Of the major brands of tankless hot water heaters Noritz, Navien, Takagi, & Rinnai, which brand is best? I recently asked a friend of mine this question. He installs and services tankless water heaters so I figured if anyone would know he would. Here is his reply.
All the major brands of tankless hot water heaters are very similar in construction, operation, and quality. Each brand has claims by the manufacturer that theirs is better, but nothing really stands out in my opinion, to differentiate between the brands.
Noritz advertises its "Dual Burner" technology as a big advantage. Is that a significant advantage over the others? I don’t think so. Since all of the brands modulate the flames I don’t think having two small burners is any better than one larger burner. In fact, if I had to choose I would take the single burner since it is simpler and I think simpler is better.
Rinnai, Noritz, and Takagi are all made in Japan and Noritz and Takagi both share some components, and they have similar warranties. Rinnai uses a different venting system than Noritz and Takagi. Do I think its better? Not really.
I do like the fact that Rinnai tankless water heaters have a built-in condensation trap. Sometimes installers forget or just don't bother to include the condensation trap when installing a tankless water heater because of the additional cost. This can result in a much shorter life expectancy for the heat exchanger. Unless the customer knows something about tankless heater installations he would have no idea that it was missing. Vent condensation is highly corrosive and should not be allowed to drip on parts of your water heater.
Navien tankless water heaters are made in South Korea. Navien is better established in Canada. The Navien units have unique and interesting features, like a built in small buffer tank that lets you obtain low flows of hot water and eliminates cold water sandwiches.
Navien heaters have 98% efficiency while the other major brands have about 94%. Is the 4% difference significant? It would not be enough for you to notice on your utility bill.
Navien, Noritz, Rinnai and Takagi are mechanically very similar. They all deliver roughly the same amount of hot water for the gas or electricity used. The warranties are all pretty much the same.
I personally like Takagi because of their excellent service. They even have a toll free number 24/7 that I can call when there is a problem. When your hot water heater stops working on Friday night, and you can’t get any help until Monday morning you can become quite frustrated.
I feel that the most important thing when buying a tankless water heater is to be sure that heater is installed correctly; it is not like your standard storage type water heater where you connect a couple of pipes up and you are done.
With a tankless hot water heater It is very important to purchase it and have it installed by a plumber that is experienced with tankless water heaters particularly with the brand you are purchasing. If you experience problems in the future, you will be glad you did.
Another tankless water heater comparison article: Compare Bosch, Takagi, Noritz & Rinnai
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