[Misky1951]

I've decided to install a gas tankless hot water heater on the outside of my house. The installer (Mike Scott plumbing) say I can use a regular electric outlet outside my house. The electrician (Lenhart) say I must hard wire it. Hard wire will be more expensive.

Anuone have experience with either type of installation? Thanks

[villagetinker]

Is this a GAS or electric tankless water heater? If GAS, then I believe the outside receptacle could be used, BUT there may well be a building code requiring a dedicated source. If you have an ELECTRIC tankless water heater I cannot imagine that you would get sufficient power from a 15amp 120 volt branch circuit. All of the ELECTRIC units I have seen were 240 volt rated, and 20 amps or higher.
In the case, I would make a trip or phone call to the sumter county building department ask for the electrical inspector, and then ask him, this will get you the correct answer, but you will need the information I asked above.

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by Misky1951

I've decided to install a gas tankless hot water heater on the outside of my house. The installer (Mike Scott plumbing) say I can use a regular electric outlet outside my house. The electrician (Lenhart) say I must hard wire it. Hard wire will be more expensive.

Anuone have experience with either type of installation? Thanks

Same advice as VT suggested. Make a call to the building inspector in the county in which you reside. They are very helpful in situations like this.

I'm assuming you're talking about a gas tankless water heater.

You can also refer to the installation manual (which you can look up for your model). I've seen these installed both by hardwire, and a receptacle located not more than 6' away from the unit, and not directly underneath. Good luck.

[village dreamer]

I used to repair them, and all I can say is , lots of repairs and parts. you may get 7 years out of one??? the metal is very thin.

[CWGUY]

Sorry I can't answer your question. I would be very interested in what "Toymeister" had to say on an outside tankless water heater and if there is a payback on installing one. Just looked at my gas bills for the last 12 months..... I don't think there is.

[DangeloInspections]

There are pros and cons to tankless water heaters. I have my own opinions on them. A simple google or youTube search will give you a lot of info.

But to your question as to needing it directly wired, it all depends on the Authority having Jurisdiction, your building dept. Everyone elses opinion, including the plumber's, etc, are secondary.

If you are in sumter county, call the building department and ask for Jerry Franklin. He will tell you what you want to know. If you are not in Sumter county, call YOUR building department. They decide what codes they will comply with and what codes they will make exception for.

Frank

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by CWGUY

Sorry I can't answer your question. I would be very interested in what "Toymeister" had to say on an outside tankless water heater and if there is a payback on installing one. Just looked at my gas bills for the last 12 months..... I don't think there is.

For almost everyone there is no payback until the twenty year mark.

I have installed one and the Rinnai brand came equipped with a 120 volt plug. In my very unique situation where I was replacing two heaters (second home) with one tankless it had a eight year payback for DIY. No problems at all with Rinnai after nine years.

Of interest to the original poster there are two advantages of a tankless heater, it can be located outside freeing up space. Second you save standby energy costs, that is the cost of keeping a tank of water hot. Keep in mind that you should maintain your tankless every year by back flushing it with a mild acidic fluid annually.

I have an energy monitor on my electric TV home and a smart switch on the water heater. To satisfy my curiosity i conducted a ten week study of timed water heater vs. untimed useage. This gave me a very clear view of the standby energy costs. About $1.30 a month for electric water heater or .43 to .65 for gas.

If energy savings is your goal i can give you two very simple ideas to cut your hot water bill by 20% or so.

[Kenswing]

We have a tankless gas water heater. Navien is the brand. Not sure that it saves us any money but what we do like about it is that you basically have unlimited hot water. We can also set the timer to circulate hot water through the system at designated times. This will allow you to have hot water already at your faucets/shower without waiting for the hot water to "get there".

Another thing we find beneficial is that when we travel and turn off the water to the house we can shut off the water heater. When we return we don't have to relight a pilot, just hit the power button.

ETA: Ours is mounted in the garage because we don't live in warm Florida yet. It's just plugged into a normal outlet. Not hardwired.

