 @ 11:31 pm
I had one when I lived overseas and I loved it! Other than waiting a minute for the hot water to kick in, it was great because I had unlimited hot water. It was also nice because I knew I wasn’t wasting energy heating water I wasn’t using at the time.
I would highly recommend one. However, I’ve heard that there are some specifications involved in the installation, so you might want to get someone to give you an estimate to see if you can actually get one installed in your house.
May 17th, 2010 @ 12:23 am
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 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 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.