I will be replacing the water heater shortly and am considering a tankless model.  Certain space and future remodel considerations would benefit from a tankless model.  I know there are some drawbacks but I *think* that it's not an issue, based on our current situation.  

To any of you that have one, what has your experience been?  Good and bad experiences appreciated.

Thanks,

Keith

Flech,

Is it going to be a gas model?

Flech,

Is it going to be a gas model?

Unfortunately, no.  We may add gas at a later date but for now the house is all electric.  

The specs on the ones I'm looking at more than cover my hot water needs.  (and I have sufficient electrical capacity to run them)

Neighbor down the street has one and he told me that his electric bill is still high.

But it is a very interesting device.

Can't wait for the feedback from the gang.  

You know your situation much better than I do, but the electric ones our company have installed have been a bust.  In fact we no longer offer the electrical units for warranty reasons.  Personally I would reconsder when gas was an option.

make sure you get all info on regarding the water usage i was looking at a system  and the system required two for the consumption the housed used.

I am trying to finish building a house and researched the tankless option myself.  Going electric my problem was the additional service coming into the house to operate one (and that a guy working said the power company was talking about raising the price for it).   Spoke to one person who had a gas version.  They had a line bust somewhere and it continually ran the water and therefore the heater.  It created a steaming effect and messed up a bunch of sheetrock because they were gone for the weekend when it happened.  

I love the idea, but I got put off on it a little.  I went the traditional route instead.

Man, perfect timing of this post, as I too am considering replacing a conventional 40 gallon gas water heater.

mattm, what are your thoughts, in general, regarding the gas ones?  Also, any suggestions or recommendations on brands to look into?

Thanks!

The only times I have installed them has been in buildings like garages and concession stands where hot water is needed, but only in small quantities on certain days. It's easy to get your money back here, but I don't know about heating for a whole house.

You know your situation much better than I do, but the electric ones our company have installed have been a bust. In fact we no longer offer the electrical units for warranty reasons. Personally I would reconsider when gas was an option.

I was afraid of this...  when I looked the the lowe's and depot site, the reviews were not very good.  I have found other brands that seem better, but with no real life feedback on them you never can be sure.  

Mind if i ask what brand(s) you guys sold?

Gas is for sure my first choice but we won't be bringing gas into the home until the rest of the remodel happens, in 2-4 years.  But the water heater needs to be replaced now.  

I am trying to finish building a house and researched the tankless option myself. Going electric my problem was the additional service coming into the house to operate one (and that a guy working said the power company was talking about raising the price for it). Spoke to one person who had a gas version. They had a line bust somewhere and it continually ran the water and therefore the heater. It created a steaming effect and messed up a bunch of sheetrock because they were gone for the weekend when it happened.

I love the idea, but I got put off on it a little. I went the traditional route instead.

What kind of extra service does it require more than a traditional tank heater?

Flech,

Honestly I don't know which brands we were installing.  We got away from them pretty quick. I do know that we weren't getting them from Home Depot or Lowe's.

SRV,  

The gas ones seems to be more effcient/effective.  Especially the newer ones.  They have made some progress in the technology in the last couple of years.  Any name brand should work.  However, I feel as a whole they are dishonest/inaccurate on the true capabilities of these systems.  I've heard  too many folks say that they needed more than one for me to consider it.  All I can say is that if I was building a home right now I wouldn't put it in mine.  Plus, there is much better places to spend your money on energy effciency.

I'm not bashing anyone that has them just my experiences.  I've had people that installed gas units with no issues.

Matt,

I appreciate the honesty and info.  I've decided to go ahead and put another tank model in until we do the rest of the remodeling.  By then we will have gas and there will have been another few years of working out the kinks in the tankless technology.

I can replace what was there for $300... so it's not a big deal.

Thanks again for your help.

Keith

you could always go with the wood burning hot water heater.

you could always go with the wood burning hot water heater.

Burley knows all about these and can take care of any questions you have on them.

Posted by: flechero Posted on: Today at 2:10pm

Matt,

I appreciate the honesty and info.  I've decided to go ahead and put another tank model in until we do the rest of the remodeling.  By then we will have gas and there will have been another few years of working out the kinks in the tankless technology.

I can replace what was there for $300... so it's not a big deal.

Thanks again for your help.

Keith

Not a problem.  I'm in the housing industry and deal with this stuff on a day to day basis.  Anything you think I might be able to help me with in your remodel project just give me a yell.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.  

on a separate note, we need to go hit stillhouse when the weather warms up.  (what lake do you call home?)

ill echo mattm on every single thing he said.

I am trying to finish building a house and researched the tankless option myself. Going electric my problem was the additional service coming into the house to operate one (and that a guy working said the power company was talking about raising the price for it). Spoke to one person who had a gas version. They had a line bust somewhere and it continually ran the water and therefore the heater. It created a steaming effect and messed up a bunch of sheetrock because they were gone for the weekend when it happened.

I love the idea, but I got put off on it a little. I went the traditional route instead.

What kind of extra service does it require more than a traditional tank heater?

It requires more voltage if I am not mistaken. Im thinking, what is it 440 service?  Someone correct me if I sound like a bigger idiot than usual.

I suggest this one.

http://www.bradrand.com/images/Redneck/ATT00010.jpg

I am trying to finish building a house and researched the tankless option myself. Going electric my problem was the additional service coming into the house to operate one (and that a guy working said the power company was talking about raising the price for it). Spoke to one person who had a gas version. They had a line bust somewhere and it continually ran the water and therefore the heater. It created a steaming effect and messed up a bunch of sheetrock because they were gone for the weekend when it happened.

I love the idea, but I got put off on it a little. I went the traditional route instead.

What kind of extra service does it require more than a traditional tank heater?

It requires more voltage if I am not mistaken. Im thinking, what is it 440 service? Someone correct me if I sound like a bigger idiot than usual.

The only ones I have been around are 240