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Tankless Water Heaters

CJD3

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
14,630
201
NE Ohio
Rehabing a small cottage and am cramped for space.
Does anyone have any experience with these "Tankless water heaters"?


Any thoughts, good or bad would be appreciated.
 

Spencie

Senior Member
5,051
145
Constitution Ohio
That is our ongoing cabin project right now and it's been a disaster. We didn't get our first one drained properly and it froze and busted before we ever got propane hooked up to it. Our second one would not ignite. Dad is now in the process of getting a third one to try. This project has been an epic failure. Wish I had some useful info for you.
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,743
274
North Carolina
They're used a lot in Europe and I've always had good water temps while using them over there... A few of our shops where I'd worked had them and while cleaning aircraft parts for long periods of time we never had an issue.... The Germans are always about conserving energy and they seem to like them as well....
 

Quantum673

Black Hat Cajun
Supporting Member
Yes. I have 2 at my TN cabin. They are great. The ones I have are electric since I am all electric there. One piece of advise I have is spend a little extra and get one a little bigger than you think you will need. Also if you are going to use one for a shower make sure to use a low flow water saver shower head. It will make a huge difference.
 

Dustinb80

#FACKCANCER
Supporting Member
18,172
187
S.W. Ohio
Yes. I have 2 at my TN cabin. They are great. The ones I have are electric since I am all electric there. One piece of advise I have is spend a little extra and get one a little bigger than you think you will need. Also if you are going to use one for a shower make sure to use a low flow water saver shower head. It will make a huge difference.

I was starting to consider this until you said low flow shower head. I have to have high pressure showers. Cant stand bad water pressure.
 

Quantum673

Black Hat Cajun
Supporting Member
The ones I have are not bad at all. Feels like a regular shower. Now we tried some in the past that felt like someone was spitting on you instead of a shower. They immediately went in the trash. The ones we have now though are much better.
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
I was starting to consider this until you said low flow shower head. I have to have high pressure showers. Cant stand bad water pressure.

Same here. Shower heads today are federally regulated to 2.5 GPM max and most perform well below that. You used to be able to remove the restricter and make the flow better but most today are engineered to be low flow. I can't stand these shower heads that do the multitude of tiny high pressure streams. I also can't stand these stupid sink faucets that are 50% air in the water stream. It's like trying to wash something off using foam. For a sink I want a solid clear stream of water like you find in mud sinks or the sink in the chow hall. High flow and unrestricted.

High flow shower heads are harder to find. You can google search them and find some 4-8 GPM models made outside the US labeled as not for indoor use. Which isn't a problem to me since 95% of the ones sold here are made outside the US anyway. "Black market" shower heads are the way to go.
 

Buckmaster

Senior Member
14,362
191
Portage
I was starting to consider this until you said low flow shower head. I have to have high pressure showers. Cant stand bad water pressure.

No issues with our standard shower heads. They recommend to be changed over....I did not. Endless supply of hot water too boot.
 

Quantum673

Black Hat Cajun
Supporting Member
No issues with our standard shower heads. They recommend to be changed over....I did not. Endless supply of hot water too boot.

Just all depends on the size of the tankless. I was referencing the small point of use electric models. I think one we have is a 9kw and the other is a 11kw. The 9 recommends not using it for any fixture that is over 2gpm. The 11 is 3gpm. The bigger ones can handle 4-5 gpm. Just all depends on size. I stayed with the smaller ones due to size and not realm needing anything bigger. They work well for us.
 

Buckmaster

Senior Member
14,362
191
Portage

CJD3

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
14,630
201
NE Ohio
I need to get up to speed.
Is water pressure feeding into the home a issue or is it just about the shower head?
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,721
248
Ohio
I went with this one in my home---a whole house version.
http://tankthetank.com/products/sti...tankless-water-heater-29kw?variant=1044453855

I've got this one in my garage for a sink and hose spigot.
http://tankthetank.com/products/sti...tankless-water-heater-12kw?variant=1044504855

You will need plenty of power available on your electrical panel to run these.
I have 400 amp service between these units and my geothermal heat system. Thus far, they run flawlessly together.
Must read more. Must look at the math. What you type sounds like more energy consumption. I get the theory though. More energy consumed to use. Less because you don't have to keep water hot 24hrs a day.
 

5Cent

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
12,291
212
North Central Ohio
I am not a fan, but they work when sized properly.

If having a high flow tub/shower setup, make sure your BTU setting is appropriate. When used with digital spa's etc., it throws them into crazy mode as one second it's receiving correct temp, the next it's not so it constantly cannot tell the controller what to do as the burner tries to keep up. Size, size, size correctly and make sure you will be around long enough for the ROI.

EP showerheads are not fun, but new spray designs and internal designs are proving to yield a great showering experience. Moen offers plenty of options for all situations, but an Oxygenic's BodySpa handheld showerhead is what I would recommend for RV's and cabins where there is minimal usage and you want the ability to shut off right at the head.
 

Hoytmania

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
11,518
167
Gods Country
Jim give me a call when you get a chance. Don't have much time to type right now. I can give you some insider adbive
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
I need to get up to speed.
Is water pressure feeding into the home a issue or is it just about the shower head?

If you're talking to me it's not a pressure issue but the flow of gallons per minute. Shower heads commercially available in the US are federally regulated and must be certified to flow no more than 2.5 GPM. This required shower head manufacturers to sharpen their pencil and engineer a head that performed well under these restrictions. Most chose to go with a larger head design that produce a hundred tiny high pressure streams that are directed in a large cone shape. Or a central set of ports that produce fewer streams that are larger in size but have less pressure. They often use a design that causes air to be mixed with the stream to give the impression of more water coming out. Sink faucets are the worst for using this airerated stream. But since their limited to 2.5 GPM they can only do so much with flow and pressure.

I want both flow and pressure and the only way to do that is buying what's the equivilent in the auto parts world "off-road use only" shower heads. A shower head that flows 4-5 gallons a minute with good pressure.

Here's a goin analogy. Say our shower head puts out 50 streams of water. Point it towards the back of the shower and I bet it barely has the power to reach the back of the tub. Now set your garden sprayer to the similar pattern spray and I bet it goes 20 feet. The difference isn't due to pressure, it's flow rate.

In my shower I use a hand wand that clips up on the shower outlet pipe. This model came with a removable inline GPM regulator that I did not promptly remove. Even after I remodeled the bathroom last year the new shiny Moen shower head is sitting in the garage. I kept it because when I sell the house it's getting installed and my shower head is going with me.