One of the most frequent processes in your home is the heating of water. Heating water can account for up to 30% of an average home’s energy cost. Another hassle is to replace a water heater that is leaky or doesn’t working anymore. So what is the solution? A gas tankless water heater is not only more dependable; it can cut your energy bill by almost up to half of what you were paying before. This upgrade can also add value to your home while delivering all the hot water you need.
Call (888) 757-7489 Now For Fast, Reliable Service!
So how does this work? It’s very simple. The traditional way of heating water was to fill up a water tank and heat the water inside the tank. This could take up to an hour to get the water to the right temperature. Tankless water heaters use a heat exchanger to heat the water before it reaches your shower or faucets. When the water passes through the heat exchanger, the water is heated instead of having to be heated in bulk through a traditional water heater. This is 22 percent more efficient to energy costs than your standard gas-fired water heater.
The typical home goes through about 76 to 80 gallons of water per day. This includes 3-4 showers, a load of laundry, running the faucets 9-11 times and running dishwasher after dinner. This might be considered overkill by some, but it is actually fairly accurate to a common family. With all of this water running through your home, a standard water heater can heat and reheat water all day long. This means that the water heater is going to run more, giving you a higher energy bill.
If you opt for a tankless water heater, the water is heated as needed. When you run a faucet, do a load of laundry, turn on your dishwasher or hop in the shower, the water is heated immediately giving you the temperature that you want. This is extremely important because you don’t have an energy-hungry appliance constantly running. Due to this innovation and streamlined service, the energy bill to your home goes down immensely.
So what is the cost of tankless water heater? The prices vary, and they are more expensive than a standard water heater, however, you are making an investment in bringing down your energy costs. One of the most commonly asked questions is whether or not installing a tankless water heater will require extra pipes or the replacement of pipes already in place. Most tankless water heaters will not require any extra pipes.
What about an extra electrical panel? Tankless water heaters usually do not need any extra electrical panels to be installed to your home. They run off of the same electrical panel as your original water heater. If you plan on installing a generator to your home, you will need to ask a professional about installation or crossing your tankless water heater over to a generator. Give us a call and we’ll be happy to answer any questions you have.
Are you tired of paying the costs of standard water heaters? Are you tired of running out of hot water? Do you want to bring down your energy costs and invest in a system that will deliver results? Tankless water heaters are one of the best investments you can make. By using this innovative heat exchanger, you will never be without hot water. Contact Ritz Plumbing for any questions on the installation of a new system in your area.
Fully licensed & insured technicians, using only the highest quality parts.
We assess the job and provide a quote before any work begins.
Our large fleet means help is usually available within the hour.
Contactless service by trained technicians wearing PPE.
5/22/2019
A client called us to say that she had been experiencing inadequate hot water in her home for over a week.
Before beginning any inspection, the technician turned off the power to the hot water heater by flipping the switch on the circuit breaker. He then turned the gas pilot control valve so that it was on its pilot setting and shut off the main water supply to the unit.
The technician needed to assess the cause of the poor hot water supply. He believed that it may have been caused due to a faulty plumbing installation in which a technician had mistakenly crossed hot and cold water connections. To verify this, he ensured the water supply was off and turned on a hot water faucet. He noted that water continued to flow, so he checked to see where a cold water connection was attached to a hot water line connection on the heater. After finding the source of the problem, he fixed the connections so that they would flow the correct way and checked to ensure the hot water was at the appropriate temperature.
4/8/2019
A restaurant owner contacted us and said that he was not having hot water when his staff had tried to wash their hands.
The technician first needed to determine if the client did have hot water that just wasn’t as hot as it had been or if there really was no hot water at all. Our technician checked to make sure that the standby light was on at that the red lights worked as water flowed.
By ensuring that the standby light was on, the technician was able to verify that the unit had power. However, the red lights were not working as the owner tried to use the hot water. The technician needed to determine that there was 220 volts at the junction box attached to the water heater and that the connections were working properly. After discussing the situation with the owner, he admitted that the tankless water heater was over 10 years old and had never been properly maintained.
3/22/2019
A customer contacted us complaining of a rotten egg smell coming from his hot water heater. He would have normally assumed the smell was from a leaking gas pipe, but he was certain the smell was stemming from the unit itself.
We assessed the situation and determined that the decay of sacrificial anode had caused hydrogen gas that was feeding bacteria, allowing it to build up in the tank sediment.
Before beginning the job, the technician made sure to cut off the power by turning off the breaker and shut off the water supply to the heater as well. The technician flushed the water heater completely and mixed a solution of hydrogen peroxide and water to treat the tank. He allowed the solution to flow into the water lines to clean them out and let the mixture sit in the tank for two hours. He informed the client that the solution would not need to be rinsed because it wasn’t toxic.
June 2021
A homeowner contacted us to report that they were not getting enough hot water. The homeowner said that the temperature was good initially but would sharply fall off, and there would be no more hot water after a few minutes in the shower.
The technician examined a few of the outlets in the home, including the shower and kitchen sink, and found that the hot water issue was present throughout the home. The technician then examined the hot water tank in the basement and found that the dip tube was damaged.
