Tankless Water Heater Experiences???

[SayItAgain]

We're looking at going off grid or as close to it as we can get. So I've
been looking at tankless water heaters either as primary or as a booster
system for a solar water heating system.

I'd like to hear from people about their experiences with them. Some things
I'm wondering about:

Do they really save much over a conventional LP fired tank system?
Bosch has a "hydro" powered electronic ignition model - anyone using one
successfully?
Problems using them in a cold climate where there's backflow of air and pipe
freezing to worry about?
Noise?

And anything else you might have run into.

 

[Jeremy Moberg]

We're looking at going off grid or as close to it as we can get. So I've
been looking at tankless water heaters either as primary or as a booster
system for a solar water heating system.

I'd like to hear from people about their experiences with them. Some things
I'm wondering about:

Do they really save much over a conventional LP fired tank system?
Bosch has a "hydro" powered electronic ignition model - anyone using one
successfully?
Problems using them in a cold climate where there's backflow of air and pipe
freezing to worry about?
Noise?

And anything else you might have run into.

I have the Bosch "hydro" model you are referring to but have not installed
it yet. Coming soon. I will let you know. I know you need at least 25 psi
to run this model. They are much more efficient than a tank type heater.
They are however most appropriate for point of use applications or when
there is not a lot of distance between use points. They will not power more
than one application at a time.

Jeremy

 

[Robby]

We have had a Takagi tankless water heater for 1 year now. It is a much
larger ( higher BTU) than most of the Bosch units, except the largest Bosch
which is manufactured by Takagi. No problems so far. Has a separate
thermostat so you can dial in the temp needed for various jobs. Our gas
usage dropped dramatically. This unit produces about 9 gal per minute so
that more than one tap can be on at once. Any specifics ask and I will try
to answer.

Robby

 

[East-of-lake]

What brand was it and who sold it to you?

Had one several years ago, and absolutely loved it...
for a while.

The one I had used a modulated burner - high water
flow = high flame, low water flow = low flame. It
worked quite well for several months, then started
working not so well at all. It would produce hot
water, then scalding water, then shut down. Turned
out that the valve modulating the burner was suffering
from a mineral buildup (slightly hard water in this
area). From then on, I had to tear it down and scrape
out the crud from inside the valve every two or three
months just to keep it limping along. Royal PITA.

Other problem is that we're out in the country,
and at the time the gas company was selling
us natural gas from a local well. They depleted
the well, refused to supply us from the gathering
line which that well fed (even a call to the state
corporation commission didn't help), so we had to
convert to propane. OK - back to the heater - I
plugged and re-drilled the orifices trying to get
the thing to run on propane, but it always produced
a lot of soot. Needed to change some parts in
the regulator, but the company wouldn't sell them
to me - they wanted me to ship the heater to them
so they could convert it - meaning I'd be without
hot water for at least a week. I'm back on a tank
heater now, and the tankless is in a landfill
somewhere.

So - unless your water is completely soft, expect to
do some maintenance once in a while, and be careful who
you buy the heater from - make sure they'll sell you
any and all parts if and when you need them.

 

[m Ransley]

I have bosch it works fine an No Hard water will not affect Bosch.
Unless you have Rocks comming out. My water is hard.