Tankless LP Water Heater

   / Tankless LP Water Heater #1  

721h354

Bronze Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2008
Messages
51
Location
Northwest Alabama
Tractor
IH 354
Our homestead is "out in the country" where power outages are common. We also have five people sharing the benefits of a 40 gallon electric water heater. A tankless L.P. water heater is in our plans in the near future. We have never owned a tankless and any input would be appreciated. Such as, are they worth the start-up cost of probably $1,500.00 installed? Are they efficient enough long-term to pay back? Thanks in advance for your input!:)
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #2  
Don't do it it is a scam.

When you figure the initial cost, the maintenance, and the fact that once everyone realizes there is endless hot water, you won't save any money.

There are other draw backs like, longer wait for hot water initially, you have to open the hot water faucet and leave it running, you can't let the water trickle, if you turn it on and off, you get cold, hot, cold, hot.

Some people are so unhappy, they end up with the expense of a small tank heater to smooth out the fluctuations, and increase the speed of the initial hot water.

Like everything, you will find someone who likes it, so I am sure some will tell you how great they are.

Part of my family sells these things, and they don't have them. :cool:
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #3  
I repair and perform maint. on them. I don't want to own 1
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #4  
Do a search on TBN for this. We just had a dicussion on these water heaters. I researched them when we were building our house and ended up putting in a plain old water heater. We had the plumber out to the house a month or so ago and he said he will NOT install a tankless water heater. Too many problems.

Later,
Dan
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #5  
I dunno...some people love them and others seem to hate them. We looked into one the last time we needed a hot water heater...with just Mrs. Rev and I, heating a tank of water 24/7 seems a little extreme.

A guy I know who does a lot of enviro-construction made one point that changed our minds though. If you have cold water to start, it's difficult to get the heat you want. He recommended a passive solar system to warm the water before it was heated. I bought a lottery ticket, but since I didn't win we just went with another tank.
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #6  
We have only worked with the electric type, they were a pain. I Wonderedabout the cost of lp gas to make this thing work for a month?. The natural gas model at our hardware store looked to be very labor intensive to operate or keep working? Jy.
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #7  
We have the natural gas type, Rennai. No issues in 4 years. We pay $20 - $25 per month for hot water. It's cheaper per month than my old electric, but not sure it will pay for itself over the long run. Nice not to have a 40 to 60 gal tank sitting somewhere in the house or garage. If this lasts 15 years I will own another, don't like having to heat water over and over again before using.

Eddie
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #8  
Another plumber that wouldn't have one. All the above reasons. My concern also is that if it fails, I don't have a clue how to work on the controls. The last two I had anything to do with had to be sent back to the factory while under warranty. A long wait for hot water until it came back. I had my supplier finally admit that if a customer hired me to do the required clean and checks to maintain the warranty, it would actually cost more per gallon than a good electric.
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #9  
I think "scam" is a bit over the top. I have a Rinnai and am quite pleased with it. I kept the electric in the loop in case I ever needed it. Only needed it once when I accidentally found the underground propane pipe with my excavator.

Otherwise, I've had no urge at all to go back to the tank. There was a nice tax credit for doing it as well. I think it may end at the end of this year.
 
   / Tankless LP Water Heater #10  
I dunno...some people love them and others seem to hate them. We looked into one the last time we needed a hot water heater...with just Mrs. Rev and I, heating a tank of water 24/7 seems a little extreme.

Ever travel to a foreign country where energy costs are much higher than ours? One hundred percent of the homes have tankless water heaters. They look at Americans with their 50,60,90 gallon tanks of water kept hot just in case they need it and they think of us as wasteful pigs.

I've run two tankless water heaters for over 5 years now and have 2 in less used locations. Absolutely positively zero problems. I went to flush one out with vinegar to clean it like some suggest each year, and I wasted 2 gallons of vinegar; it came out perfectly clean with no buildup inside either water heater.

I have a family of 7. In the main house I had to keep a 90 gallon water heater for upstairs, where 4 of the bedrooms are and a 40 gallon downstairs where 2 of the bedrooms are located. I noticed a significant drop in my gas bill during the summer months; when the only gas running was for heating water. In my guest house, we only need hot water if someone is staying out there; the same in my barn. It seemed silly to put 40 gallon water heaters in those places!

I, for one, am extremely pleased with our tankless water heaters and would never consider going back to the old dinosaur in the basement tank water heaters.
 
 
Top