What’s so great about tankless water heaters?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My only complaint is the time it takes to get hot water can be long. I heard there are attachments to add a reserve tank or something to solve this problem. Might be something to look into.

It's exactly the same as the time with the regular tank; it takes time for the water to get though the pipes. We have a 3 level home (above ground) and, in order to avoid that lag, we installed a feature that periodically moves the water through the pipes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I know with most people it is the cost of switching over that makes them stop. Tankless really only works well with gas. If you don't have gas, it is not a good option compared to a traditional tank.

To run lines, properly vent, and install the first one is expensive (not as expensive to replace) but still it is significant. A tankless that is maintained - and maintenance is running vinegar through it annually, can last 20-25 years. Whereas a tank is 10-12 years.

You will save on water bills since you only running it when needed and if you have multiple family members unlimited hot water is amazing. Never having a cold shower is great.

But, the initial cost is there and that is usually the deterrent. Once you have one it beats a tanked water heater in every way.

Tell me more! Why is it not a good replacement for an electric tanked water heater?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We wanted one in our new build but were told they really are best when there isn’t the space for an extra large water tank, but greater water capacity is needed.

We just did a very large water tank (can’t remember how big, sorry - but it’s huge!) and we’ve never had any issues running out of hot water in our family of 5.

I built new with tankless and Your builder lied to you. They prefer tank bc it’s cheaper and easier to install.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do they have a hard time keeping up if many people want to use hot water in the house at the same time?

We put them in a renovation of a large house and both plumber and architect said we needed two. We had no problems once they were in

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We wanted one in our new build but were told they really are best when there isn’t the space for an extra large water tank, but greater water capacity is needed.

We just did a very large water tank (can’t remember how big, sorry - but it’s huge!) and we’ve never had any issues running out of hot water in our family of 5.

I built new with tankless and Your builder lied to you. They prefer tank bc it’s cheaper and easier to install.

This was our experience as well. We needed to push it with our builder because they kept forgetting this was a part of the plans.

[Anonymous]

we have 9 bathrooms so it wasn't worth it we got a 75gallon

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I know with most people it is the cost of switching over that makes them stop. Tankless really only works well with gas. If you don't have gas, it is not a good option compared to a traditional tank.

To run lines, properly vent, and install the first one is expensive (not as expensive to replace) but still it is significant. A tankless that is maintained - and maintenance is running vinegar through it annually, can last 20-25 years. Whereas a tank is 10-12 years.

You will save on water bills since you only running it when needed and if you have multiple family members unlimited hot water is amazing. Never having a cold shower is great.

But, the initial cost is there and that is usually the deterrent. Once you have one it beats a tanked water heater in every way.

Tell me more! Why is it not a good replacement for an electric tanked water heater?

It's a gas appliance. If you don't have a gas line, that would be a reason to stick with electric. If you're electric bills are significantly lower, eg you have solar, that would be a reason to stick with electric.

[Anonymous]

I have been interested in switching to tankless but my in-laws have one and it’s kind of noisy. Maybe they got a cheap one or poor install, but has anyone experienced this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem with tankless last time I was considering one, is that water flow required to "turn it on" is inversely proportional to its heating capacity. So like, I have six people in my house so we need to be able to supply hot water to at least two showers and one sink at the same time. When you do that, a lot of times the flow rate from one sink won't be enough to kick the heater on. So if you want hot water to come out of your sink tap, you have to turn on another sink or a shower to get it to heat LMAO. No thank you

I suspect what you really needed was more than one unit. We lived in a large house that had a large tankless unit in the basement, and the third floor primary suite had its own smaller tankless heater.

[Anonymous]

Huge space savers.

Unlimited hot water.

They can use less gas if used correctly.

Last over 20+ years with appropriate maintenance and care.


Why do you think billions of people across the world use tankless and have so for like the last 70 years? The US is simply wrong with tank systems that have to keep being replaced and constantly burn fuel to keep them warm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do they have a hard time keeping up if many people want to use hot water in the house at the same time?

Nope. It's all about installing the right one. So many complaints about tankless simply come down to a crappy install or buying and ill suited one for the demand.

Think about restaurants and how much water they use. Many use tankless for a reason.

If restaurants make it work, then so can homes. If they're not working in a home, it's entirely user error or mistakes.

[Anonymous]

I considered it but it seemed like the payback period was really long and I was concerned that my poorly installed 2004 new build piping couldn't handle it. Maybe I didn't calc all the assumptions correctly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My only complaint is the time it takes to get hot water can be long. I heard there are attachments to add a reserve tank or something to solve this problem. Might be something to look into.

Nope. We have a recirculating one. I just use the app before I know I'll use it (like during dinner) or set a scheduled recirc to fit our daily life (like before 5 am since that's when we get up in the morning). All is perfectly fine. It actually gets hotter faster than when we had our tank if you appropriately use recirc features.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem with tankless last time I was considering one, is that water flow required to "turn it on" is inversely proportional to its heating capacity. So like, I have six people in my house so we need to be able to supply hot water to at least two showers and one sink at the same time. When you do that, a lot of times the flow rate from one sink won't be enough to kick the heater on. So if you want hot water to come out of your sink tap, you have to turn on another sink or a shower to get it to heat LMAO. No thank you

Nope. Use a recirc. For the love of God people, use modern tech before complaining.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do they have a hard time keeping up if many people want to use hot water in the house at the same time?

They do not do this which is the big difference between this and a traditional water heater. We have a tankless in our beach house and can have 10 people showering in a row, no problems ever. It also won’t dump 60+ gallons of water on the basement floor when it fails and we’re gone for months.