Woke up last night to this creepy banging sound from the basement, thought it was haunted or something, but turns out it's just my ancient water heater acting up again. It's been around since forever, so I guess it's finally time to replace it. Thinking about going tankless maybe, heard they're pretty efficient and save space. Anyone here switched recently or got some advice on what to look out for?
Had a similar issue a couple years back—my old heater sounded like someone was trapped inside banging to get out, especially at night. Switched to tankless myself, and yeah, it's been pretty solid. But have you checked your gas line size and venting setup yet? Tankless units can be picky about that stuff. Also, curious if you've thought about your hot water usage patterns...do you have multiple showers running at once or anything like that?
Tankless sounds tempting, but as a first-time homeowner, I'm still figuring things out step-by-step. Did you have to upgrade your gas lines or vents when switching? I'm kinda worried about hidden costs popping up...
"Did you have to upgrade your gas lines or vents when switching? I'm kinda worried about hidden costs popping up..."
Yeah, that's a legit concern. When I switched to tankless a couple years back, I did end up having to upgrade the gas line—my old one wasn't big enough to handle the new system. The venting was fine, but I've heard from others that sometimes that's an issue too, depending on your setup. Honestly, I'd budget a bit extra for surprises...home upgrades always seem to have a few curveballs.
The venting was fine, but I've heard from others that sometimes that's an issue too, depending on your setup.
Had a similar issue last year—banging and popping sounds from my old water heater, turned out it had tons of sediment buildup. Flushed it out temporarily, but it didn't last long. Ended up going tankless too. Agree with the gas line upgrade thing, mine needed upsizing as well. Just make sure you factor that into your budget and timeline... unexpected delays can be a pain.
