Tankless Water Heater

[Mr Rex]

Tankless water heaters can be used for both purposes but would require a circulation pump to return the formerly hot and now luke warm water back through the water heater to reheat it. Since the returning water is warmer than typical well or municipal water that is in the 50s due to the temperature of the earth a few feet below ground, it would actually add less load than the incoming domestic water etc. However, this is usually a closed loop as you wouldn't want the luke warm water when you needed to take a shower etc. Maybe find out who installed it and give them a call to get a briefing of how the system works and if it is sufficient. You are never too old to learn new stuff.

 

[Mr Rex]

Duplicate

 

[glenn walker]

It should be sufficient but the truth is we never know until you live in a house , I would not make an issue about it and move on.

 

[Renee Healion]

So far, it is sufficient in the balmy states of So Cal and NC but the OP is in NJ. If pipes freeze, they burst, and when they thaw, they flood and you get mold and all sorts of problems so it is not just a matter of occupant comfort. If a flipper is being cheap, then there is elbb. If being efficient, there are better options.

If something is unfamiliar, taking a photo of the label with the specs on it is handy for looking up the equipment later. Or posting here. As mentioned, a condensing wall-hung boiler can be very small and not recognized as such if you are used to looking for a huge boiler on the floor. Investors like them in this part of the country, as well as owner-occupants. Metal jacket, about the size of an elec service panel but thicker, hung on the basement wall.

 

[Mr Rex]

Renee is right, a tankless water heater and condensing boiler may be almost identical in appearance. As a matter of fact there are condensing tankless water heaters. The "condensing" is what makes them so efficient, just like a condensing gas furnace etc. Rather than let all the exhaust heat simply go out a flue, the unit condenses the water vapor in the exhaust and gets as much of the latent heat as possible as the vaporization takes place. These units tend to be over 90% efficient with up to 98% possible. (Typical "non-condensing" units are usually 80% efficient) The exhaust is steam and CO2 and there is some condensate water that is formed and has to be drained to the outside (just like condensate water from an AC in the summer). Any time you see PVC exhaust piping from a furnace, boiler, water heater etc it is most likely a condensing unit.