Thinking of switching to a tankless water heater.

But the ability to continuously run hot water becomes addictive. Methinks the efficiencies are negated by the icreased water usage.
Anywho my radiant floor heating system can not use an instant type heater. No complaints with my 50 gallon tank. In fact I've IR'd it. Not that much loss and simpler is a lot of times better.
 
What he said and.....

Just this past week an article in the Washingto Post had the same comment-said it would take 12-15 years to pay for itself(in savings over a standard 50 gal. unit).
 
But it will last indefinately, whereas a standard hot water tank should be replaced every 10 years at most. It is just like smart financial investing, go for the long term payout, not the quick reward.
Marylandrauder said:
Just this past week an article in the Washingto Post had the same comment-said it would take 12-15 years to pay for itself(in savings over a standard 50 gal. unit).
Click to expand...
 
Normally I would agree, but I have a 40-gal unit in my house that is from 1985 which will scald you for 20 minutes, at least.

I ain't letting it go until it goes on its own. :)

Cheeseheadbob said:
But it will last indefinately, whereas a standard hot water tank should be replaced every 10 years at most. It is just like smart financial investing, go for the long term payout, not the quick reward.
Click to expand...
 
Marylandrauder said:
Just this past week an article in the Washingto Post had the same comment-said it would take 12-15 years to pay for itself(in savings over a standard 50 gal. unit).
Click to expand...

I don't understand where all the misinformation comes from, or is it just a difference in our locations?

http://www.directenergy.com/EN/Alberta/RES/Pages/SPO/SPOWaterHeater.aspx

a 30% - 40% monthly savings on my gas bill means $50-$70 a month. We get up to a $1000 rebate for improving fuel efficiencies in our homes, so $1200 cost for the most expensive Rinnai model means it'll pay for itself in 20 months. 4gpm is nearly as good as my water supply gets.

I know many people who have switched, with nothing but good things to say about tankless hot water. (no one got an electric.) I know people with electric water heaters (no natural gas available, just propane) and they get raped every month on utilities. Something like $400 just to have hot water. Tankless+propane is a godsend for them.
 
My Sister has the expensive house hot water heater with the pipes in the ground behind her house. I do like going to her house as she has unlimited free hot water. System does cost around $50K though but she saves about $1000 about month on heating and hot water costs. (Big House).

She has lived there for 3 years now and in a couple more it will be paying for itself.

I just use, like almost everyone in Alberta, a Gas powered Water tank/heater. From the looks of it, I do not use huge amounts of water, but I do run out of hot water on every shower I take in 11 or so minutes now. My Tank/heater is 16 years old an not working very well anymore.

For the same Price I think I will upgrade to a tankless system. I don't run more than one hot water appliance at a time right now, (current system drains the hot water in 4 or so minutes if I do) I do have unlimited cold water. (yes I pay for it) But I pay more for Gas than water.

Yes I probably will increase my showers by 10 minutes. But that will make me happy so it really doesn't matter.

Dishwasher will not take any longer, nor will the washing machine, so I should see some savings. Atleast I should be happily hot watered in the shower.
 
There's your answer to the cold weather... Geothermal heating and cooling and a minimum water temp of +/- 50* year round... Add a digitally controlled low BTU boiler and some radiant heating/cooling loops and you have heating and cooling with tons of savings... I wish I were building a house right now. There are some cool options out there. :cool:
 
Achilles heel?

Cheeseheadbob said:
But it will last indefinately, whereas a standard hot water tank should be replaced every 10 years at most. It is just like smart financial investing, go for the long term payout, not the quick reward.
Click to expand...

Nothing lasts indefinately! What keeps the boiler from getting "limed up", like a tank type heater does? If it gets internally coated, efficiency will be reduced.

The actual life of tankless heaters seems unknown/unadvertised. Most people know a tank type heater lasts 10 to 15 years.
 
The heaters are actually just as "reliable" as a tank type heater or even more so. The heating element that could "lime-up" is the copper or now stainless steel heat exchanger and because it only sees use while the unit is running (vs holding water for 24hrs a day) it actually stays fairly clean. The material is also different than a cast iron boiler or a steel water heater tank. It is more resistant to corrosion and scale. This heat exchanger is also modular so if it needed to be replaced, the job is comparable to changing an element on an electric heater. The other upside is that if the heat exchanger were to clog or restrict flow, the unit will sense this and throw an audible alarm combined with a code that can be read by the homeowner or servicing plumber. This takes the guess work out of diagnosing a problem... This is fixed by rinsing vinegar through the unit with special taps that are on the heater for this reason. This can be done by the homeowner prior to a service call and walked through over the phone. This is also recommended every 6 - 12 months if you are on a well system without a water softener etc or in an area with hard water. I hope that you guys don't mind me ranting about these things but it is a technology that many people do not understand or people in the industry tend to put down to resist change. I guess to old adage still holds true that "you have to pay to play" and if you want the highest technology and efficiency, you will always pay more for it up front... Not that there is anything at all wrong with tank-type traditional water heaters. They are cost effective and less expensive in most cases, but this really is the future of where the residential hydronics market is going. Wow... I feel like magindat talking about speaker performance and amplifier efficiency... ;)
 
High-C said:
The heaters are actually just as "reliable" as a tank type heater or even more so. The heating element that could "lime-up" is the copper or now stainless steel heat exchanger and because it only sees use while the unit is running (vs holding water for 24hrs a day) it actually stays fairly clean. The material is also different than a cast iron boiler or a steel water heater tank. It is more resistant to corrosion and scale. This heat exchanger is also modular so if it needed to be replaced, the job is comparable to changing an element on an electric heater. The other upside is that if the heat exchanger were to clog or restrict flow, the unit will sense this and throw an audible alarm combined with a code that can be read by the homeowner or servicing plumber. This takes the guess work out of diagnosing a problem... This is fixed by rinsing vinegar through the unit with special taps that are on the heater for this reason. This can be done by the homeowner prior to a service call and walked through over the phone. This is also recommended every 6 - 12 months if you are on a well system without a water softener etc or in an area with hard water. ...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info...it sounds good, but...

1)"The actual life of tankless heaters seems unknown/unadvertised"...and

2)"Nothinglasts indefinately"...so ?...and...

3)I can imagine a replacement heat exchanger would cost as much as a whole new unit.

Menards (a midwest USA big box lumberyard seller) has them on sale frequently. I have been looking at them for years, and the manufacturer doesn't advertise their questionable deficiencies.
 
That is true "Nothing" does last indefinitely. I have had quite a bit of "Nothing" and it is still there. It never seems to go away on it's own.
 
Yeah, well mine came with a 15 year warranty If I installed it and a 20 year warranty if I had it done by a pro.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top