"glen stark" wrote

Because it's a paradigm shift and those always bring discomfort.

Interesting rant Glen, and some truth to it for some, but what about those
of us who did check them out and found we get a slight edge with a tank
system? I used the links. It doesnt matter if the cost of gas goes up or
down a little as it's a ratio that will still be there. I matched only
newer gas 40g's to tankless of the same output level.

The only 'edge' spot in our use pattern the tankless had, was possible
longevity but this _may_ be offset with the difficulty of repair on a
relatively new item and finding a repair person trained to work on them.
Also, it wasnt clear how stable the parts will be since the technology seems
to be changing fairly fast? (IE: you can still get a VCR repaired if you
want, but I wouldnt waste time looking for betamax parts).

Lets see how stable the parts market and inventory of technicians is when I
need to replace first. If mine lasts another 3 years, the efficiency ratios
and other aspects will probably have changed. It could well be that then,
tankless will be a much better bet.

Could you fill me in though on 'temperature balancers'? I simply didnt
track that one fully and suspect we might need something for the shower if
we go tankless? Thats probably not very expensive to add but this is an
older house and wouldnt have that in there now.

I also need to backtrack my earlier post. I had forgotten my old 40g gas
one went bad when we were overseas and our house was rented. The 'new' one
is about 5 years old but *not* a very efficient model. I am certain from
other aspects of the house, the renters never did any maintenance on it. We
are looking up the book on the model to see how this one is cleaned.

It also clarified for us why we are running out of hot water. I found the
old book on the old unit and it was a 60G gas. However looking at
efficiency ratings, I think we will stay with a 40G or if we go up, go up to
50G.

We already talked with a retired handyman who's done small stuff for us and
he knows this type of unit well. He even mentioned that on some of them, it
can be just a touch tricky to do the maintenance. I think he was referring
to the pilot light but not sure? He'll be over later this weekend to take a
peek at it. Don't worry, he's a very careful type. If he's not absolutely
sure how this unit is cleaned, he won't touch it. (He doesnt do electrical
work etc, just odd side handyman stuff like fixing lawnmowers, helping with
regular maintenance chores, cleaning gutters and so forth. Helping clean
hot water heaters is a common one for him).

If it can be cleaned and isnt damaged too much by no maintenance, it may
last another 6 years but we may replace earlier due to energy ratings.