How to install a tankless water heater

A tankless water heater is a kind of a water heater which does not require you to wait for hot water as it instantly heats water when you open the hot water tap. However, it is always recommended to be familiar with the positives as well as negatives before you decide to purchase it. If you have already taken your decision to install one at your home, then you must be thorough with the installation process.   Before we throw light on how to install a tankless water heater, you must remember some points of caution which are given as follows:

Points of Caution

• Remember that tankless water heaters require larger diameter gas supply lines, dedicated special stainless steel flue as well as higher voltage power supply.
• Moreover, you must preferably use special union collector sets with bypass capability for the water supply.
• Before the installation, remember to turn off the main incoming water supply to your house.
• Disconnect the old water heater as well along with its supply line.

Step 1:

Now that you have completed all the steps of caution, the next move is to install the tankless water heater. Follow the steps given below for the same:

• The first thing to do here is figuring out the location of installation. For this purpose, you must make sure that the selected location complies with the local and state building codes.
• The best place to install a tankless water heater is where you old tank storage water heater was since it has all the gas and water pipes already in place.
• However some factors which may affect the placement include proper ventilation(the vent must be about 3 feet from operable window), area of usage of the water tor reduced chances of heat loss during the travelling period and location of plumbing configuration and electrical panel etc.
• It is advisable that you don’t place your heater under air conditioning lines and pipes which may drip.
•  It must also not be placed above electrical boxes which could catch fire if water drips.

Step 2:

Open the packaging of the tankless water heater and take out the appliance along with all the other hardware materials. Keep them close to the place of installation to avoid extra work for yourself.

Step 3:

• Now take out the user manual that must be provided along with the heater.
• According to the manufacturer’s instructions, mount the appliance on the wall. Difference manufacturers produce tankless water heaters of different designs and hence their mounting may vary.
• Moreover the mounting may also depend upon the type of heater-gas or electric. In either case it is important to use the number of bolts that are recommended to attach the unit securely to the wall.
• While doing so, you must remember to support its weight properly so that it does not fall off in the future. You may need to use a stud finder to find the studs and then cut a hole in between them.
• You will now need to route the water supplies to the heater. But remember that the pipe from water utility goes to inlet and the pipe leading to the house is joined with the outlet.

Step 4:

As mentioned above, tankless water heaters require large flue or special stainless steel flue. A stainless steel flue is basically a pipe which helps in the ventilation of corrosive gases. If you have gas then you must install ventilation ducting. Once you are done with this, you must begin the supply line or the water line.

 

Step 5:

• Once the water line has started, the next step is to start the heat source.
• In case you have a water heater which uses electricity, then plug it in the wall socket and turn it on. But in the case where you have a gas water heater, you will need to connect the gas supply line from the stub at the wall to the tankless water heater.
• To ensure that the handle is in the same direction as of the line, you must open the valve. At this point, you must read the manufacturer’s instructions closely so as to light the pilot on the gas water heater.

Step 6:

Once you have followed all the steps on how to install a tankless water heater, try turning the hot water tap. Do this to check if the water supply received is warm enough.

Now that you know how to install a tankless water heater, you can do the job on your own. However if you do not have any previous plumbing or electric connection related experience, it is a good idea to contact a plumber or experienced professional to do this job for you. For this, you can count on Mr. Right services.