DIY Tankless Heater Installation
On our new house project, the plans are for an on-demand, gas fired, tankless heater mounted in the attic space. From what I’ve heard from friends and neighbors, is that some of the companies like Rinnai and Noritz do not sell to the public and they have to be installed by licenced plumbers that have been approved by them.
Where’s the concern here? Am I over-simplifying this? I’ve installed many tank heaters to code in the past and I’m aware that these tankless models require stainless steel double-wall vents, but where else can one go wrong?
We’re in Southern CA, by the way.
Thanks!
Replies
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2Fws%2F&fkr=1&from=R8&satitle=Noritz++tankless&category0=
full selection available on ebay<G>
its kind of like corian only selling to corian cerified installers... or at least I think. A little uncompetive as corian will only certify x # of fabricators for a given area.
Takagi and bosch are both avaialble to anyone with a checkbook :)
james
You can save alot of money and reduce the risks by installing the heater on the outside of the house. Perhaps you have already considered and rejected this idea but I install them outside on all my multi-million dollar homes. I usually put them near or even behind the AC units.
This will save on exhaust venting, combustion air venting, PTR piping, and emergency pan installation. It will also keep your combustion appliance and gas connections outside. The Rinnai is freeze protected to -30F degrees.
These folks are DIY friendly:
http://www.houseneeds.com/shop/atop/productswaterheaters.asp
We put is a system last year and they were helpful in after-sale support for questions and parts.
The local yokels tried to sell us dinosaur systems at 3X the price. Something must have clicked in their pea-brains, because now they have billboards up around town advertising the Rinnai heaters ;-)