In-line water heaters.

[Tmall]

Originally Posted by fasternyou929

No, I don't think you do. You guys are talking about two different scenarios:

First time you turn on hot water after an extended period of non-use, you will get cold water until hot water reaches the faucet you've opened for both styles of water heater. Advantage: neither

If you have hot water at the faucet, turn it off momentarily,then turn it back on:

Inline heater - you will have a "section" of water that passes the instantaneous water heater while it's inactive, resulting in:
Hot Hot Hot Hot Cold Cold Cold Hot Hot Hot Hot.... in your hot water pipe.

Water tank - you would have a consistent stream of hot water in your hot water line and there wouldn't be any "surprise" coming your way in a few seconds.

Bingo, and that section doesn't turn cold, it was cold to begin with. It just hasn't been heated.

It's really not a huge issue, but some people don't like it. I used to turn the faucet on and off when I shaved, now I just pour the sink full of hot..

[AquaPython]

there is no surprise. the water is heated up by the copper plumbing, it will stay hot for 30-60 seconds, and be quicker to warm up than normal for a while after that.

[Gas Man]

Originally Posted by derf

I use it now and I love it, hot water on demand whenever you want it, and it never runs out. The only down side is that, at least in my house the master bath is on the complete opposite side of the house from the heater so that bathroom takes a minute to get hot water, I usually turn on the shower brush my teeth then jump in the shower. But the other full bath has hot water within 5 seconds, same with the kitchen, wash room, and half bath. I really think that the water pipes just travel all over the house and it takes a solid minute for how water.

But again, it never runs out. The most hot water I've used at one time was 4 showers 2 at the same time in 2 bathrooms followed by another 2, then 2 full baths at the same time. that was probably 300 gallons of hot water in 1/2 hour and it never did flinch.

My heater, even though its on city water has a catch cleanout that I can open up to clean out any gunk. The instructions say to do it every 4 months for well water, and every year for city water.

Originally Posted by Tmall

Bingo, and that section doesn't turn cold, it was cold to begin with. It just hasn't been heated.

It's really not a huge issue, but some people don't like it. I used to turn the faucet on and off when I shaved, now I just pour the sink full of hot..

Thanks tmall. I was going to say the same thing. The cold water flush has nothing to do with the type of hot water heater you have.

Originally Posted by Papa_Complex

They aren't install and forget, like many people treat their old tank unit. You'll need an annual service, especially when dealing with hard water, and a filter system wouldn't be a bad idea.

But really the same stands to reason with a tank as well.

Other thing to consider, and this has been "fixed" recently" is that some models require stainless steel venting. Further, limited distances. So that can be issues.

[Porkchop]

We just had our "pressure and temperature valve" fail on our tank style last night. It left a giant lake in our basement before we could get a bucket under the overflow pipe. It kept dripping most of the evening until I faceplamed myself and realized I just needed to shut off the inflow pipe. It was just a $25 piece that made a big mess.

The tank is 17 yrs old though. Not bad for a first failure....

[Papa_Complex]

Originally Posted by Gas Man

Other thing to consider, and this has been "fixed" recently" is that some models require stainless steel venting. Further, limited distances. So that can be issues.

Perhaps, but a tank heater might function quite happily for ten or fifteen years, before failing. A tankless system might fail in a single year, without proper maintenance in such conditions.

[AquaPython]

except you can get lifetime warranties on the tankless heater.

[OneSickPsycho]

My question is... how real is the savings on the power bill? If I'm going to save $3 a month and the tank unit will last 15+ years, it's going to be hard to justify the price difference... I could give a fuck about 'going green' and I never run out of hot water as it is, but mine's going on 15 years old at this point so it's a purchase that's coming... probably sooner than later.

[Tmall]

Originally Posted by OneSickPsycho

My question is... how real is the savings on the power bill? If I'm going to save $3 a month and the tank unit will last 15+ years, it's going to be hard to justify the price difference... I could give a fuck about 'going green' and I never run out of hot water as it is, but mine's going on 15 years old at this point so it's a purchase that's coming... probably sooner than later.

The only reason I even have one in the house is because we have hot water baseboard heat. The boiler also heats my hot water. If I want ho twater in the summer, I have to run the boiler. I see a huge savings in the summer, and shut it down when I start to heat the house.

[fasternyou929]

Originally Posted by Tmall

If I want ho twater in the summer...

Ho twat, it's not just for Winter anymore!

[Gas Man]

Originally Posted by Papa_Complex

Perhaps, but a tank heater might function quite happily for ten or fifteen years, before failing. A tankless system might fail in a single year, without proper maintenance in such conditions.

True