The technician recommended replacing the dip tube, and the customer was open to the idea. Water tanks built between 1993 and 1997 often purchased defective dip tubes that broke easily. The dip tube was not functioning as intended, which was to direct cold water to the bottom of the tank, resulting in the loss of hot water. Our technician was able to quickly bring a replacement part and install the new dip tube. Once installed, all the outlets were reviewed, and there were no more hot water issues in the home.
June 2021
A customer reported that they were not getting any hot water in the home. The homeowner inspected his tankless water heater and didn’t notice any problems with it. The temperature was set at the right amount, and even after raising it, there was still no hot water in the building.
Our technician arrived on site and inspected the tankless water heater. Although the temperature parameters were set right, after turning on some of the kitchen faucets, it was clear that the burner was not working. There was no flame present when the water heater was activated.
Our technician noticed a few issues with the burner set up and quickly resolved all of them. The flame rod was loose on the burner set up and was hanging in the air. The technician was careful to turn off the burner and then fix the wire rod in place. The technician also bled all the air from the gas line as it was likely causing the issue of the burner not getting enough gas. Once these two items were completed, the gas burner ignited, and the tankless hot water heater was functional again.
July 2020
Although it was July and most people in Los Angeles were not thinking about the heat, we received a call from a client who was suffering from a lack of hot water in his home.
After interviewing the client, our technician determined that the electric within the unit was malfunctioning and that the hot water heater was more than 20 years old.
The technician informed the client that his best option would be to replace the entire unit as they are only typically designed to last for 10 to 12 years.
July 2020
A client contacted us complaining of a lack of hot water in his home. His wife was becoming frustrated because she had tried to shower two separate days, and the water just wasn’t hot.
After our technician arrived at the residence, he immediately noticed that the pilot light was not on.
Since it was a newer style water heater, the technician was able to push a button to spark the generator and ignite the pilot light. He placed a follow-up call to the client who confirmed that they finally had hot water again.
2/15/2019
A homeowner called our professionals to schedule an appointment for a technician to install a tankless water heater in her home. Her current water heater was about to expire and she wanted to update her system with a tankless model instead.
Our technician evaluated the situation and determined the best location to install a new water heater. He decided that the new heater would function best in the same place as the old model.
Because he was using the same location, he had to verify that the vent pipe met the same dimension requirements for the tankless water heater that the old one needed. He lined up the pipes and determined that the vent pipe did not need to be replaced. He was able to mount the water heater by ensuring the tank lined up with the vent pipe and attached the water pipes as required. Before he left the residence, he used a gas sniffer to check for gas leaks and made sure the unit was functioning properly.
12/19/2019
We received a call from a client who had been trying to take a hot bath the previous night but had no hot water at her residence on Brookshire Ave. near Brookshire Children’s Park.
Although the client stated that she had no hot water, our technician knew that the definition of “no” could vary among clients, so he needed to determine whether the water truly was ice cold or simply not as hot as it had been the previous day.
The technician explained that one of the most common causes of poor or hot water is electrical complications. By verifying that the tankless water heater was, in fact, receiving power and that the voltage and connections were working, the technician determined that the tankless water heater would need to be replaced. The client told our technician that the unit was nearly 25 years old, so she was not surprised by the technician’s conclusion.
11/13/2019
Customer called with no hot water. Tankless hot water heater had broken down previous week and fixed by another plumbing company.
The gas thermocouple was faulty. Previous company had not replaced it as reported.
Ritz Plumbing technician had a spare thermocouple available for immediate replacement. The new part was installed and pilot light came back on with no issues. Technician completed a customary free review of the rest of the water heater and found no major issues. Hot water confirmed as being back on.
09/07/2019
We received a call from a landlord who had been receiving complaints from a tenant who had no running hot water when she was using her bathroom sink.
Before deciding what the best course of action would be, the technician needed to know if the water was ice cold or if it was lukewarm and not as hot as it had been in previous weeks.
The technician checked to make sure that the standby light on the tankless water heater was functioning so that he would know that the unit was receiving the power necessary to heat the water. The connections and the voltage to the water heater were also working, so the technician was able to rule out any electrical causes. After asking the landlord about the age of the water heater, the technician determined that the unit would need to be replaced as it was over 20 years old. He stressed the importance of regular maintenance checks to the new tankless water heater that would need to be purchased.
07/11/2019
We received a call from a homeowner who was attempting to make his home greener by conserving energy. He was interested in installing a tankless water heater in an effort to promote environmental awareness for his family and decrease his energy bills. He asked if we had a technician for the job.
The technician surveyed the location of the homeowner’s current water heater and determined that a new, tankless model could be installed successfully in the same location.
The technician shut off the water to the current hot water tank and hooked a garden hose to the spigot on the bottom to drain the unit. The homeowner had an interested buyer for the water heater, so the technician was able to move it to the side. The technician then installed the tankless water heater by bolting it into place and installed the power vent; the homeowner’s former water heater had a stack vent, so the technician needed to wire to heater in. The technician turned the water back on to verify that the unit was running properly before leaving the residence.
It takes less than 5 minutes and we’re available 24/7.
60 minutes or less response time.