Quote:
Originally Posted by BlueHair
Do any of you have experience with tankless water heaters? My water heater is on it's last leg and I'm thinking of going tankless. Here are my questions:
#1 - How long does it take hot water to get to the faucet?
#2 - Can the average person install it?
#3 - How much does installation cost if you pay someone?
#4 - Do they work as well as advertised?
|
Answers:
#1 - Depends on how far your water heater is from your location. At my furthest bathroom (small house only 1600 sq feet) it took around a minute.
#2 - Our's was a Takagi and they required that a professional plumber install it for warranty purposes. That being said, there was only one plumber listed in our area on Takagi's website that they recommended, so after we got our unit in, we called them. My husband had already looked at the schematics and figured out what needed to be done for installation (a. he's very handy b. he's an engineer). They told him that they had never done one, he sounded like he knew what he was doing, and that they would sign off on it.
#3 - No idea
#4 - We have a large family and use a lot of hot water, so for us it was wonderful! I loved being able to run the dishwasher while somebody was in the shower (yes, we paid more for the really high output one). For us, because we do use so much hot water, the ROI was fabulous. Our propane bill plummeted. I'd say we paid it off in under 2 years. As soon as the hot water heater starts going bad in this house we will be ordering another tankless. I hate filling up my whirlpool tub and running out of hot water. (And I'm not fond of $800 propane bills every 3 months either!)