Your own solar water heater

You will have plenty of very hot water. I had a problem with one of my tankless water heaters, the copper coils were soldered to steel tubing. In two years galvanic action deteriorated the metal and the unit failed. Be sure to check that there is only one type of steel tubing inside the tank.

I sell, install, and service both standard gas water heaters as well as on demand gas units. Here are some points for you to ponder.

The initial investment of the on demand unit is higher. Depending on the hot water demands of the household the payback on the initial investment can vary but usually warrants the investment.

First and foremost, the on demand unit is efficient, it’s not heating water in and tank and maintaining that water at a particular temperature. Rather it heats water as it is being used. So, over time it’s using less gas to heat the water being used.

The only con of the unit is if, and when a repair is needed on demand units, because of the compact design are somewhat difficult to work on. Even experienced service technicians find them time consuming to work on. The result is higher labor charges incurred for repairs. Also parts are not always on hand because of the nature of the units, so you may end up with extended down time if parts are on order.

Some suggestions would be, buy locally from a dealer that sells as well as services the unit. They will walk you through sizing the unit for your home and hot water requirements. I just have two brands that I, as well as my Tech’s are comfortable working on. We like the design and the backing in the parts dept. from the manufacturer. I stock parts for both brands and handle most repairs same day with very little down time for my customer.

On demand units are becoming more popular and more brands are making their way to the market, I’m not going to knock any particular brand, but I will say do your homework and research the unit you are interested in.

Again local service is a big plus, as I said I personally have two brands that I work with, and I will not service any other brand as of right now, not to say I won’t add other brands in the future. My last point is, do not even bother looking at an electric unit unless it is not going to service the whole house, and rather serve as a one sink water heater. Any other use of an electric on demand unit is inefficient.

yes i have one and have built many house and owners asked for them……as fa as hot water..yes u can burn ur butt off! mine is 220,000 btu's for a 3 1/2 bath house…in 3 yrs have never run out of water even when all 3 baths running and the washer ………

lic. gen. contractor

I don't have one, but my friend does, and she loves hers. She says you can run the hot water in every sink or shower in the house at the same time without running out. The only drawback she says is that it taks a minute or two initially (like first thing in the morning) for the water to run hot, but after that it stays hot all day. She's had hers awhile, so maybe the newer ones don't have any wait time now. I'm planning to convert mine later on this year when we remodel.