[retiredguy123]

My issue would be that, if you have a conventional tank water heater, and it fails, there are many plumbers who are ready and able to install a new one in your house within a few hours. I'm not sure what happens when you have a tankless water heater that fails. When you need hot water, you really need it.

[CWGUY]

Originally Posted by Toymeister

For almost everyone there is no payback until the twenty year mark.

I have installed one and the Rinnai brand came equipped with a 120 volt plug. In my very unique situation where I was replacing two heaters (second home) with one tankless it had a eight year payback for DIY. No problems at all with Rinnai after nine years.

Of interest to the original poster there are two advantages of a tankless heater, it can be located outside freeing up space. Second you save standby energy costs, that is the cost of keeping a tank of water hot. Keep in mind that you should maintain your tankless every year by back flushing it with a mild acidic fluid annually.

I have an energy monitor on my electric TV home and a smart switch on the water heater. To satisfy my curiosity i conducted a ten week study of timed water heater vs. untimed useage. This gave me a very clear view of the standby energy costs. About $1.30 a month for electric water heater or .43 to .65 for gas.

If energy savings is your goal i can give you two very simple ideas to cut your hot water bill by 20% or so.

Thank you.

[karostay]

My thoughts are... on demand hot water great idea why heat and maintain 40 gals.if we has gas i would do it in a heart beat

Why would you mount it outside we do at times in the winter experience nights in the 20's at time lower.
exposed out door plumbing would be my concern?

Far as electrical hook up I would ask the local electrical inspector what the code is

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by Kenswing

We can also set the timer to circulate hot water through the system at designated times. This will allow you to have hot water already at your faucets/shower without waiting for the hot water to "get there".

Yes, you can install circulation pumps like this one https://www.amazon.com/Watts-500800-...er+pump&sr=8-3 but they do need 1.50 a month in electricity to operate, according to the manufacturer. They work great but you 're only saving 65 cents in standby costs per month then you are spending 1.50 to overcome the delay of a tankless heater. 85 cents doesn't matter but it is not a savings.

Unless you have a teenager taking very long showers you don't need more hot water. The real advantage of tankless is space savings, that might be worthwhile to some.

[Kenswing]

Originally Posted by Toymeister

Yes, you can install circulation pumps like this one https://www.amazon.com/Watts-500800-...er+pump&sr=8-3 but they do need 1.50 a month in electricity to operate, according to the manufacturer. They work great but you 're only saving 65 cents in standby costs per month then you are spending 1.50 to overcome the delay of a tankless heater. 85 cents doesn't matter but it is not a savings.

Unless you have a teenager taking very long showers you don't need more hot water. The real advantage of tankless is space savings, that might be worthwhile to some.

Our unit came with a recirc pump built in. I wasn't really concerned with savings. I just like having hot water when I turn on the shower.. Especially since our master bath is the farthest point in the system.

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by Kenswing

Our unit came with a recirc pump built in. I wasn't really concerned with savings. I just like having hot water when I turn on the shower.. Especially since our master bath is the farthest point in the system.

No doubt the reason it had the pump preinstalled is the cold sandwich effect Solutions To Cold Water Sandwich Effect. Not many people understand this. And it's not really applicable to a standard designer home. Unlike a conventional hot water heater with a tankless you can get, under certain situations, a hot, cold then hot water effect. It's not really a big deal. I would classify this as a first world problem.

[Kenswing]

Originally Posted by Toymeister

No doubt the reason it had the pump preinstalled is the cold sandwich effect Solutions To Cold Water Sandwich Effect. Not many people understand this. And it's not really applicable to a standard designer home. Unlike a conventional hot water heater with a tankless you can get, under certain situations, a hot, cold then hot water effect. It's not really a big deal. I would classify this as a first world problem.

Not to argue, but I disagree. The recirculation pump is so hot water can be always running through the system therefore illiminating the need to run cold water down the drain waiting for it to get hot. As your article states, the cold water sandwich effect is pretty well negated in gas fired units.

This is the unit we have. Maybe it's a little different than units you are familiar with. Tankless Water Heaters | Residential | Navien