American Proline Water Heaters Review

• Features

• Direct Vent Proline Series

• Proline Flame Guard Series

• Ultra High Recovery Series

Main Features

• High altitude installation

• TPR valve is factory installed

• Space heating/potable water heating connection

• Heavy duty anode rod

• Solar storage tank or backup heater

• Piezo electric igniter to easy light the pilot

• Drain valve for easy draining and flushing

• Safety shut-off system consisted of flame sensing thermocouple that automatically turns the gas supply off if the pilot flame is extinguished and ECO (Energy Cut Off) that shuts off the unit if hot water temperature exceeds 180 F (83 C).

Proline Direct Vent Series

American Proline Direct Vent water heaters, DVG62 models, can be found in two sizes; 40 and 50-gallon capacity with gas input of 38,000 and 42,000 BTU per hour, recovery rate 38.5 and 42.6 GPH and lower 0.59 and 0.58 energy factor. Both models are with 6-year limited warranty on tank and parts.

Direct vent installation allows you to run the flue horizontally through the outside wall or vertically through the roof. The outside air is used for gas combustion while products of combustion are vented out. This is happening because of the enclosed combustion that protects the inside air to be used. Direct vent heaters are recommended for homes where the power venting is not a viable option or cannot attach the vent to the chimney.

For protection against the tank corrosion, the heavy duty anode rod is used and a thick, durable ceramic lining that is installed on the inner tank surface.

To save on energy costs and reduce the heat loss, American Proline water heaters with the direct venting have the 2" thick foam, which helps in reducing the heat loss.

Factory installed TPR valve is standard part. Natural gas units are using aluminized steel burner while propane water heaters are using cast iron burners.

If your American hot water heater is installed in the room with other flammable liquids and vapors, to reduce the risk of accidental fire, Proline direct vent units are designed to be FVIR compliant (flammable vapor ignition resistance).

Direct vent model can even be used as a solar storage heater or as a backup for your solar system. Be careful when using a solar water heating system as the outlet temperature may exceed 180 F (82 C) and cause problems with this Proline unit.

Recommendation is to use a tempering valve to restrict the supply water temperature to 120 F (49 C).

Proline FlameGuard Series

American Proline FlameGuard water heaters from BFG61 series, can be found in three sizes; 30, 40 and 50-gallon capacities where the gas input is in the range from 30,000 to 65,000 BTU per hour and recovery rates from 30.4 to 50.7 GPH.

All Proline FlameGuard water heaters are built with stamped stainless steel burners while models BFG61-50T50-4NOV and BFG62-50T50-4NOV are the only two with the cast iron burner. All models come with 6-year limited warranty on tank and parts.

40-gallon Proline model BFG62-40T40-3NOV has the highest thermal efficiency, EF is 0.63, while Proline model FVG62-50T65-4NOV has one of the lowest EF, 0.58.

American Proline FlameGuard water heaters are also available with the 9 and 12 years warranty, which are found in two 40 and 50-gallon tank sizes, and gas inputs of 40,000 and 50,000 BTU. From 6 available units that are using natural and propane gas, BFG122-40T40-3NOV is with the highest energy efficiency of EF 0.63.

Upgraded heavy-duty anode rod and fused ceramic tank lining are effectively used to fight the corrosive water action while the patented Self-Cleaning LimeFighter dip tube reduces the sediment build-up.

An intelligent control logic utilizes a small computer inside the heater which ensures a better performance and the accurate hot water temperatures.

The self-powered gas valve and a thermopile are used to generate the energy to run the heater, which makes these heaters electrically independent. LED indicator is built-in feater and part of the control valve, which serves to monitor the operation and for diagnostic purposes.

All the models are atmospherically vented and FVIR compliant that also come with the lint resistant design trap so the risk of accidental fires of flammable vapor is reduced.

Proline Ultra-High Recovery Series

American Proline Ultra-High recovery units are built in two sizes, 75 and 100 gallon capacity. With Super Eagle Performance and 2" polyurethane foam for heat loss reduction, these high performing units are designed for high hot water demand households.

They feature an exceptional 81 gallons per hour recovery with 90 F rise; when comparing to standard gas water heater models.

Both American Proline water heaters are providing 75,100 BTU per hour that can be used for domestic water heating and space heating applications as well. They come with the 6-year limited warranty, while for 75-gallon model you have an option to upgrade it to 12-year tank and parts warranty.

Since the American Proline water heaters are atmospheric type and using surrounding air for combustion, enough fresh air has to be provided, for proper gas combustion and ventilation of the flue gases.

Flue gases will travel through the flue baffle, draft hood and vent pipe, and extracted out. Vent system might be connected to the certified chimney or run vertically through the roof.

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