LESLIE: Aloha, Kevin. We’re going to talk to Kevin in Hawaii who finds The Money Pit on KHNR. And what can we do for you in beautiful Hawaii?
KEVIN: Aloha. I was wondering – I have a regular water tank – a water heater – and I want to purchase a tankless water heater.
TOM: OK.
KEVIN: And I was wondering if I’d be able to use a flex – either a steel braided (ph) flex line or a flexible copper tube to run from the existing copper pipe that’s on the water (audio gap) run it over into the tankless water heater.
TOM: What manufacturer tankless water heater did you purchase, Kevin?
KEVIN: Bosch.
TOM: First of all, that’s a great home improvement to do. A tankless water heater is a fantastic improvement to a standard water heater because it only delivers hot water when you need it. So kudos on that.
In terms of the connections itself – now, I have to tell you to read the owner’s manual, obviously, to get the specifics; but I have seen some Bosch tankless water heater owner’s manuals. They specify that copper galvanized or suitably rated stainless steel flex line piping can be used for the water heater connection. So you’re probably OK with the flex lines but you need to check two things first. Number one – the manual that came with. And number two – local codes because they do vary from place to place. But other than that, I think you should be able to do it.
KEVIN: Wow, great. Well then my only other problem would be hooking up my water softener and the inline house water filter. (laughing)
TOM: Well, you know, we can – we can tackle them one at a time but I think you’re on the right track with a tankless water heater. Good idea.
KEVIN: OK. Yeah, that’s what I was thinking because it was about the same price as a regular water heater and that’s the thing; you’re not wasting gas or you know, reheating water or anything like that. So (inaudible) …
TOM: They’re fantastic. And regular water heaters are dumb (chuckling) because they heat water all the time whether you need it or not. Tankless heats it on demand so it’s clearly the way to go and the prices are coming down and it’s a smart home improvement.
Kevin, thanks so much for calling 1-888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Mahalo.
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