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beth9

Have you heard reviews of the 'eternal water heater'?

beth9
16 years ago

This is a new water heater that is a hybrid -- has only a 6 gallon tank. It has a hybrid turbo heat exchanger, and is supposedly the most efficient water heater on the market (more than tankless).

I know it is new on the market and was wondering if anyone has heard any reviews. It only has a three year warranty, so that concerned us.

We are looking for a water heater to install outside (w/o an enclosure) and saw this option. Any other suggestions?

Comments (5)

  • jakethewonderdog
    16 years ago

    I would take the claims of greater efficiency with a grain of salt. What I didn't see was an energy factor rating which gets past all the marketing BS. In addition when a tankless has an energy factor of .82-.86, you are really getting into a case of diminishing returns.

    The only legitimate issue that I see here is avoiding a slight delay in getting hot water due to the water being in the small tank. It also would limit the "cold sandwich" which hasn't been much of a problem for me in real life.

    I'm also not seeing pricing information.

    If you are looking for an outdoor installed water heater what about an outdoor tankless?

  • beth9
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    We have just read so many mixed reviews about tankless. I think we would need to have two tanks to support the six of us, which means new plumbing, and the current plumbed source is far from all of the showers. So, from what I've read, a tankless wouldn't be a good solution-right?

    Plus we just paid to have a recirculating system installed. Our plumber said this eternal water heater would work with a recirc. system.

    Can you recommend model that can sit outside without being enclosed?

  • jake2007
    16 years ago

    Can we step back just a little bit. You are saying a whole lot of things that aren't very clear.

    Instead, let me ask you a few questions:

    -How many hot water outlets (and what type)do you normally expect to operate at the same time?

    -In what area of the country do you live? (I'm interested in winter temperatures)

    -Do you have any unusual hot water needs (such as a large tub, multi-head showers, etc)

    -Are you currently involved in a new construction, addition or remodel project?

    -Are low operating expenses important to you?
    -Is low energy consumption important to you (environmental/green)?

    -Is a low installed cost a high priority? (less than $1200)

    -What source of energy do you have available (Natural Gas, electric, Propane, Oil)

    -Do you put a high priority on the water at the tap being hot quickly?

    -Are water/sewer rates high in your area? Are there drought considerations?

    Let's start with these questions first and then we can narrow things down a bit.

  • acpstx
    12 years ago

    We have them, and we are very knowledgeable about them. If anyone has any questions, dont hesitate to contact us!

    Here is a link that might be useful: Our Site

  • ReviewinMalibu
    11 years ago

    After our 2 yr old water heater failed, we had to replace it with a new model that required $1600 in parts and service. Grand Hall refused to pay any. We purchased a brand new home in 2010 that had an Eternal water heater by Grand Hall. Two years later the heater failed and had to be replaced with a new one. Eternal no longer manufactured the model we had, so they sent us the newer one that replaced it. The problem is that it cost over $1,600 in parts and labor to reconfigure and install this new model -- and Eternal (Grand Hall) refused to reimburse any of it. They said that the warranty only covered the unit, which they sent. But it was so different from the original it was very expensive to install. After only two years of use, we feel very strongly that Eternal (Grand Hall) should have backed up their product when it failed. It is ridiculous that we are out $1,600 for replacing a brand new water heater we only had for two years. If they changed the model so drastically, they need to pay for the installation when they replace a defective unit. I had multiple phone and email conversations with Eternal representatives, finally getting escalated to district manager Shawn Bacon. I emailed him the receipts for the expenses we incurred in replacing the unit. He told me since their warranty didn't cover the extra parts and labor Eternal was not going to reimburse us.