New to tankless water heater and can't figure it out!

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Zeida Carnatz

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Hi! We recently moved to a house with tankless water heater and we are going crazy. So the heater is in a detached garage, our main bathroom and appliances (washer and dishwasher) get hot water ok, but guest bathroom and sinks, including kitchen one, don't get hot water. Kitchen sink is the furthest faucet in the house, however dishwasher is next to it and gets perfectly hot water. Questions:
1- Could the faucets be the problem?
2- Could water pressure be the issue?
2- Could a re-circulating pump fix the problem?
Heater is a HOT Choice 16L
Thank you very much for your input!
 

Master Plumber Mark

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The heater is in a detached garage and I guess it has to travel a good distance to
get to the longest away faucet?? The dishwasher works ok because it has its own
heating element inside it ..

This unit will probably drive you nuts attempting to rig up something to make that unit
work correctly with the distance it has to travel..
.. and there is no guarantee that after all the money you throw at this
system it will ever work up to your satisfaction....

If there is room in the de-tatched garage might I suggest you throw
the money at a simple 50 gallon gas tank type water heater???
 

Jadnashua

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It can easily take 2-3 minutes after long-term use to purge a long hot water line of the cold trapped in it before you notice it getting warm at the end depending on how far the water has to travel, how well the lines are insulated, and if they run through unconditioned space. In my small townhome, it can take upwards of 2-minutes. I installed a hot water recirculation system, but many (not all) tankless systems will either void their warranty or require special setup to enable one of those to work.

WHat some people do is to provide hot water until the tankless (or even a tanked system) can push its hot water to where you want it, will run that hot water through a small tank heater - maybe 5-10 gallons. That way, you're using hot generated locally so it doesn't have to purge potentially gallons in the line that is cold, and, if you size it properly, before that tank runs out of hot water, the incoming water is hot.

Have to ask...if you run the hot long enough (it could take 3-4 minutes), does the water ever get hot at those locations, or did you give up prior to that?
 

Sylvan

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One of the main reasons I like a H/W tank is I can put a re circulation line (NYC code requires it 50 ft more in length )

By having the water recirculated your saving money for the following reasons

1- Your paying to heat water and when your faucet is shut the water you paid to heat is now cooling off

2- Your wasting water as now your letting water run down a drain as your waiting for the water to get hot

Also hot water lines should be insulated along with the return so the ambient temperature does not cool the water
 

Zeida Carnatz

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Hi all, thanks for your comments. Jadnashua, the water never came out warm in those faucets, we have tried and waited a while during both cold and hot days. Also, we are in SoCal, so not cold weather really.
 

Reach4

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Turn on the hot in the guest bathroom. Run the shower or tub in the main bathroom, so they give hot water. While that water is flowing, how is the hot coming out of the guest bath and sinks? If the answer is not hot, I suspect there is a different water heater servicing the guest area.
 
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JRC3

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Just curious if you just bought the home or renting it? Or was it something like a foreclosure and "as is"?
 

Zeida Carnatz

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Turn on the hot in the guest bathroom. Run the shower or tub in the main bathroom, so they give hot water. While that water is flowing, how is the hot coming out of the guest bath and sinks? If the answer is not hot, I suspect there is a different water heater servicing the guest area.
It does come out hot.
 

JRC3

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I'd go back to the seller to fix the problem.
One possibility is that the water flow in the guest bathroom is not strong enough to be detected by the WH. There are probably more obscure potential causes, but they don't occur to me at the moment.
Two things I would consider.

First, the hot water limit stop. All valves are different but here is a common example:

Woodchucks-Fig-3.jpg


Second, The shower faucet shutoffs, if equipped. Make sure they are completely open.

25802d1256244371-shower-randomly-pulsates-vibrates-when-use-showervalve.jpg
 
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