Water heater recs please

[jyoutz]

FWIW, I just checked through the installation instructions for 8 different randomly selected gas water heaters at Home Depot. Only one required an electrical connection.

It could be a state or local code thing.

 

[1Mech]

Here is an article I read some time ago, about the right sizing of pipes and better routing can help get you hot water faster, without a recirc pump.

https://www.jlconline.com/how-to/plumbing/efficient-hot-water-piping_o

 

[KennyG]

My water heater is in one end of the basement and I have bathrooms on the 2nd floor at the opposite end of the house. I have a natural circulation hot water loop for those bathrooms and get hot water in 5 seconds without a pump.

 

[ponytug]

Here is an article I read some time ago, about the right sizing of pipes and better routing can help get you hot water faster, without a recirc pump.

https://www.jlconline.com/how-to/plumbing/efficient-hot-water-piping_o

Which brings up why you might want PEX because you get the same flow out of smaller pipes, that have lower heat capacity.

More detail here (not behind a paywall):

http://www.garykleinassociates.com/PDFs/15%20-%20Efficient%20Hot-Water%20Piping-JLC.pdf

However, I'm not so sure that the OP (@etpm) wants to repipe...

To @etpm's comment above about wiring: if that is a concern, look for an energy star rated heat pump that is not a hybrid heat pump version. Most of the non-hybrid heat pumps can be installed on a 15A circuit. I usually search for 120V heat pumps.

Unless you regularly host large events, you probably would not ever use the backup resistance heater.

All the best,

Peter

 

[grsthegreat]

Here’s my dynamic duo

View attachment 847238

Similar to what I have. I like direct vent for pvc exhaust plus more efficient than B vent units. My house is whole house backup so don’t worry about ignition source of power.

 

[Mtsoxfan]

I would need to run 60 feet of wire. So wire cost could be substantial. I may need a sub panel too but I'm not sure about that.
Eric

Less than $200 for 10g 100'

 

[ning]

The recirc loop in my house is all insulated.
The recirc system in my tankless has a thermostat and it turns off the recirc if it thinks the returned recirc water is hot enough, and when that cools down (in the water heater itself), it turns the recirc back on; the water heater will then fire to warm the loop back up.

Work reasonably well - as long as any hot water use is of sufficient volume for the tankless to bother heating it.

I liked the tank recirc better as it was always instant hot even if you were only using a trickle of hot water, but I could hear the water circulation all the time it was running, and it was running 5am-10pm.

 

[two_bit_score]

It could be a state or local code thing.

FWIW, I just checked through the installation instructions for 8 different randomly selected gas water heaters at Home Depot. Only one required an electrical connection.

@jyoutz, based on the comment BlueKnife made please explain how your comment is related? How is it a "local code thing" that only one water heater needed an electrical connection? I'm just trying to understand your insight here that I must have missed.

 

[kenmac]

My tankless is "ok" for showers; occasionally the hot water stops and I only get cold, but I think that's because it's a very low-flow shower head (particularly because of water deposits making the holes in the shower even smaller) and depending on the heat your "hot" is set at, mixing it down you may have the hot water flow be below the cut-in for the tankless, so it stops heating a very low flow of water. This is part of why I consider tankless to be "possibly energy efficient but not water efficient" since it encourages you to use more water to keep the hot engaged.

don't know what brand you have, But you should have dip switches where you can adjust for low flow, or hotter water

 

[ultrarunner]

Is it extremely well insulated? Or does it just act like a radiator that has been stretched out?

It's well insulated but a long run... and the required low flow aerators and shower heads increase the time for hot water to reach.

I've thought about adding a remote switch in the kitchen to turn on the recirc pump.

When I was spending all my time at mom's house caring for her I wondered why my base line gas use was so high... so I turned if the pump and noticed my gas use for "Empty" home dropped significantly.