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Navien NPE Condensing Tankless Innovation

Condensing heat exchanger

Condensing tankless technology uses the normally wasted exhaust gases to preheat incoming water.

This has been on every one of Navien’s tankless water heaters since the beginning. The addition of the secondary heat exchanger adds about a 12-15 percent efficiency increase making a tankless water heater around 97-98 percent efficient.

With one of these systems for every dollar you send on natural gas or propane 97-98 cents are actually used to heat your water. A conventional type water heater is somewhere around 50 percent efficient so literally half of every dollar you spend on fuel is thrown away.navien heat exchanger cut out

The Navien NPE series systems have an innovative twist to their condensing tankless. The burner and heat exchanger are flipped upside down and thus, when the burner kicks on flames shoot downward. This is completely opposite to most other condensing tankless manufacture designs who have designed their systems with flames that shoot upwards. Yes, it is actually counter intuitive as heat rises upwards so you would think naturally the burner should be at the bottom.

I spent some time with a Navien representative and he thoroughly explained this (brilliant) engineering difference which I’ll try to explain it to you (hopefully as elegant as he was able to do).

A condensing tankless has a substantial amount of water form on the outside of secondary heat exchanger where the exhaust gases are flowing past, this of course is what makes it a condensing tankless. With the presence of the exhaust the water is naturally acidic and will eat away at the heat exchanger over time. Navien having put the burner at the top with the secondary heat exchanger at the bottom prevents the condensate from dripping over the primary heat exchanger enhancing its lifespan.

This design has been tested thoroughly by Navien and they offer the industries best heat exchanger warranty at 15 years. The best warranty you will find on a heat exchanger with other tankless systems is 12 years.

We sell and service all makes and models of Navien condensing tankless water heaters. This is a brand we trust and a system that is personally owned by several of our staff. If you think a Navien might be right for your home give us a call to discuss.

 

Call Us Anytime — (647) 925 1930

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Tank VS Tankless – Misconceptions

Tankless Toronto

There are a lot of misconceptions regarding tank type water heaters and tankless systems.  As a homeowner, if you’re thinking of adding a tankless to your home take what you read on the internet with a grain of salt.  Everyone seems to be some sort of expert on water heaters and can tell you which system is better when in reality you yourself needs to make the decision.  A tankless has been installed tens of thousands of homes throughout the greater Toronto area with positive reviews.

In some situations as tankless is not the right choice, you need to trust your water heater installer to shoot you straight.  The hard part is finding reputable tankless installers that are willing to tell you the whole truth and not just force the sale through.  I can tell you without hesitation that we and all employees put the homeowners interest first.  Operating on this simple principle ensures that the homeowner remains a customer and we remain in business. Simple as that.

Now back to the tankless misconceptions published throughout the internet.  A recent article regarding the pros and cons was published on thesop.org by a writing that appears to have just taken some common thoughts regarding the system and published them as if completely true.

Below is our response to the author regarding his article.

Hello John,

I read your article on thesop.org and wanted to correct you on a few things regarding tank vs tankless water heaters.

You said – Tankless water heaters are about 10 to 20% more energy efficient than traditional tank water heaters.

Tankless range from 82% to 98% efficiency, an expensive conventional tank brand new is lucky to be 60% so 20-30 percent is more accurate.

You said – Tankless water heaters work best when only one water tap is using hot water.

That’s not accurate at all, a tankless can easily run 3 showers and a dishwasher simultaneously (or some similar combination).

You said – If water taps are far apart from each other, it is recommended to buy another tankless water heater.

How does that even make sense? A tankless is designed to produce enough hot water for your whole home and is usually installed very close to where the old tank was installed, thus the hot water has the exact same distance to travel.

You said – Water does not instantly heat up when using a tankless water heater, but does with a tank heater.

This is backwards, it does heat up instantly, tankless are sometimes referred to as insta-hot water heaters.

You said – Tankless water heaters require yearly maintenance in order to remain efficient.

This is correct but not a bad thing as you stated… any and all water heaters see a 2% reduction in efficiency every year due to scale and lime build up.  A tankless is designed to have the scale removed or flushed out of the system so that it maintains its very high efficiency rating.  A conventional tank has no flush or maintenance thus the scale builds up year after year.   Think of the efficiency these two water heating systems are operating at 10 years down the road.

You’re a university student,  I know you can do better than this.   Let me know if you’re interested in re-writing, correcting, or doing another article on the subject. I would be more than happy to answer any questions or provide any help needed to accurately portray the pros and cons of tankless systems.

