You may be wondering how you can best prepare your tankless water heater for the upcoming cold months; well, we are here to help with that. Below you will find more help broken down by model and how you can be ready for the cold while keeping your Eccotemp Tankless Water Heater in its best shape come spring.
First, let’s review the Portables:
L5, EL5, L7, EL7 & L10
The portable series tankless water heaters are not meant for permanent installation and should always be drained, taken down, and stored away in a warm environment when not in use. This helps to keep water from freezing, expanding, and busting the pipes inside that are responsible for providing you that lovely hot water.
*DO NOT leave your portable water heater outside in the elements; rain, dust, bugs, and even sometimes mice can find their way into your tankless water heater. This series should NEVER be permanently installed and left outside, especially during the cold and wet weather.
Remember that freeze damage voids your warranty and neither of us wants that! Always protect your water heater from the elements!
Let’s move on to our smaller home units:
FVI12 and i12
Now, just because this water heater is an indoor tankless water heater doesn’t mean that you are 100% safe from freezing temperatures affecting your water heater. You still have to be mindful of the incoming water temperatures and just like we’ve done for years with our traditional water heaters, it’s a good practice to leave that faucet dripping when the outside temperatures drop down below 32 degrees F or 0 degrees C. Some folks even open up the cabinets below their sinks to let the heat from the home help keep the pipes below warm. Both the FVI12 and the i12 are not equipped with any “anti-freeze” technology inside, so this “dripping” of the faucet is definitely something you want to practice.
You should also be sure you wrap your piping and valves in insulation material as instructed in your manual. The pipes leading to your water heater are just as important as the unit itself.
If your water heater is at a vacation cabin or place that you don’t plan on visiting for the season, then we recommend treating it the same as portable water heaters for preparation: drain, disconnect and store away in a warm, dry place until you are ready to use it again.
Notice: Unplugging the electric supply cord does not protect the unit from freeze damage.
Moving onto our larger whole-home units:
20H/20HI, 45H/45HI, and EL22/EL22i Series
All the 20 series, 45 series, and the EL22 series are equipped with an anti-freeze technology built into the water heater to help protect the water heater from those harsh and cold freezing temperatures. Keep in mind, that this technology is only meant to protect the unit itself, so if you did not properly prepare your pipes leading to the unit, then you are not fully protecting your water heater. These anti-freeze protectors in the water heater will in no way guarantee protection from freeze damage. DO NOT rely on the anti-freezers to fully protect the unit from freezing. Take all precautions to avoid cold damage.
Freezing anywhere in the plumbing system can result in damage to the water heater, such as a rupture in your Heat Exchanger. All pipes must be adequately protected from freezing. Tankless water heaters with Anti-Freezers, like the 20, 45, and EL22, have an automatic heating device and will help to avoid freeze damage to the water heater, but the power must be kept on. This does not protect the incoming and outgoing pipes to and from the water heater. Freezing will occur with no power. In very cold areas and when the temperature is under 32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius, or in event of an ice storm, freezing will occur as the heating power limit is exceeded. If these conditions take place, remember it is important to follow the procedure below:
Shut off the main gas valve and power
Shut off the inlet water valve
Open all faucets
Take the drain valve and allow water to drain for 3 minutes or until the unit is empty
Make sure all water is out, replace the drain valve, and shut off the faucets
The most important thing to remember during the winter is that you should be taking all precautions when it comes to protecting your tankless hot water heater.
If at any time during this season you have any questions, feel free to Live Chat with our support team via our website or support page: support.eccotemp.com
Our dedicated team is always happy to help!