Tank-less water heater or not ?

[WyrTwister]

I once thought about a tank-less . Asking several local plumbers , I was told , since our city water is very hard , a tank-less is prone to calcifying up way too rapidly .

Our existing tank type water heater is served by a 1/2" black iron gas line . I was also told , that would not be sufficient for a tank-less unit . Is that correct ?

Wyr
God bless

 

[oldognewtrick]

I once thought about a tank-less . Asking several local plumbers , I was told , since our city water is very hard , a tank-less is prone to calcifying up way too rapidly .

Our existing tank type water heater is served by a 1/2" black iron gas line . I was also told , that would not be sufficient for a tank-less unit . Is that correct ?

Wyr
God bless

I'd suggest contacting the unit mfg customer service dept and ask them about the requirements for their unit.

 

[Sparky617]

We have 2 at church, both are running on 1/2" threaded pipe. If your water is hard you will need to descale them annually. It involves running vinegar through the unit. I know several people that have them and DIY it. If your water points of use are spread-out it can be a long wait for hot water. With a tankless you don't want to put a recirculation pump on the system, because that will defeat any savings you'll get by not having a standing tank of hot water. You can put a switch activated pump that you turn on when you want hot water. It will circulate the water and get the hot water up to your point of use. A tankless can be mounted inside or outside, so you may be able to mount it on the outside nearest your main point of use, like your master bathroom.

Several neighbors have installed them to get their water heaters out of their attics. I have a basement, so that is where mine is. My bathrooms couldn't be any further apart if we tried. And the water heater is a good 75' of pipe away from the master bath, so I can run 3 or 4 gallons of water down the drain before I get hot water.

 

[WyrTwister]

I would probably get around to descaling a tank-less . Last time I replaced the water heater , I went with another tank type . Hopefully , it will be a very long time before we have to replace it again .

Thanks ,
Wyr
God bless