Read the original article here

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Free Quotes on Tankless Water Heaters

Endless Supply Of Hot Water

A tankless water heater creates hot water as you use it, thus the system will never run out. Some tankless units are made to supply one shower at a time, these lower BTU systems are ideal for cottage use here in Ontario. For residential or commercial units we recommend that a tankless have a bare minimum BTU of 150,000 in Toronto and areas.


Tankless Energy Savings

Most older conventional type tanks have an efficiency rating well below 60 percent. According to a recent study by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Commission, tankless water heaters reduce energy costs by an average of 46%. This increase in energy savings can be up to $150 per year.

In addition to increased efficiency tankless water heaters also have much longer life spans than hot water tanks. Your conventional 40 or 50 gallon tank likely has an 8 year warranty and has a steel tank (not stainless steel) which will rust through in about 12 years.  Tankless systems are made with copper or stainless steel and can last for 20 years or more.

How much do tankless water heaters cost?

Smaller tankless units with an efficiency of between 80 and 85 percent cost about $2000 to $2750 installed, depending on brand and your homes venting requirements.   A larger model with an efficiency of between 94 and 98 percent usually cost about $3000-$4500, again this is highly dependent on your home and the model you choose.


GoTankless: We are your top choice for water heater installations in Toronto and surrounding areas.

Installing a tankless water is a much more complex process than installing a conventional hot water tank, it is important that your installers have the necessary expertise.

Call (647) 925-1930

for more information or to schedule a quote on a tankless water heater installation. Or fill out our online request quote form.

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Purchasing A New Water Heater

When your conventional tank-type water heater fails, it’s usually not catastrophic.  The failure usually produces a small little leak that is caught in a drip pan or trickles across the floor into a drain. This slow leak usually gives you some time to think about the issue and plan a replacement strategy.  You have an opportunity to shop around, get quotes from water heater installers, and research new technologies. You may opt to simply replace your system with an equivalent water heater or you may look at upgrading to a new tankless water heater with a much higher efficiency.  Once thing you should do is examine your water heating rental fees, most people are shocked at how much they pay.  Really look at the cost to benefits of renting verse owning your system, remember most homeowners in cities throughout Canada and the US for that matter don’t rent their systems.tank size verses tankless

If your leak is causing damage to surrounding equipment, floors, ceiling or you’re going without hot water; it may be considered an emergency.  In my house a “no hot water situation” is frequent and often (because I continually test different manufactures systems) and usually just results in some harsh words from my wife.  In your home no hot water is probably a result of some type of mechanical failure, a circuit board, igniter, pressure sensor etc.  It’s a good idea to replace a troublesome system before it causes too much stress on your relationships.  So it may be time to do a bit of research.

A whole house tankless water heater won’t sit on your floor; it will mount to the wall. The tankless system will use either natural gas or propane as a fuel source.  The system will likely need you to upgrade your gas lines and change the venting from your old water heater.  If you’re considering a tankless and have any question, don’t hesitate to ask.

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Tankless And Water Heater Servicing In Toronto

Water heaters

If you own a tankless it is important to service your system.  A tankless is designed by engineers to have, first and foremost, the heat exchanger and internals scrubbed with a mild acid (vinegar).  The vinegar reacts with a buildup that occurs in all pipes and watercourses (scale and lime deposits) effectively eating it away and clearing the heat exchangers and pipes. This scale acts as an insulator significantly reducing the transfer of heat to water. Engineers have also taken many precautions to ensure that internals and parts of a tankless have as few wear points as possible.  This has increased the lifespan of a tankless water heater to over 20 years!

Direct Energy and several other large companies that rent water heaters are trying to reduce the tankless emergence.  Currently if you’re renting a conventional water heater the system is designed to have a lifespan of around 10 to 12 years.  After this point the water heater will have significant buildup inside severely reducing its efficiency.  The thing is that none of these companies will push you to replace your system since you are the one paying the gas bill and it only affects your homes energy consumption.

What Can You Do?

That’s easy, call the company your renting your water heater from.  They will tell you the buyout costs and the age of the water heater you have.  If the system isn’t very old I would recommend you keep the water heater until it reaches its operational lifespan (10-12 years). If your system is already quite old you may simply need to schedule a removal with your water heater rental company. Then start getting quotes for a tankless system.

