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Old hot water tank????


Inspector1

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If you don't like gas flex, what do you do when installing a range?

Theres a world of differance between a gas range and a water heater,Ive never seen anybody pull out a water heater to clean behind it.

It would be pretty tough to gas pipe a stove with rigid pipe unless it was in the middle of the roof with no back on it to get access to the union behind it.

And the water heaters Ive seen installed in california with flex lines in case of earth quakes were also strapped to keep them from falling over,I dont see any straps on that one.[;)]

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  • 5 months later...
  • 6 months later...

Flexible gas lines are safe but they might not be as durable as the traditional black iron. We have a Montgomery ward water heater at home. It still works pretty well. When it comes to any appliance, it's all about maintaining it in such a way that it lasts long. Good maintenance is the key for any appliance to last long.

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A couple of years after we bought our previous place, we installed maple flooring, replacing cheap laminate. I raised the water heater which is in a hall closet with a pulley rig. I think I posted pics here. Then I bent sheet metal into a pan, slipped it under the tank, and then drilled a hole thru pan and plywood subfloor to create a drain into the crawlspace. I sealed edges of the hole with silicone.

About 2 years later, that tank was 9 years old, sprung a leak, but the pan saved our maple flooring.

Thank you, St. Christopher!

When we were on well water, our water heater was 20+ years when we sold the place. Thank you, St. Christopher! [:)]

The oldest tanks I've seen are copper, but the oldest steel tank was a glass-lined brute from the late 1960's.

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4 hours ago, Kimi said:

My water heater  is 9 years old, sprung a leak, arise over the past few years very often. And it's already tired to me. I started to think about tankless water heaters. Do you have any experience in choosing such heaters?

If your house hasn't had a tankless before, you'll likely need a larger gas line straight from the pressure regulator because most resid tankless I've seen here are rated at 199,000 btu/hr.  Other than that, I've heard only good news about them.

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21 hours ago, Kimi said:

My water heater  is 9 years old, sprung a leak, arise over the past few years very often. And it's already tired to me. I started to think about tankless water heaters. Do you have any experience in choosing such heaters?

When my clients ask about tankless heaters I remind them that no electric=no hot water. During Super Storm Sandy a lot of people in my area were glad that they had hot water when there was no electric for days at a time. They could at least take a hot shower. 

When you compare the additional cost of the tankless heater (the unit and installation) to swapping out a typical heater, I wonder how much money, if any, is saved. Of course if the chimney needs work the comparison will be very different.

 

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Kimi,

 

I am starting to see more gas tankless water heaters in my area. However, most of them have the same problems. They may not activate with low water flow. I often have to turn on two sinks at the same time to get the water heater to turn on. This seems to get worse with time. (may be related to the hard water conditions that we have here)

 

I have only seen two electric tankless water heaters. They seem to draw a ton of electricity while in use. Also, the water seemed to take longer to heat up.

 

Good luck with your choice

 

Jeff

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23 minutes ago, JEuriech said:

Kimi,

 

I am starting to see more gas tankless water heaters in my area. However, most of them have the same problems. They may not activate with low water flow. I often have to turn on two sinks at the same time to get the water heater to turn on. This seems to get worse with time. (may be related to the hard water conditions that we have here)

 

I have only seen two electric tankless water heaters. They seem to draw a ton of electricity while in use. Also, the water seemed to take longer to heat up.

 

Good luck with your choice

 

Jeff

The electrical service typically found in a house does not have sufficient capacity to supply all hot water needs 'on demand' (no tank).  As an FHA Fee inspector, I once wrote up a newly constructed home with an electric whole house tank-less heater, saying  exactly what I just said (I did a few tests to prove it).  Agent got visibly pissed, red faced and all, and ordered me out of the house.  Never saw him again, and I'm thankful for that.

199,000 btu/hr translates into 243 amps at 240 volts.

Edited by Marc
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10 hours ago, Kimi said:

Thank you for your responses. 

Probably I will choose the gas water heater without water. I take into account all the positive aspects described with (DELETED) article 

My friends from the Ukraine tell me that on-demand gas water heaters are by far the most popular there. Are tank-type water heaters even an option for you in the Ukraine? 

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  • 1 year later...
On 11/26/2017 at 9:57 AM, JEuriech said:

Kimi,

 

I am starting to see more gas tankless water heaters in my area. However, most of them have the same problems. They may not activate with low water flow. I often have to turn on two sinks at the same time to get the water heater to turn on. This seems to get worse with time. (may be related to the hard water conditions that we have here)

 

I have only seen two electric tankless water heaters. They seem to draw a ton of electricity while in use. Also, the water seemed to take longer to heat up.

 

Goopd luck with your choice

 

Jeff

Correct, however since you don't have to pay for the electricity to keep 50 or 60 gallons of water warm to hot 24/7, and pay to heat it back up after using all the hot water in the tank, on demand tankless WH save   money. Yes, it does take a little longer to get hot water from a faucet, that's because the water that is setting in the water pipes after the tankless gets cold. So you get cold then hot. Does not take a long time to get hot water. They do have to be properly vented and installed per manufactures instructions and the outer surface of the tankless gets very hot so it needs its own closet with incoming air vents. Excuse me, combustable air venting.

Edited by JayneEVHI
typos
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17 hours ago, JayneEVHI said:

Correct, however since you don't have to pay for the electricity to keep 50 or 60 gallons of water warm to hot 24/7, and pay to heat it back up after using all the hot water in the tank, on demand tankless WH save   money. 

That's been disproved in study after study. On demand water heaters have several advantages, but saving money and "being green" are not among them - at least not for North American households. 

Check out https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/are-tankless-water-heaters-a-waste-of-money

And https://www.map-testing.com/assets/files/Minnesota Tankless WH study-2010.pdf

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8 hours ago, Jim Katen said:

That's been disproved in study after study. On demand water heaters have several advantages, but saving money and "being green" are not among them - at least not for North American households. 

Check out https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/are-tankless-water-heaters-a-waste-of-money

And https://www.map-testing.com/assets/files/Minnesota Tankless WH study-2010.pdf

My house is all electric.  No gas.  We have been thinking about getting a tankless due to our tiny utility/laundry room.   I wonder if it would be cost effective compared to an electric tank WH.

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