gas hot water heater
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I went tankless 7-8 yrs ago. Wish I wouldn't have. I bought a Rheem which is made by Poloma, both high end units. It went down about 3-4 yrs in. Called Rheem and told them the code it was flashing. They over nighted the part and had a tech show up the next day to fix it. Excellent customer service, they never even asked me for proof of purchase. The thing about tankless I don't like is it takes forever to get hot water, over 60 to 70 sec. I'm done washing my hands(in cold water) before the water ever gets warm. This is after I moved it 10ft closer to the water fixtures than the tank unit it replaced. The tank unit would have hot water at the farthest fixture in 15-20 sec. I find myself turning on the hot water and walking away (going to the bathroom to take a leak) coming back later to find hot water. Not sure if it has saved me anything on my gas bill. Nice thing about tankless is you can adjust the temp by remote keypad to your liking. Once you get hot water it will go all day without running out.
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4,588 Posts
Jac, fwiw, I'm going to be replacing mine with another gas unit. If you see the forecasts for energy, electricity is going up, while gas is going down due to increased supply. I'm even considering switching to a gas dryer.
My propane hot water heater is 18 years old, made by White. Quite impressed by it's longevity. Will be replacing with another White unit when it goes.
http://www.bradfordwhite.com/defender-safety-system®-high-ef-ttw®-power-vented-models
My propane hot water heater is 18 years old, made by White. Quite impressed by it's longevity. Will be replacing with another White unit when it goes.
http://www.bradfordwhite.com/defender-safety-system®-high-ef-ttw®-power-vented-models
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6,448 Posts
They ran gas by our place about 10-12 years ago and we have been running a gas stove and hot water tank since. As long as Ontario Hydro has a monopoly, there will be no need for them to be efficient or keep prices in line. I'll stay with gas.
Actually, they are cold water heaters. They shut off once the water is hot.
Actually, they are cold water heaters. They shut off once the water is hot.
Could you just convert the gas valve to NG? Just a thought...
I see this a lot and always think "hot water heaters make steam."Actually, they are cold water heaters. They shut off once the water is hot.
If you have a hydro system of baseboard heat I highly recommend adding another zone with a super storage tank. Not sure of the correct name. Mine is 50 gallons I think and takes heat off the boiler. without using hot water it fires about every 8 hours. With 40k btu behind it I have never ran out of hot water ever. had it for 12 years so far. In my area where my boiler is already hot and running 8 months a year it makes sense.
Not affiliated with them in any way but Bock water heaters are as well.
http://www.bockwaterheaters.com/
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2,123 Posts
I went tankless three years ago. I did a ton of research, including examining a variety of installed units, and I went with a Noritz...which is made in Japan. Noritz is a very high end unit. They are not cheap. I buy American whenever possible, but it is undeniable that the Japanese are the acknowledged leaders in tankless designs. Thats all the Japanese use. they make them by the millions.
after 3 years, I would never go back to a tank. My unit is so efficient that I was able to (legally) use 4" Schedule 40 PVC for the exhaust. That's how little heat is wasted out of the exhaust! Further, my burner draws combustion air from outside, so no waste of interior air and no flow through air leaks to waste energy.
Benefits: substantial energy savings, especially if you have a bigger family who take a lot of showers...PROVIDING you can get them to turn off the hot water!
Never run out of hot water.
Adjustable hot water temps.
Unit is substantially smaller than a tank.
Things you must accommodate: no electricity = no hot water. Battery backup strongly advised.
My unit has a 200,000 BTU burner (yes...200k!) That means a 3/4 gas line no more than 30ft. From meter and with no more than five 90 degree bends.
Installation is not simple, but it is well within a competent homeowner's ability.
Every time you turn on the hot water, the unit runs. Get used to that, or locate the unit where you can't hear it cycle.
Freezing temps require special behaviors if the outside temp goes below -15 F.
Yes, it is advised to drain the heat exchanger yearly...just like it is advised to drain your water tank every year. I takes less than five minutes to do that procedure on a tankless - there are only a few ounces of water in the exchanger.
Check out Noritz high efficiency tankless units. They are among the best in the world, IMO
after 3 years, I would never go back to a tank. My unit is so efficient that I was able to (legally) use 4" Schedule 40 PVC for the exhaust. That's how little heat is wasted out of the exhaust! Further, my burner draws combustion air from outside, so no waste of interior air and no flow through air leaks to waste energy.
Benefits: substantial energy savings, especially if you have a bigger family who take a lot of showers...PROVIDING you can get them to turn off the hot water!
Never run out of hot water.
Adjustable hot water temps.
Unit is substantially smaller than a tank.
Things you must accommodate: no electricity = no hot water. Battery backup strongly advised.
My unit has a 200,000 BTU burner (yes...200k!) That means a 3/4 gas line no more than 30ft. From meter and with no more than five 90 degree bends.
Installation is not simple, but it is well within a competent homeowner's ability.
Every time you turn on the hot water, the unit runs. Get used to that, or locate the unit where you can't hear it cycle.
Freezing temps require special behaviors if the outside temp goes below -15 F.
Yes, it is advised to drain the heat exchanger yearly...just like it is advised to drain your water tank every year. I takes less than five minutes to do that procedure on a tankless - there are only a few ounces of water in the exchanger.
Check out Noritz high efficiency tankless units. They are among the best in the world, IMO
Been in this house 25 years. Best I have done is 12 years on water heater (well water). Use Bradford White, basically install, set and forget. I do flush the tank annually to wash out any sediment. Have propane, power vent style. Just replaced mine last year, made up fresh tails and used Sharkbite fittings to connect copper tails to CPVC feed and supply. Worked great. "0" leaks, easiest install I ever did.
I work on water heaters on a daily basis and honestly have no recommendation of one brand over another. The key is to have soften water, hard water cuts down the life of a water heater to only a few years give or take thanks to the calcium building up inside. Even with draining it regularly. the term hot water heater always makes me chuckle too.
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40,877 Posts
That right there has always made me wonder why
manufactures recommend draining gas water heater tanks annually but the lime/calcium build up never ever comes out with the water plus they put a crappy drain valve on them that will hardly ever shut of if you mess with it.
Best to just leave it alone unless you want to spend all day disconnecting it and using citric acid and a long rod to reach in through the tank openings to scrape the bottom and sides of the flue, then installing a good boiler drain.
I will say that draining an electric water heater usually does work somewhat because they have not had a gas burner's hot blast on the bottom of the tank.
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