Once that new tankless is installed make sure you take care of it, have it flushed once every two years at the minimum (or flush it yourself).  A flush is simple preventative maintenance that will ensure your system makes it past the expected 20 year lifespan while maintaining its 98% efficiency rating!

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Tankless Water Heater Service Valves

Toronto and Area Tankless Services

Service Valves on a Tankless are Important

The service valves on a tankless are essential for cleaning the insides of your tankless.  The valves allow an easy method of changing the incoming and outgoing water from one source to another.  Why would you need this feature? Well your tankless is designed to last more than 20 years and this requires that the scale and lime buildup that forms on the inside of the system is flushed or cleaned out.  The scale forms fastest in situations where water is rapidly heated, so the heat exchanger is the primary location of buildup.

It is not mandatory that these service valves are installed but any good contractor will have included them in the price and if you have a tankless you probably have some already.

The Service Valves Use

Cleaning your tankless requires you to shut the fuel source down, unplug the unit, switch the incoming and outgoing water over with the service valves.  Then you can simply hook up some hoses to the in and out ports on the service valves and pump vinegar or some acidic solution though the tankless.  The acid eats the scale and restores the tankless to its original efficiency.Toronto and Area Tankless Services

Scale buildup quickly reduces the efficiency of your tankless by significantly slowing the transfer of heat to water. 

So if you have a tankless tank a quick peek at your system and see of your contractor or installer included the service valves.  If not, don’t worry they can always be installed after the fact.  Give us a call and we can install some and flush your tankless at the same time.

Service Valves Specifications

  • 3/4″ union connections
  • Colour coded handles and unions
  • Staggered connection points to easy access and installation
  • Forward facing purge/flush ports ease routine servicing
  • Purge/drain hose connection port and cap
  • Full port, quarter turn valves
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Ontario Water Hardness Levels

An instant hot or tankless water heater is extremely efficient.  The system relies on its advanced heat exchanger to quickly heat up water.  Scale and Lime tend to build up faster when water is heated, so to combat this problem a tankless is usually installed with flush valves, which allow vinegar to be pushed through the system dissolving the build up and returning the tankless to its original efficiency level.  This build up is exponentially increased as the grains or water hardness increases in communities and towns throughout Ontario.

Hard Water Causes Inefficiency

Below is an extensive list of Ontario cities and the corresponding water hardness that is present in the water supply.  The higher the number of grains the harder your water is, which, in turn produces more scale and deposits in your water heater, on shower heads, around faucets, and so forth.  A conventional water heater will become much less efficient with time in a hard water situation, and it can’t be cleaned. For this reason we recommend a tankless system that can be cleaned with a vinegar solution, restoring efficiency.

Quick Hard Water Exercise:

  1. Lookup your city and see if you have hard water
  2. Think about how old that 40 gallon hot water tank is in your house
  3. Know that in on average at 7.5 grains of hard water a regular tank loses 2% efficiency a year to due scale build up
  4. That 2% doubles to 4% at 15 grains and so on…..
  5. After you do the math a tankless that is able to be cleaned of all scale becomes very economical

 

