Stiebel Eltron 230628 240V, 12 kW DHC-E12 Single/Multi-Point-of-Use Tankless Electric Water Heater

I bought this to replace a 50-gallon electric tank heater that developed late-life incontinence and finally stopped working. I'd been considering a tankless heater for a while, attracted by the lower running costs. Frankly the purchase cost is attractive too; compared to the $500+ that a non-garbage tank heater would cost, $260 for this Siebel-Eltron unit seemed like a bargain. It's important to note that in my case, the tank was only serving: a kitchen, a laundry/utility room with sluice sink & washing machine, and an occasional shower room (used for hosing down after gardening, etc.). I am in the Pacific Northwest and on well-water; my guess is that my water is at approx. 52°F. For whole-house use at this input temp or lower, and certainly if you intend to use a shower at the same time as something else, you WILL need a larger-wattage unit. Quick version: I installed it this afternoon and am happy; it provides enough heating capacity to allow a shower. Longer version: Installation was fairly easy. The most complex part was having to upgrade the cable from my breaker box, which was, fortunately, only 5 feet away from the heater's location. The old water tank used a dual-pole 30A breaker, and 10AWG wire. This Siebel-Eltron DHC-E12 needs a 60A DP breaker, and that in turn mandates 8WG cable to meet code. I was able to pull new cable through and upgrade the breaker myself, only needing to cut a small hole in the drywall for access - but I was lucky, and in most cases I suggest you'd need to engage a professional electrician. One reason I chose this heater is that any higher rated devices generally need TWO dual-pole breakers - and there just isn't space in my breaker panel for that. Once the wiring was in place - with a junction box and conduit to make it look neater, where the old tank heater only had the wire sticking straight out of the drywall - I mounted the heater to the wall. I had to remove a section of drywall and install 2x4 cross-bracing for this; the heater mounts using 2 screws at the top and bottom, meaning that if I'd been able to align it with a wall stud this last step wouldn't have been necessary. The front panel control dial must be connected to the inside of the unit. As the (very helpful) installation manual makes clear, there are 2 possible connection points. Using connection point A1 allows selection of the full temperature range up to 140°F; if you connect to point A2, however, the temp is restricted to 109°F. I can see this being useful if you have small children, for example. I then hooked up the cold & hot water lines. **IMPORTANT!** Pretty much every water heater I've seen uses 3/4" MIP fittings, and the flexible supply lines are sized correspondingly. This unit however uses 1/2" MIP, so I had to obtain a 1/2" FIP-3/4" MIP brass bushing for each line - these were not included. Once installed and tightened, it was time to turn on the cold water feed, let the water run through the system, and then flip the breaker. Success first time! The unit immediately started heating water. I had to play a little with the valve on my cold water supply line to reduce the flow rate; the red light on this unit blinks if it's having trouble heating the water to the target temperature. But as you can see in the included video, the end result is that I can have a perfectly acceptable hot shower. Overall, I'm happy with this. I hope this review helps you make a purchasing decision.

Es una delicia que es "plog and play", super calienta el agua a la temperatura que le indiques... Solo cuida el sarro que es super facil de limpiar y dar manteniento!!

Buy the Stiebel! I became acquainted using these heaters when I lived in Costa Rica and operated a construction company. I consider them to be a premium product and they are expensive when compared to others, but I believe worth the cost especially with cheaper steel tanked units locally produced there. Glad amazon warehouse deals had one of these on sale, I am forever thankful for finding this one at half price! I recommend to all to install these as they are all copper construction inside, which is great to reduce the affects of poor water quality and varying pressures. They're also German engineered and have a great warranty. I only experienced one that failed when I was still in Costa Rica, it was less than a year old and cycled between extreme hot and cold. It's nearly impossible to return anything there even if broken or defective, but after emailing the parent company of the antics the local seller was putting me through, they promptly sent a replacement direct to me. Now back in the US and installed in my home, the 12kW DHC-E is installed upstairs as a booster to service two full sized bathrooms. Before, it would take around 40 seconds for hot water to arrive from the crawlspace water heater, and now I have hot water in 5-10 seconds. So, saving water and less waiting. I do like the fact this unit is smart enough to turn off when hot water from the main tank reaches it, so its saving all around. Do yourself a favor and install one of these and no more waiting and endless hot water. Installation is straightforward and these heaters are the size of a shoebox so they mount almost anywhere.

I have been using the unit for a week or so - it's more than meeting my expectations. I purchased a small unit since there are only 2 people living in my home. I was concerned that the water wouldn't be hot enough - I live in Vancouver BC - the inlet temperature is about 55 degree - the copper supply line runs through an uninsulated crawlspace to the kitchen sink. I was pleasantly surprised - it does take 20-30 seconds for the hot water to travel to the faucet - but it was similar with the 40 gallon hot water tank. If don't open the faucet fully - the flow more than meets my needs - this ensures that the water is hot and reduces the energy requirements of the heater. I've actually reduced the heater water temperature setting to ~ 110 F - and it' plenty hot enough. As an added benefit, I now have extra space in the utility room to install some storage cabinets. My main installation challenge was finding a 50 amp double pole breaker to fit my Federal Pacific panel - they are no longer made. I was able to find one locally.

Came with a booklet for 3 models and never had specific instructions for DHC-E12 - highly confusing. And there are electrical connections for internal lights/signals and temp control which were never explained. In fact, one connector could plug into two different slots (A or B). We guessed A and it seems to be working. For such quality manufacture it is weird there is no warranty card, no DHC-E12 instructions, NO instructions to even register the product... But the unit is clean, works well and except for the silly snafu paperwork and lack of instructions, good quality value.