Tankless hot water heater ?

[pafdrn]

Do you have a teenage son? With endless hot water he may never come out of the shower, unless he runs out of conditioner.

[Buff]

$400 a month? Wow! I have a tankless heater and the propane bill is around $625 a year. It's just my wife and I but all appliances are propane including the dryer. I also have a 65,000 BTU shop heater that gets used a lot in the winter.

I just bought the house. I filled the tank $800.00 around Jan 1st.
It ran empty Feb 3. I figured the bad weather we had was the problem and filled it again. Checked it last night and it is down to 60%.
They pressure tested it before the first fill so I am sure I dont have any leaks.
It is a big house but wow that is a lot of propane

[CabezaBlanca]

I just bought the house. I filled the tank $800.00 around Jan 1st.
It ran empty Feb 3. I figured the bad weather we had was the problem and filled it again. Checked it last night and it is down to 60%.
They pressure tested it before the first fill so I am sure I dont have any leaks.
It is a big house but wow that is a lot of propane

It sure is!

[Texastaxi]

$600 a month to heat a 16,000 square foot house isn't bad.

[Farmdog]

Mine lasted 5 years. Im having it replaced today. I wonder what it will cost..close to 1k? I like how hot water never runs out. Replacing every 5 years..not so much

[bowhntrmatt]

Mine lasted 5 years. Im having it replaced today. I wonder what it will cost..close to 1k? I like how hot water never runs out. Replacing every 5 years..not so much

How hard is your water? And if that isn't it, what happened that warranted replacement?

The city dropped me in a gas meter last week and my tankless heater is getting installed as we speak. I sure hope it lasts longer than that.
I have a house with a wife and two daughters who are very young and we are already running short of hot water some days. I figured now was as good of a time as ever to upgrade.

[tdwinklr]

Yes... if you don't have a need for one and/or aren't likely to do the increased maintenance they require. Also, they cost a LOT more and the install can be very expensive, particularly if you have to do gas plumbing or vent work (likely if you're changing from a conventional).
Typically it's driven by high usage... the "endless supply" benefit. That's only a benefit if your conventional can't keep up... and for the money it better be very important to you because the premium you'll pay for install of a tankless and the heater itself is big. Efficiency wise there isn't a big benefit. Insulation has come a long way and modern conventional heaters are very efficient.
I'm an engineer in the water business and am about to replace my conventional heater... with another conventional heater. No driver in our case for a tankless.

I worry about my conventional leaking or the tank rupturing from rust-out (unknowingly) and flooding my house with water. I do flush mine every 6 mo., maybe it helps, maybe it doesn't.
At least with a tankless, I could mount it in the garage where it can flood all it wants.

[Todd-ty729]

I just bought the house. I filled the tank $800.00 around Jan 1st.
It ran empty Feb 3. I figured the bad weather we had was the problem and filled it again. Checked it last night and it is down to 60%.
They pressure tested it before the first fill so I am sure I dont have any leaks.
It is a big house but wow that is a lot of propane

You might have a water leak on your hot side somewhere.

We do a lot of high gas bill complaints and usually find a leak in the slab causing the water heater to run a lot.

Tankless gas water heaters are more efficient than tank type but they are more expensive to initially install. Tankless is not always the best answer but it is most of the time.

Well water is not kind to tankless water heaters. Actually not kind to anything plumbing. Just because you have a water "meter" does not mean it is not well water that the water company uses. Most private water supply companies pump water from underground, treat it and then send it on down the line to the customers.

Surface water (lake water) is much better for plumbing fixtures.

Tankless water heaters need to be flushed at least once a year if using well water. Surface water sources can get away with 2-3 years before flushing. Sometimes longer.

If you have a tank type heater it should also be drained annually if using well water.

These suggestions apply to both gas and electric water heaters.

[DS_1974]

Cant say I have ever heated hot water. That being said we have a tankless, and love it.

[Todd-ty729]

I worry about my conventional leaking or the tank rupturing from rust-out (unknowingly) and flooding my house with water. I do flush mine every 6 mo., maybe it helps, maybe it doesn't.
At least with a tankless, I could mount it in the garage where it can flood all it wants.

There is no steel tank to leak or rupture in a tank less heater. Garage location is always much better but a tank less in the attic is better than a tank type. If you flush it every 6 months you will be far ahead of the game. It does matter.

I prefer to keep all water piping out of the attic when possible but new homes are being built with water lines going all over. They are usually PEX but anything can leak.

[tdwinklr]

Mine lasted 5 years. Im having it replaced today. I wonder what it will cost..close to 1k? I like how hot water never runs out. Replacing every 5 years..not so much

why the replacement ?

[AntlerCollector]

Buff, you may not have a leak in your tank, but you may have a gas leak in your piping somewhere or in a hot water line. You are going through way too much propane

[catslayer]

If you have hard water I wouldnt

[Farmdog]

I believe hard water and cheap valves are my problem. PLUMBER is working on 2 bathrooms as well. The house is over 22 years and these problems related to hard water are pretty consistent every few years. My 1k estimate was a fantasy I afraid. I wont go back to a tank myself

[meltingfeather]

I worry about my conventional leaking or the tank rupturing from rust-out (unknowingly) and flooding my house with water. I do flush mine every 6 mo., maybe it helps, maybe it doesn't.
At least with a tankless, I could mount it in the garage where it can flood all it wants.

Tankless water heaters can also leak... and you can also put your conventional in the garage.