I am doing a rehab an older house that will be a rental when it is finished and I was wondering, has anyone put an instant water heater in a rental? I have had the electrical upgraded and added a second bathroom to make It 2 bed 2 bath.
I am worried because I don't want to introduce more cost or maintenance in the long run.
What is a good brand of water heater to use on a 850 sq.ft house?
Real Estate Broker · Northeast PA · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@Quentin Collins, if you are going to use an 'on-demand' type water heater, I'd stick with gas-fired. In a rental, I'd put in an electric water heater, do annual drain out, and see if the local utility offers an insurance program for water lines, sewer lines and/or water heaters.
The water company in our NEPA area offers those types of insurances, and it has saved our clients (landlords) buckets of money.
@Marc Winter Thanks Marc. Thanks for that. So if I had keep the gas would the gas on-demand system have been beneficial? Or would it have eventually been more maintenance?
@Mark Fries Thanks for the answer. If you don’t mind me asking what is a good brand of water heater that will not take up a massive amount of space and not undersupply the house with hot water?
Contractor · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@Quentin Collins
AO smith from Lowes is just fine. All normal water heaters are just about equal. It's a steel tank with a set of elements and thermostats. You can get one from lowes for $330.00 or less usually.
Real Estate Broker · Northeast PA · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@Mark Fries, would you please tell me the brand of $350 water heater that will be good for 10--15 years? Considerations: the quality of water coming from the utility, and installation of an expansion tank.
@Quentin Collins, I have two gas-fired on-demand water heaters installed in a huge 1896 Victorian home/office. They were installed 13 years ago, they still work perfectly, and have saved a ton of money. Bosch. No maintenance! It's worth the lil bit extra.
Investor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 708 votes
6y
Tankless options tend to be significantly more expensive than normal water heaters. 2-3K vs <1K installed, in our neck of the woods. That said, I had one situation where I opted for tankless anyway because the existing water heater just took up too much space in an already small kitchen of a <1000sqft 3/1 property. With coupons and by hook and crook, I was able to get it installed through Lowe’s for just exactly $2000. So far, I’m very happy with it. Tenants are happy to have unlimited hot water and save a few dollars (gas vs electric).
The main driver, in this situation clearly was space. If not for that, I would have just replaced the old 40 gallon electric unit. But in this situation, tankless made sense to me As there was no room in the crawl space and I would not consider placing a water heater in the attic (as someone else mentioned). Too hard to drag it up there and too high a risk of leaks, IMHO.
Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 512 posts · 301 votes
6y
@Quentin Collins it reduces cost and if you have a water Softner there is virtually no maintenance. If you don’t then you have to learn to maintain it once a year or pay somewhere around 200$ a year. It lowers the utility bill.
It has its benefits for sure and depending on where you find value from it, it provides plenty but as an investment that will pay you back, the benefits will be either negligible or negative.
For a 2 bedroom I say no. I’m very pro instant hot water heater when there are more occupants or rooms as it’s nice to never ever run out of hot water
@John Underwood what kind of problems did you have with it? What brand did you use?!
Very very curious before i upgrade any more water heaters. We only have one, Noritsu, no problems, yet
One problem was it wouldn't get hot enough. It needed a certain amount of flow, but in a small house with low flow shower heads it didn't work very well.
Investor · Shelton, WA · Member since 2017 · 6k+ posts · 6k+ votes
6y
When we lived in California I decided to replace the old water heater and 'upgrade' to a tankless for our primary. We went through 3 gas heaters and two circulation pumps in 5 years. On top of that the units required frequent 'resetting' to provide hot water.
Had we not decided to sell the property and move to Wa we would have gone back to a regular hot water tank the gas line and vent was still in place. I would not wish all that on a tenant-or me as a LL!
Skip them if they can be avoided. Utility savings is nice but odds are tenants are already paying for it. I only have one and finding a qualified plumber that regularly works on these can be difficult and costly. If you have hard water you would also want to have this hooked up to a water softener. It has a lot more moving parts and won't stand the test of time as well as a standard 40 gallon which has the space to deal with the sediment build up.
Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 512 posts · 301 votes
6y
@John Underwood that’s interesting. I have an additional bedroom where it takes a odd amount of time for the hot water to come through. That’s an interesting answer. Thanks
@Sean McKenna thanks for that Brand recommendation. I will look into it.
I have learned a lot from this thread.
This is an older house, and there is no room for a water heater in the attic. I have seen some people put the water heater outside, but I haven't heard any feedback on the pros or cons other than space.
Does anyone have any cons to the water heater being outside?
Flipper/Rehabber · Goffstown, NH · Member since 2019 · 80 posts · 59 votes
6y
Well yeah. It can freeze. In warmer climates this is a normal thing. In N.H, not so much. They also look ugly and need to be in an enclosure. They need to be elevated off the ground a little so prevent the bottom getting rusty from rain water.