Our Rating
Summary:
4.3
Are you tired of having an inefficient water heater in your home? Do you want to upgrade to a system that can provide you with a continuous stream of hot water whenever you need it? The high capacity capabilities of the Rinnai RU98IN indoor tankless water heater will definitely solve those problems. It offers a 9.8 GPM capacity at a maximum 199k BTUs to provide a max energy factor of 0.94. Although the cost of about $1,500 on Amazon may put off some homeowners, the results of this investment are nothing short of fantastic.
What Are the Features of the Rinnai RU98IN?
What we really loved about this particular water heater was the durability of its hardware. It includes heavy duty forged brass Webstone Isolator valves EXP E2 and offers users a MC-91-1US controller. It meets both the Texas and California standards of nox emissions and its ultra-efficiency will help you save plenty of money every month on the utility bills. Expect to use 5-6 faucets simultaneously with continuous hot water once installed.
Here are some of the additional features of this hot water heater to consider.
- It offers both residential and commercial applications. Residential installations can have a max temperature of 140F, while commercial installations can have temperatures of up to 185F.
- The heat exchanger has one of the best warranties in the industry today at 12 years, while there is a 5 year parts warranty and a 1 year labor warranty on a residential installation.
- Once installed, the equipment runs very quietly.
There are a couple points of emphasis that must be noted. A self-installation of this unit will void its warranties. A licensed professional must at least inspect the installation and sign off on it. You will also need to have PVC concentric venting because this is a condensing water heater.
Is the Rinnai RU98IN the Right Water Heater For You?
As with most hot water options, the Rinnai RU98IN is going to not function if the power goes out. It’s electrical needs are minimal, however, so installing a battery backup will often solve this problem for homeowners. It will provide continuous hot water that will not run out and even if you have multiple faucets open, there will still be warm water being used.
This tankless water heater does use a water flow algorithm to determine when hot water should be provided. If you turn water on and off consistently, the algorithm can be fooled into believing that there is no need for hot water and so it will only supply cold water. You can avoid this issue by leaving the water on instead of turning it off, but that wastes water and increases costs, so could be a minor inconvenience for some users.
For most homes that need a whole house solution for continuous hot water, the lower level tankless water heaters can’t get the job done. That’s not going to happen with the Rinnai RU98IN. It has the capability of delivering a solid result time and time again.