CityHardness (grains)Population
Almonte17.52805
Amhurstburg6.56060
Ancaster196718
Arnprior12.28663
Aurora17see Newmarket
Azilda121403
Barrie9.541990
Beamsville15.63864
Belleville634391
Bracebridge25304
Brampton24.258571
Brantford2442053
Brockville7.511302
Burks Falls101200
Burlington947562
Carleton Place5.54956
Cayuga120905
Chatham1319874
Cippawa8.6N/A
Clifford15660
Clinton13.22136
Cobalt4461
Cobourg7.57234
Cochrane182474
Collingwood4.59632
Copper Cliff2N/A
Cornwall719290
Craigment4N/A
Delhi182819
Deseronto8.41314
Dryden3.55900
Dundas1710320
Dunnville213830
Elmira29390
Essex33.43658
Etobicoke8109153
Fonthill15.62495
Fort Williams1N/A
Galt22930
Gannonoque73759
Goderich5.54808
Grimsby86821
Guelph2230652
Hagersville302055
Haileybury21243
Hamilton7.5147943
Harrow49.83112
Hanover133915
Hawkesbury25300
Hespeler26550
Ingersoll24.44269
Iroquois Falls4.52005
Islington16.220137
Kapuskasing63490
Kemptville16.46130
Kenora49929
Kingston7.537776
Kirkland Lake34712
Kitchener4087480
Lansing21N/A
Leamington1417253
Lindsay8.527220
Listowel139907
London25149133
Lucan13N/A
Lucknow16.4977
Meaford122978
Merritton8.5N/A
Midland816268
Mitchell16.21907
Matawa5
Mount Forest252937
New Liskeard163306
Newmarket10.553915
New Toronto8see Toronto
Niagara Falls829250
North Bay124960
North York Twsp.18173099
Norwick141220
Oakville734364
Orillia1019999
Oshawa7.538796
Ottawa3181258
Owen Sound1520688
Paisley19.5829
Paris202984
Parkhill141145
Parry Sound43020
Pembroke215357
Penetanguishene7.5see Midland
Perth45596
Peterborough540913
Picton72265
Port Arthur6N/A
Port Colborne76291
Port Dover13.2N/A
Port Elgin38.41852
Port Hope7.55553
Prescott73553
Preston17620
Renfrew2.512221
Richmond Hill17.272717
St. Catharines740750
St. Mary’s22.81475
St. Thomas11.529300
Sarnia738869
Sault Ste. Marie329847
Scarborough8.5155061
Seaforth17.51496
Shelburne12N/A
Simcoe1216900
Smith Falls56904
Stratford3014604
Strathroy17.55543
Sturgeon Falls23134
Sudbury2.553168
Tavistock30.41893
Tecumseh7.85953
Teeswater32616
Thorold85848
Tillsonburg128925
Timmins219055
Toronto7.5319202
Trenton146120
Twin Province17.5N/A
Uxbridge15.43533
Walkerton8.82651
Wallaceburg6.55822
Waterloo28see Kitchener
Welland819258
Weston109448
Whitby7.519750
Windsor672436
Woodbridge16.211770
Woodroffe22.5N/A
Woodstock2.526041

It’s always a good idea to have your water tested to determine not only water quality but water hardness and this list should be considered just a rough guide.

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Tankless Scale and Lime Buildup

That crusty buildup on your faucets, shower heads, and dishwasher is lime scale buildup.  It forms when water passes through your fixtures, and reduces the functionality and efficiency of your household appliances. Conventional water heaters have been known to accumulate as much as 20 lbs of scale buildup over their lifetime. With the application of heat, scale buildup occurs more readily, accelerating the process and causing more problems.  A conventional water heater loses more than 2% efficiency per year because of this buildup, which acts as an insulator preventing proper heat exchange. A tankless water heater is just as susceptible, but a simple built-in system allows the buildup to be removed, returning the water heater to its original efficiency.

We offer tankless cleanings and recommend you have your system flushed once a year to maintain its highest efficiency.  This is a relatively quick process taking about an hour to complete.  In addition to a flush, we inspect the system’s igniter, flame sensor, fan, and venting system to ensure everything is in tip top shape.

Go Tankless services the Greater Toronto Area, including Newmarket, Aurora, Bradford.  If you have any questions about our service area call us and we will discuss your location.

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Tankless Service

Your tankless water heater is built to last more than 20 years, ensuring that it runs smoothly and maintains its efficiency requires regular maintenance.  Here are some of the services that should be completed regularly, usually at the same time your tankless is flushed.

  1. Flush the unit
  2. Inspect the fan
  3. Inspect the gas manifold system
  4. Clean the igniter and flame rod(s)
  5. Remove and inspect the servo valves and ensure proper movement
  6. Inspect flow sensor and check for damage
  7. Pull the venting and inspect the exchanger for condensate damage or corrosion

A tankless does have quite a few parts but all can be fixed or replaced with great tankless service.

If you have any tankless error codes or any issues give us a call and we can help trouble shoot your system.  If all else fails we can have a tankless service technician come out and diagnose your system.

Give us a call or fill out the form to the right and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

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Tankless Cleaning $139

Descaling your tankless is incredibly important.  You purchased a  high efficiency unit for a reason-Keep it that way! Lime scale may reduce your tankless’ efficiency rating by more than 3 percent per year. Have your unit flushed regularly to continue to enjoy your energy savings!

We offer tankless cleaning and flushing for only $139.

A tankless cleaning and descaling only takes around an hour but will bring your system back to its original efficiency.

Give us a call now and we can set up an appointment that’s convenient for you.

Service Locations

  • Barrie
  • Newmarket
  • Aurora
  • Richmond Hill
  • Markham
  • North York
  • Vaughan
  • Bolton
  • Mississauga
  • Etobicoke
  • Toronto
  • Scarborough
  • Burlington
  • Hamilton
  • And The Many Areas In Between