Tankless water heater hot when not using water

[Hobby_Man22]

So halfway through my shower yesterday, i'd say 5 mintes in I lost hot water. Now it seems like it heats for about 5 seconds, then stops. Fast forward to today, and I go under the sink to tinker with it and I noticed the unit is warm and the outlet side is really hot and the temperature display is not even on. Not sure how that could be when I haven't used any hot water. Or any water for that matter. Any ideas? It's an EcoSmart 8kw from home depot. I've heard they have a little padel wheel inside to monitor water flow, but if I haven't used water I don't see where that comes into play. Why is it heating with no water use and then not heating when I DO use water?

 

[BrandonV]

How well was this working before? Did you use it last winter? 8kW is very small. Look at how many GPM the 8kW model provides when the target temperature is set to 105F based on inlet temperature.

Usually if the display panel is not lighting up when you're using water the flow rate or water pressure is too low. With these units you typically need a flow regulator to prevent overwhelming them. Do you have one installed, if so how many GPM?

 

[Hobby_Man22]

It was working fine, even the sink with the strainer removed made perfectly hot water. My concern is it seems to be heating water when no water demand is present, then stops when you turn the water on.

 

[BrandonV]

It was working fine, even the sink with the strainer removed made perfectly hot water. My concern is it seems to be heating water when no water demand is present, then stops when you turn the water on.

Does the display light when you're using water? If not - it does point to the flow meter you were describing.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Yes, but like I said it's heating when off too and not flowing water,

 

[BrandonV]

Yes, but like I said it's heating when off too and not flowing water,

I assume there will always be some degree of heating to ensure the water isn't ice cold when it first comes out. I suspect that increasing the flow doesn't trigger additional heating in your state.

If the display isn't lighting when you have flow thru the unit, the unit isn't recording any flow (which might indicate a problem with the electronics).

 

[carlaisle]

Troubleshooting Guides - EcoSmart

www.ecosmartus.com

They also have a tech support number.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Troubleshooting Guides - EcoSmart

www.ecosmartus.com

They also have a tech support number.

Yeah, I saw that. I'll call them in the morning and see. otherwise, i'll just get a new one from home depot that's a rheem instead of this off brand pos.

 

[csp]

Stop buying the consumer grade **** from Home Depot. Even the Rheem products they sell aren't the same level that you get from a supply house or a pro plumber or HVAC guy.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Stop buying the consumer grade **** from Home Depot. Even the Rheem products they sell aren't the same level that you get from a supply house or a pro plumber or HVAC guy.

What's a good brand then? I need to just get a regular water heater. Too many limitations on these tankless ones, but I'm just going to go back with what I had becaise I would have to replumb a bunch of stuff

 

[carlaisle]

I would not install a water heater of any kind from the Home Depot if you bought it and delivered it to me. Rheem knows how to build a good water heater, they're just not in stock at the Home Depot.

For a good old fashioned natural gas water heater you can just walk into a store and buy you can't go wrong with Reliance. Available at most any actual hardware store in the country. Ace, True Value, etc. Bradford White and AO Smith are also good, but more likely to be found at the plumber's supply.

 

[shade]

Tankless - Rinnai.
Amazing units.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Okay, so I called tech support and they had me test it with a multimeter and it's got a bad element and a bad triac. Looking at probably $150 shipped to my house and these things are only $215 to begin with. I can't believe they had me take that thing apart and walk me through diagnosing it. Hats off to them.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

I think Rheem and ecosmart are the same company

 

[manwithtools]

I think Rheem and ecosmart are the same company

Sort of, Rheem owns Eemax, who specializes in electric tankless water heaters. Rheem has their own line of gas tankless.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Sort of, Rheem owns Eemax, who specializes in electric tankless water heaters. Rheem has their own line of gas tankless.

Oh, all my appliances are electric. I bought the equivalent Rheem to replace the ecosmart and I'll fix the eco smart I guess as a spare. I don't have time to wait for parts

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Oh, all my appliances are electric. I bought the equivalent Rheem to replace the ecosmart and I'll fix the eco smart I guess as a spare. I don't have time to wait for parts

The eco smart and rheem are the same, except the ground wire is not located under the circuit board on the Rheem

 

[Hobby_Man22]

I got the new one installed and after all that I realized you can turn these things off and on by pressing the temp button in I sure hope that wasn't all the problem was on the old one. I mean it did shut off in the middle of my shower, so I don't think so.