[Dwest135790]

We replaced ours with a tankless, was the best thing ever!!! Saved lots of space in my closets for more “stuff”

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by Dwest135790

We replaced ours with a tankless, was the best thing ever!!! Saved lots of space in my closets for more “stuff”

Apples and oranges. The OP doesn’t have natural gas, so tankless is not an option.

[Vicxyz]

Originally Posted by photo1902

Apples and oranges. The OP doesn’t have natural gas, so tankless is not an option.

Electric tankless water heaters are readily available.

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by Chatbrat

Tankless only works if you have natural gas--we drained our 40 gal for the first time after 9 yrs very little sediment--we have a whole house water filter and an electronic descaler--they're doing a fine job

Absolutely incorrect. Tankless are sold three ways, propane, natural gas, and electric.

Tankless hwh are rated by flow rates, so many gallons per minute. 2.5 .gpm will suit you fine. You do not take 100% hot showers (140 degrees), nor do you wash your hands with just hot. Tankless flow flow rates also consider incoming temp of cold water. Our cold is much warmer than Wisconsin, for example.I

Google is friendly, you can discover electric tankless hwh there.

[Toymeister]

Originally Posted by photo1902

Apples and oranges. The OP doesn’t have natural gas, so tankless is not an option.

Where do these rumors start?

Electric tankless hwh do require a new breaker and a new line to the heater, 60 amps or so, but then again a natural gas tankless hwh require a 3/4 inch gas line, NOT the 1/2 inch gas line a tanked gas heater has.

How do I know? I installed two of these.

If you want some real world, accurate information ask, I'll try to answer.

[Holpat39]

Our AC is 17 years old. Recent service said it is in good condition. Don't replace until necessary. Hot water tank replaced 10 years ago only because Teco Gas was giving a hefty rebate which cost us next to nothing to replace. We put air/heat in our lanai with the small Mitsubishi unit which sits outside with a small unit high up on the wall in the lanai. Nice to have when you are not using the lanai and why air condition or heat when not in use.

[TedfromGA]

Purchased 9 year old (all electric) designer. Over the next 1 1/2 years I added a water softener to the Nova water filters, drained the hot water tank (40 gal) [lots of white sand like stuff came out], added external insulation around the hot water tank, replaced the hot water heating elements (very corroded), added more insulation over the attic and garage, added Generac whole home generator, and replaced the HVAC with a high efficiency unit from Chuck Farrell.

Yes the Carrier HVAC unit was working fine. Why replace it? A) Technology wise HVAC units have greatly improved from those 10 years ago. B) Replacement on my schedule which allowed multiple quotes that varied widely.

Bottom line - reduced electric bill, very even temperature (heating/cooling), confidence in knowing home well insulated and potential unexpected problems are minimized. (Hot water heater is on the replacement to-do-list).

[NoMoSno]

Originally Posted by 17362

Our house is 17 years old. We bought last year. Within 2 days the water heater had to be replaced, it was about to explode- rock hard. We opted for the 50 gal.
That being said we had the HVAC evaluated. It’s good for a few more years. The people dumped vinegar in the lines and caused rusting, cleaned that up, not too extensive. It’s all still within parameters for cooling and heat. We figure within 5 years for the HVAC. Note: professionals say only Run HOT water once a month thru your HVAC.
We also got a whole house system water softener. We already see the damage reversing at the sinks.

Drain lines in the HVAC are plastic...nothing to rust.

[rlcooper70]

Why are we not replacing water heaters with the tankless heaters that they have developed? Why should we use so much energy to keep 40-50 gallons hot all the time?

Anyone have experience with tankless?

[davephan]

I think it’s a good idea to think about replacing some things before they fail, such as a hot water heater. The hot water heater can fail catastrophically, which causes water to leak out of the bottom of the water heater quickly, creating a flooding problem, which can damage your house. This could be especially bad if that happens when your house is unattended for a long time.

The downside to tankless water heaters is that they are more expensive, and the hot water outage is immediate, if it’s an electric tankless water heater, and you have a power outage, and don’t have a electric generator.

Our central AC failed in Minnesota in the middle of the summer, and had to be replaced. At the same time, we replaced the furnace because it was about 20 years old, and had to be repaired two years in a row, both were emergency service, which is more expensive, in the middle of the winter. We wanted a more reliable HVAC system before we started snow birding and doing more traveling in our upcoming retirement years.

Having a split AC system in addition to your central AC makes sense. You could have a split AC system in the master bedroom and lani. If the main AC system fails, you have a backup AC system. Plus, you could keep the master bedroom cooler, run the split system only on less hot nights. Or, run the lani split system only when you use the lani.

Here’s a link to the Honeywell mixing valve. It can increase the capacity of a water heater by mixing the cold and hot water after the water heater. Less cold water enters the hot water heater, which increase the capacity of the hot water heater.


honeywelll mixing valve increased hot water capacity - Google Search

[Raine700]

We enclosed our lanai a year and a half ago and put in a ductless a/c. Your taxes will not go up unless you take out the glass sliders into the main part of the house.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by rlcooper70

Why are we not replacing water heaters with the tankless heaters that they have developed? Why should we use so much energy to keep 40-50 gallons hot all the time?

Anyone have experience with tankless?

Because the replacement cost is much higher if you replace a tank type water heater with a tankless. It's the same reason most people aren't installing solar panels and adding more attic insulation to their houses. You can buy an insulation kit for your water heater, but most people aren't doing that either.

But, it is interesting that there is a Federal Government label on my 40 gallon water heater that says the estimated cost to operate it is $555 per year. That's funny, because my total electric cost for my all electric house is only about $1100 per year.

[Chatbrat]

A tankless electric hot water heater that can handle the whole house should require a much larger circuit than 60 amp 240 v--correct me if I'm wrong

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

I agree. But, there will be sediment coating the bottom of the water heater over time. The problem is that, when you open the valve, the opening is very small, and most of the sediment will remain in the tank because it is stuck to the bottom. And, yes, there is a good possibility that the valve will leak when you try to close it. Rheem, a company that makes water heaters only "suggests" that you drain a small amount of water from the tank every month. And, I think they realize that almost no one actually ever does this.

I had this happen to me up north years ago. I had to go to home depot and get a cap. I'll never drain a water heater tank again.

[biker1]

You should think twice about an electric tankless water heater. The custom builder of our previous home (not in The Villages) wound up pulling out the ones he installed because of complaints. I specified a Marathon tank electric water heater. They have a fiberglass tank and no sacrificial anode rods. They pretty much last forever but take up more space because of the foam insulation and cost more. The energy cost of maintaining the temperature of the water in the tank of a Marathon is not an issue.

Originally Posted by rlcooper70

Why are we not replacing water heaters with the tankless heaters that they have developed? Why should we use so much energy to keep 40-50 gallons hot all the time?

Anyone have experience with tankless?