Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I've put up for years with having to run the hot water at my kitchen sink for 3 minutes before I got hot water, which was actually only warm. I live in a house where the water heater, powered by propane, is about 40 feet from the kitchen. I installed the DHCE-10 in a weekend myself, it fit on the back wall right under the sink. The hardest part was running the 40 amp circuit over a 60 foot run for the power. Plumbing wasn't bad, this unit uses the cold water for the inlet, I turned off the hot water valve under the sink and capped it off and teed into the cold water line. The outlet side of the heater is teed, one to the hot water inlet on the faucet, one to the dishwasher.
Before having the DHCE-10 I would have to keep the propane heater turned almost as high as it would go so the water would be hot at the kitchen sink. There was a fair amount of temperature drop over a 40 foot run in a slab foundation. After powering up the DHCE-10, I had 120 degree water at my kitchen sink in 3 seconds, amazing. The first thing I did was turn my propane heater down to low, just warm enough for showers in the baths, which are in close proximity to the propane heater. Another benefit is my dishwasher is now cleaning the dishes more effectively with 120 degree water which is what is recommended.
As for the heater itself, it is well constructed, compact, simple and easy to set. There is a dial on the front which adjusts the water temperature from off to 125 degrees. The unit is self limiting to a max of 125. The ambient temperature of the water going into the unit is 50 degrees, (I live in the South, test done in winter), my flow rate is 1.3 gallons per minute at my sink. The unit heats the water instantly to 120 degrees. The unit only consumes power when the water is turned on, there is a flow detection switch that powers up the unit when water flows through it. It turns off instantly when the water flow stops. Can't get any more efficient than that. If you live in an area where you're ambient water temperature is lower, it may be necessary to reduce the flow at the faucet to achieve the desired outlet temperature, or install one of Stiebel Eltron's larger or smaller units, they have a variety of sizes depending on your needs. The hot water temperature is relative to your flow rate and the ambient temperature of your cold water. The Stiebel Eltron web site has graphs and recommendations for your area.
I've been using the unit for three months now, I've monitored my propane usage, it has dropped dramatically. Prior to installing the unit we would turn on the hot water at the sink for washing hands and rinsing dishes, it usually didn't run long enough to actually get any hot water but it did run long enough to cause the propane heater to cycle on to reheat the water in the tank. I've seen no appreciable rise in my electric bill so far. I would expect the unit to pay for itself over it's lifespan.
I highly recommend this unit, I chose it over competitive units for it's warranty, quality and reputation. All copper internal components, quality switches and connectors. If I were to ever build a house I would install these units in each bath and the kitchen sink instead of having a tank style heater that cycles on and off whether or not you use any hot water. I would prefer this style unit over a whole house tankless heater also, as these install right at or near the the point of use eliminating the long runs resulting in temperature drops.
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Stiebel Eltron DHC-E 10 Electric Tankless Water Heater
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