Hey everyone! I recently moved into a brand new ADU in Milpitas, CA, and I'm facing some hot water issues. The landlord installed an Ecosmart 8kw electric tankless water heater, but I'm concerned it might not be enough for my needs. My unit includes a kitchen faucet, bathroom sink, shower, washer, and dishwasher, and I'd prefer to run them one at a time. Is this heater sufficient? If not, what should I be looking for? Also, is it even legal to use a tankless water heater as the main source in new constructions? Any insights would be super helpful. Thanks!
2 Answers
Based on the specs, the Ecosmart 8kw should give you about 1.56 gallons per minute, which is decent for one bathroom but might struggle with multiple appliances. Generally, tankless water heaters are great because they heat water on demand. Just make sure to check the flow rates of your fixtures to see if it’ll meet your needs. You can also find some sizing calculators online. As for legality, tankless heaters are typically allowed when sized properly, so you should be good there!
What’s the flow rate of your current unit? Ideally, it should be around 5-10 gallons per minute. Tankless water heaters are definitely legal if they're sized correctly, so you shouldn’t have an issue there. Just make sure you communicate with your landlord about getting a more powerful one if the current setup isn’t cutting it!
My current heater is rated at 1.54 gpm. My landlord mentioned swapping it for a 2.54 gpm model, but I'm skeptical about whether that'll solve the problem.
That sounds about right! If your landlord's considering a replacement, make sure it's at least 2.54 gpm, but you might want to push for something stronger if you plan to run multiple things at once.