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September 27, 2007
tankless hot water heaters
Has anyone installed a tankless hot water heater in their home? Are you happy with it? In your opinion, what are the relative virtues and drawbacks of tankless vs. traditional hot water heaters?
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We are planning to. I think they are relatively rare here because there are issues with venting. We are going to circumvent that problem by putting the tankless box on our second floor, so that we can vent directly to the roof. We have an email out to the MasterPlvmber about doing this work...
I would love to see what other people have to say, but have asked about this topic before and didn't get much response.
Posted by: guest at September 27, 2007 4:54 PM
When I last looked into it for my house the main stumbling blocks were that it requires a larger dedicated vent than I had, and a larger gas line coming into the house. I have heard that an electric tankless system is still better than a gas tank system.
Posted by: guest at September 27, 2007 7:44 PM
I think there are 2 issues here that are being mistaken for each other: One is having a direct vent boiler, and the other is a tankless hot water heater. Direct Vent boilers are great b/c they do away with the need for a flue. I have not heard that they require a larger vent, but know that there are strict clearance requirements away from windows and property lines. Tankless heaters are nice in that you save yourself some space, but might be tricky if you are hoping to get hot water on the 3rd floor of your brownstone and there isn't a reservoir of hot water ready to distribute that water. One way of avoiding that of course is to have a continuous bypass loop for hot water throughout that is always circulating through the boiler. I'm curious to hear what your plumber has to say.
Posted by: Espresso at September 28, 2007 10:18 AM
I have actually bought 2 tankless heaters: a Rheem and a Bosch for 2 different properties. Both are gas and need to be vented properly or else they will fall out of warranty. You need to figure out what size you want, though most likely the smallest or next to smallest. The RHeem powers a 4-story townhouse in Greenpoint and is wonderful because hot water never runs out from usage. Getting hot water tot he top floor takes time, but not any slower than a normal boiler (does a boiler keep your whole house's pipes warm? No!) The main advantages are that it takes up no space and unlimited water and enery savings. The main disadvantage is the initial cost: expect to pay $800-$1100 for the smaller units plus installation. Hope this helps
Posted by: guest at September 28, 2007 12:32 PM
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