Which is the best of the tankless water heaters (on demand)

Jack

I'd like to talk with you about this. Would you please give me a call on my cell at 617 834-8751?

michael_34

which is the best of the tankless water heaters (on demand)

Guy at the office here is looking for a tankless water heater. He found a takagi Jr. for 500.00. This company has installed them in the past, but has had some problems with them. What do you all suggest. What is good one for a good price.
Thanks.
Michael

kpc_40

there are a few...

Noritz, rinnai, tagagi is ok...
What is his usage? demand? It is hard to reccommend a unit w/o more info. Be careful w/ the numbers. depending on the temp of the cold water entering will effect output. kpc

Mad Dog_2

Have close to 2 dozen Rinnais out there now

No problems to speak of, but we ALL know how that can change with ANY product. Great unit as long as they are sized to usage. Mad Dog

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Mad Dog_2

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Mad Dog_2

We have close to 2 dozen out there and have had no problems

with the Rinnai product. We love them...so do the folks who go for them. Mad Dog

Mad Dog_2

We have close to 2 dozen Rinnais out there

no problems to speak of. As long as they are sized for the demand, they "put out." We love them. Mad Dog

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Timco

If you go to rinnai's website, they have a real-time sizing page that shows you how hard the unit would work with different demands and incoming water temps...pretty cool.

Tim

Mad Dog_2

Yep...and then....there is always...........................

common-plumbing-sense. Case in point: DON'T!!!!! expect to be able to provide unlimited hot water for 4 full bathrooms, and a hot tub with the smallest unit available. Mad Dog

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Jack

The way I answer those flow ?'s

As I represent Rinnai in New England, I'm frequently asked by distributors and contractors how many bathrooms, etc I can run with one Rinnai. The answer is that, well, that depends on what kind of fixtures you have. It is incredibly disconcerting to install one unit for a 2 1/2 bath house and walk in and see a cascading shower head with 4 body sprays and a handheld that are all running simultaneously. It is, shall we say, a scalding experinece!

I always look at the flow/temp rise chart and say that an R75LSi will, at a 70f temp rise, make 4.3gpm, 24 hrs/day. That is a hard number and I have a solid base to work from. You can then start working the fixture flows around that, but again, you have a hard number to work from. If you have a higher or lower temp rise you will have a proportional increase or decrease in the output, but those numbers are on the flow charts. Using the hard number allows you to better explain exactly how they work to a builder or a consumer.

Metro Man

anti scalding valve

What does your company recommend (brand wise) as to a quick reacting mix or anti-scald valve?

Thanks

Metro Man

Jack

We don't...

They don't need an anti-scald valve. Rinnai's are built to maintain +/-2f. If they exceed 6f above setpoint they will cycle off. You can check out the exiting hot water temp on the touchpad dispolay by hitting and holding the Down arrow and then hit on/off and release both. My experience is that they are vbery accurate.

You need three things in an on-demand unit to make the correct temperature. 1) a flow control 2) modulating gas valve 3) a cold water by-pass to meter the appropriate amount of cold into the hot outlet line to precisely regulate th output temp.

I know there are some on-demands which need a tempering valve, because they do not have these components, but Rinnai's do not.

Bob Bona_4

Jack

I recently did a R75Lsi w/ the 75 series air handler.

You might want to suggest to the factory to automatically include the optional higher limit controller w/ the air handler to let the R75 ramp up to provide enough BTU's across the hydro coil.

I also spoke to the factory about the non-communication between the tankless and the A/H, except for the flow switch. By that I mean, the tankless will ramp to the limit set on the controller, even if just the domestic is calling. I'm not talking about scald protection b/c the mix valve is SOP, I'm just thinking of reduced efficiency running the thing so hot if the hydro is not calling. A low limit of sorts is needed?

Otherwise, I think it's a great set up and I quote them a lot.

Metro Man

mixers

Sounds like a good set-up. Although we don't do much in instantaneous we do use indirects and solar HX's. So I guess my question is what mixing / anti-scald valve setup works the fastest for sources that have varying temps.

For example, a solar pre-heat tank or HX may vary from 60 - 180*F. If we're dumping into an indirect or instantaneous without internal anti-scald capabilities then we need to be able to provide a constant temp at hot outlet.

What the best mixer (other than free beer at hooters)?

Metro Man

Jon S._4

I met Jack at a trade show. He knows what he is talking about!
I installed the R75LSi in my house about 6 months ago. I have your typical 1.75 bath home. I have 3 remotes. One in each bathroom, one of the remotes has a cool bath fill feature. It will fill your tub automatically based the temp and gallons you enter. I also have one at my kitchen sink so I can turn it up for the dishwasher.

I used to get my hot water from an 8 year old oil fired boiler with a tankless coil feeding a 40 gal storage tank. I typically used about 170 gals of oil over the summer (just for domestic!) I turned off my boiler all summer and turned it into a cold start.

Since installing the Rinnai, I’ve received two propane deliveries each about 80 days apart. Each delivery was about 29 gal (50 gallons over the summer). I’ve saved about $400 in 6 months.

I’ve never had any supply problems, but you do need to understand it abilities.