Rinnai Tankless Water Heater
RL75 Review
There are two Rinnai tankless water heaters from RL75 (old
R75LS) series; Rinnai
RL75i (old R75LSi) and RL75e (old R75LSe) model; both of them Energy
Star approved and design to provide enough hot water for up to four hot
water
units simultaneously.
The silver metallic and shiny
look makes Rinnai
RL75 models very attractive, so you can
put them anywhere inside your home, and if your kitchen is equipped
with the stainless
steel appliances, it's a perfect match. I would say, hidden in a closet
is
not the right place for such contemporary designed Rinnai
water heaters.
Rinnai tankless water heater RL75 is sold as the "Luxury model" designed with the 7.5 gallons per
minute capacity and 180 000 BTU per
hour gas input, ideal for medium to larger homes. The maximum power
is 180,000 Btus but thanks to the modulating gas burner, Rinnai can
lower its power to 10,300 Btu for smaller jobs.
Features
Review
Rinnai is green
When
comparing to the standard water heating
units, Rinnai RL75 on-demand water heaters are much more
advanced in protecting environment as they produce less greenhouse
gases like NOx and CO2,
take less space and have more exchangeable parts.
Quality
components
Heat
exchanger on Rinnai
RL75 models is
commercial grade unit, made of copper, resistant on
corrosion and reliable on high temperatures. Warranty on heat exchanger
is 12 years (residential use), while on other replacement parts is 5
years and one on
labor. Based on many user reviews and plumbers feedback, these units
are
truly durable; their life expectancy is 20 years and over.
Rinnai water heater is using the electronic ignition to fire
gas,
not an
energy consuming pilot light that is burning even when there is no need
for hot water heating.
Easy installation
Installation of the digital controller is highly recommended
so
you can set hot water temperature as you wish and within a specific
range and with an error
code
indicator you can diagnose and troubleshoot any problem. These digital
controllers are standard equipment on all indoor Rinnai tankless
water heaters, but are provided with the outdoor models.
For large homes, offices or restaurants, two Rinnai
tankless hot water heaters
can be connected by EZConnect
cable, so they can work as one unit, providing much
more thermal power and hot water.
Rinnai is high
efficient
Both models are
Energy Star qualified with
the energy factor 0.82 for both propane and natural gas use. Tax credit
up to $300 and other local rebates are available.
Safety
features
-
Boiling protection
-
Combustion fan RPM check
-
Flame rod in a case of flame failure
-
Remaining flame
-
Thermal fuse
-
Over current - glass fuse
-
Automatic freeze protection (warranty does
not cover water heater and
parts damage, due to freezing).
-
An auto
drain down solenoid valves for freeze protection can be used as back-up
when normal freeze protection is disabled. This is not
standard equipment, and has to be purchased separately.
-
Min and max pressure system protects unit
from lack of water and high pressure in plumbing.
The main competitors in tankless water heating industry, in US
and
Canada are Noritz, Bosch, Paloma, Navien, Takagi and Rheem.
Rinnai
RL75i LSe or RL75e
Rinnai tankless water heater RL75Le
has a
great advantage being an outdoor unit so you don't have to worry
about possible gas leak, venting system installation, flue gases, water
leaking, or finding the right spot
for its installation.
Even hanging outside they are still able to provide sufficient
hot, potable and
clean water, with a consistent and safe temperature, several-bathroom
home or any other
application in residential and commercial use.
Rinnai tankless water heater for the inside installation, RL75i, needs an
appropriate
venting.
Rinnai RL75i
can be installed virtually anywhere for domestic
water heating as it
is designed as combustion sealed water heater.
Flexible unit installation with concentric venting system is
such an
easy solution. This Rinnai model is using direct vent system where one
concentric pipe is used for air intake and for venting gases out.
Rinnai vent kit has to be original,
without any modifications on the
pipe, like reducing the pipe diameter, and to vent directly outside
through the wall,
without any connections to the existing vent or chimney.
To
prevent condensate draining back into the water heater through venting
system, an integrated condensate collector is used to protect the unit
with the proper installation (angle) of the flue pipe.
Either
way you go, interior, direct vent or exterior installation, Rinnai
tankless water heater, from series RL75,
is designed not to lose any performance, to be
safe for your family and to be used even for hot water heating
application up to 10 000 ft or over 3000 m above the sea level.
(Photo credit to Rinnai)
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