It is important to get your tankless installed by a reputable company. By this I mean someone who knows what they are doing when it comes to installing a tankless. Heating your homes water with a tankless is a fundamentally different system than the 40 gallon conventional tank that is probably sitting in the basement now. I will go over a few things to quiz your contractor on to ensure they really know how these systems work resulting in a much better end result for you.
Firstly there have been some negative issues reported with tankless systems, and yes sometimes it is the manufactures fault but a lot of these issues are actually due to improper installation; the contractor. A conventional tank uses a smaller volume of gas producing around 30,000 BTU’s. A tankless uses larger volumes, close to 200,000 BTU’s, but with a much reduced frequency. Installers could just “guestimate” pipe diameters necessary to provide a conventional tank with ample gas and 99% of the time is right. A tankless needs the gas fitter to very accurately ensure that the unit receives enough gas to produce the 200,000 BTU’s necessary. This is the main problem as to why a lot of tankless systems receive complaints from new owners.
Questions Ask Your Contractor Regarding a Tankless
- Maximum distance of a ½ inch gas line needed to provide 200,000 BTU’s – trick question, a 10 foot length can only carry roughly 132,000 BTU’s
- What size gas line will my tankless need – In Toronto and areas all whole home tankless systems will need a ¾ inch connection minimum
- If I purchase a condensing tankless is there any special installation needed? – Yes, a condensing tankless requires a nearby drain to channel the water collected from the condenser.