apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Just wanted to comment that tankless water heaters are fabulous in theory, but as of right now, manufacturers haven't figured out all of the kinks. A good friend of mine is a heating/AC/water heater repairman and highly advised against me buying one. He said they're nothing but trouble; perhaps in a few years they'll be more reliable and durable, but not right now.

I don't know... We have leased an Eichler home that has been equiped with a tankless water heater and this has been the best system we've had yet. No repairs yet... my neighbors all have them too and love them. Four people in our household and we can actually all take a shower two or three people in a row without running out of water. It's wonderful. Our landlord seemed to be pretty happy with it... she lived in this house before us.

Recently, our hot water tank went out and we really wanted to get a tankless system. Despite the fact it was going to be a very easy job (mounted just on the other side of an exterior wall), the difference was between $300 for a hot water tank and $2500 (gulp) for the tankless.
If I was buying a new place and I could wrap that charge up in my mortgage, sure.

Parents put in a Rinnai R94LSi. Been home a couple of times to try it out. Much better than having a tank.

Like tarah, I really wanted a tankless water heater when mine went out last year, but neither Lowe's nor Home Depot had techs who were qualified to install them. In addition the cost would be higher because it would involve making holes in an exterior wall. That's on top of the tankless unit being more expensive. The tech who ended up installing my conventional water heater told me that they weren't worth it yet. I plan to wait a couple of years and see what the prices are and how their quality holds up.

Nerdnik, Europeans have been using tankless water heaters for years; I lived in a house in London with one over 25 years ago, and there were no kinks. The water is hot all the time. The next time I have to replace my home water heater I am definitely getting one of these.

I just got a Navien 240 installed yesterday. Got it from Sears, so they are handling the installation and paper work for rebates. They even arranged the energy audits for me (required to qualify for rebates). After rebates, it will cost me about $2700 CAD, but I am saving over $240 a year just in tank rental alone. Adding the energy savings, I should recoup my investment within 5 years.

One thing about the Home Depot tankless heaters -- they are mid-efficiency, not high efficiency. Most of them are around 85% efficiency. The Naviens, OTOH, are around 98% efficient.

Installation took all day. They worked 9am to 7pm!! Apparently, these things are very tricky in that you have to have sufficient gas supply, suitable location for new 3" air intake and vent pipes, etc. The sales guy made sure my house qualified before I signed up but the installers weren't so sure and took a long time to double check. A faulty controller (like a thermostat) ate up another 2 hours but they will replace that.

Other than that, so far so good. I've taken a shower and hot water comes out just like before.

We got a new A/C system installed just a couple of weeks ago and will be applying the tax credits. Not only are we getting the $1500, but also $150 from our power company and a $1700 rebate from York for buying one of their top of the line systems with UV light, heat pump, dehumidifier, and touch screen thermostat. The combination of offers saved us $3350 -- 45% of the total cost!

I want one too, but man they're expensive :(

I'm planning to get an electric tankless water heater, as natural gas supply is going to fall off much quicker than oil (see jameskunstler.com). On top of that, I can run an electrical outlet alot cheaper than a gas line, external vent hole in the wall, technicians etc. Dunno if electric tankless are EnergyStar yet...

Wanted a tankless heater for my new house, but the cost was prohibitive (with the OTHER upgrades we included...) But we did get all Energystar appliances, dual flush toilets, energy efficient windows, extra blown-in cellulose insulation, and some other features I'm blanking on at the moment. The other things we wanted but couldn't afford was Harveyboard siding rather than vinyl (a condo design rules conflict, there, too) and real linoleum (nobody areound here qualified to install.) Later we might add solar panels, but already the heating and cooling efficiency is respectable compared to our last place.

There are really affordable ways of taking advantage of that tax credit. EcoSmart window shades, which are distributed at many locations all over the U.S. or online, are a really affordable way of saving money on your heating bills, and they too are eligible for up to 30% of a $1500 expenditure.

It's estimated they can save up over $5,000 on your (gas) heat over 10 years, and reduce even cooling costs (ie. your A.C. wont' be working so hard) by 25%. The Home Depot brands can't even come close.

Shameless self promotion, I know, but you can see testimonials on our family-owned, Vermont based business online at www.ecosmartshades.com.

They're also constructed with the only US-approved EnergyStar material, and have a 5-year warranty.