Forums > Specific Focus > Home, Garden & Construction in Mexico

jreboll

Nov 30, 2004, 4:12 PM

Post #1 of 13 (6711 views)

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water heaters

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Has anybody used or is using a tankless water heater in Mexico? Is it electric or gas?
My gas water heater is starting to give out on me and it appears that this would be a good alternative to what I have right now.

Papirex

Nov 30, 2004, 8:46 PM

Post #2 of 13 (6691 views)

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Re: [jreboll] water heaters

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We are not using a tankless heater here, but my mother in law had one installed in her apartment in Mexico City last year. It is fueled with propane. It performs very well.
Tankless water heaters are also called Instantaneous heaters. They are not uncommon in Alaska.

I lived in a couple of houses that had them up there. They are usually integrated as part of the hot water heaters for heating systems in houses there. They are not too common now, but they used to be quite common. In interior Alaska, they are fueled with heating oil , In anchorage they are fueled with natural gas.

They have the advantage that you will never run out of hot water, no matter how many people are taking showers at the same time you are doing laundry, and running the dishwasher. The manufacturers claim that they use less fuel than a conventional water heater with a storage tank. That may be true, they never fire up just to keep the water in the storage tank hot when you are not using any hot water, they do burn continuously when you are using hot water.

An Ace Hardware store opened here in Cuernavaca this year. I noticed that they have 3 or 4 tankless water heaters on display. I have forgotten what the prices were, but I remember thinking that they compared favorably with the prices for a conventional water heater with a storage tank. There is a Home Depot store under construction here too, I expect they will also carry them. I think you can probably find them anywhere in Mexico.

Rex
"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved" - Victor Hugo

Cynthia7

Nov 30, 2004, 8:51 PM

Post #3 of 13 (6687 views)

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Re: [jreboll] water heaters

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We have a gas one and love it. They come in various sizes so be sure and get the appropriate size. Ours has an electronic pilot. On occasion we have it cleaned because of the lime but really great to have unlimited hot water. There are several different makes. They have been around at least 60 years because our neighbors had one when I was a child. There is also an electric shower head that heats the water for the shower. Great for a shower that is isolated from the rest of the building. Google hot showers to find it.

jreboll

Dec 1, 2004, 3:29 AM

Post #4 of 13 (6680 views)

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Re: [Cynthia7] water heaters

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Thank you for your answers. Next time I'm in Guadalajara I will look them up and check out their prices.

abq

Dec 1, 2004, 9:27 AM

Post #5 of 13 (6663 views)

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Re: [Cynthia7] water heaters

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Do the have electric faucet heads? It takes forever for the water in my kitchen faucet to heat up.

Papirex

Dec 1, 2004, 11:23 AM

Post #6 of 13 (6652 views)

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Re: [jreboll] water heaters

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This report from The US Department of Energy may also interest you.
http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumerinfo/factsheets/bc1.html

Rex

"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved" - Victor Hugo

johanson

Dec 1, 2004, 4:29 PM

Post #7 of 13 (6637 views)

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Re: [RexC] water heaters

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abq wrote. "Do the have electric faucet heads".

abq, are you talking about faucets that can be turned on and off electrically from a distant point? If so, they are around but difficult to find.

Are you talking about instant on hot water systems that create hot water only on demand? I remember having those in NL in the early sixties. They are beginning to show up more and more here in North America.

Or are you talking about a small perhaps 10 liter hot water tank positioned in line with your existing hot water system you could place under the sink?

abq

Dec 1, 2004, 6:25 PM

Post #8 of 13 (6630 views)

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Re: [johanson] water heaters

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I think I'm talking about the simple ones placed under the sink.

Papirex

Dec 1, 2004, 7:04 PM

Post #9 of 13 (6624 views)

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Re: [abq] water heaters

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ABQ, I have installed several of the small heaters Pete has mentioned. In the US they are three gallon capacity. They are usually installed in commercial buildings, offices, etc. You will probably not find one in a store that sells plumbing supplies on the retail level.

You will most likely need to visit a plumbing contractor or wholesaler, and order one, they are not commonly used. It’s been a few years since I installed one, but if memory serves me, they are about 16 or 18 inches high, and about 7 or 8 inches square.

Every one I have had experience with uses 110 VAC to heat the water. If there is no existing pipe on the left side of the fixture for hot water, a tee may be installed behind the angle stop on the cold water side. Install another angle, or straight stop before connecting the piping to the inlet of the heater. An angle stop is the small 90 degree valve under a properly installed sink or lavatory. A lavatory is commonly called a wash basin, some types of valves are called stops.

Do not install any plumbing fixture without stops under them where there is access to do it. They are not there to facilitate repairs, they are installed as a means to prevent contamination to the water system when repairs are done. Leaving them off creates an insanitary condition. (Yes, insanitary is a word, even though right now Microsoft Word doesn’t believe it.)

Rex

"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved" - Victor Hugo

Cynthia7

Dec 1, 2004, 7:18 PM

Post #10 of 13 (6619 views)

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Re: [abq] water heaters

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I suggest you check www.instanthotshowers.com . I know of no instant faucet heaters but don't know why you could not use a shower head. This is not exactly a tankless hot water heater but same idea. Check it out!!!

NEOhio

Dec 1, 2004, 7:39 PM

Post #11 of 13 (6615 views)

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Re: [Cynthia7] water heaters

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What a great link, thanks for the heads up on this. It'll solve the cold water problem in the sink in my garden shed, much simpler than the 3 gallon tank I was intending to install next spring. It is usually way too cold to put my hands under the spigot to clean up - at least until August and by then I'm gone to the lake. Erie that is.

Uncle Donnie

Dec 11, 2004, 12:02 PM

Post #12 of 13 (6561 views)

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Re: [NEOhio] water heaters

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The faucet mounted heaters are available at Home Depot in Guadalajara. They may not be as fancy as those at the website but I think they're less than 200 pesos each.

My neighbor has some mounted on showers in his casita and reports that they work well.

Shameless self-promotion:
http://www.headformexico.com

mkirkpatrick

Dec 11, 2004, 7:48 PM

Post #13 of 13 (6541 views)

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Re: [jreboll] water heaters

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This is not meant to be helpful-just a wee story about the scariest hot shower I ever saw.

About eight years ago,we made a trip up the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica to an isolated jungle lodge.

Our semi-detached apartment/unit was quite basic-cement walls,tiled floors,screened windows and doors. Adequate but spartan.

In the bathroom was a large shower stall. However, the shower had electrical-element coils around it,and a cord leading to a wall outlet about two feet from the shower!

Actually,it worked! I turned the shower on,plugged in the cord,and stabbed my finger into the water- there was hot water,and I didn't die!

I think that the Guatemalan Champagne supplied by the management(for my birthday) protected me-it certainly prevented any digestive problems.

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