Hot water heaters for showers

[Guest siamjourney]

I'm looking for a recommendation for a hot water heat that creates water that is scalding hot. It can be either electric or gas. I recently replaced a 6000 watt Panasonic electric heater with an Ecolux gas heater from Siam TV. The new one is terrible! At least the Panasonic could make the water reasonably hot if you reduced the water pressure. I have seen heaters in Thailand that are much less than 6000 watts that generated very hot water. I'm not sure quite what the game is as far as wattage vs. temperature. I would assume that higher wattage means hotter water.

Now that it's the cold season the heaters cannot heat up the water as well as a month ago. Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.

[Oscar2]

can't recommend a specific model but we have all Panasonic heaters in our house. they all work perfectly, produce really hot water, and the one time we had a problem with one of them, we were so surprised when the service center looked in the computer and told us the warranty was still good (2 months remaining) after almost 4 years! they ordered parts from Bangkok and when it was repaired the manager called to say they would deliver it and re-install it for us since we had to wait 3 weeks for the parts. great support by Panasonic.

watching the guy re-install the unit with bare feet on a soaking wet floor with 240 volts live was an experience as well!

[dutchisaan]

We have a Sharp 4500 and it is verry hot. Never turned it up more than 60%. Else you burn your self.

[Thailand]

Have 2 Panasonic 3.6k which are hopeless,even with the low water pressure barely warm now.

[Oscar2]

Have 2 Panasonic 3.6k which are hopeless,even with the low water pressure barely warm now.

3.6K is not enough.

[Thailand]

Have 2 Panasonic 3.6k which are hopeless,even with the low water pressure barely warm now.

3.6K is not enough.

Tell my landlord!

[Rotweiler]

We have Panasonic 6000 watt units in each bathroom. Work perfectly, even in cold season (now - last night 9 degrees - colder tonight)

[teacherofwoe]

We have a Mazuma gas heater which is hotter than a gas model. It's situated outside but you can use it inside but you will need to put in a flue for the fumes to escape. We have mixer taps in the kitchen and two bathrooms. This morning I had a piping hot shower under a big rain shower head with plenty of pressure. With the electric ones, you have to turn down the pressure to increase the heat and you end up with a drizzle. I had a nice warm shave too as the sinks have mixer taps. This unit produces water hot enough to travel up one story and an electric heater struggles with a one meter shower pipe. We paid about B6,000 or B7,000 for it which is about the same as the most powerful electric models. I'm afraid I can't remember the name of the shop, but it is a place similar to Global House on the Hang Dong Road. It's about half a kilometer from Kad Falang (going to C.M.) on the opposite side or the road.

Hope this helps.

[Guest siamjourney]

dutchisaan

"We have a Sharp 4500 and it is verry hot. Never turned it up more than 60%. Else you burn your self."

Where did you get it? I think I'd like to try one because I don't really like having the gas heater inside. I had a great hot shower with a gas heater but it must have been a better model. This thing I bought is from China and is worthless.

[onthedarkside]

dutchisaan

"We have a Sharp 4500 and it is verry hot. Never turned it up more than 60%. Else you burn your self."

Where did you get it? I think I'd like to try one because I don't really like having the gas heater inside. I had a great hot shower with a gas heater but it must have been a better model. This thing I bought is from China and is worthless.

Yes, we have a Sharp 4500 and it's very hot. Agree that 50% on control is very hot.

[eyecatcher]

We have a stiebel eltron 8kw water heater, actually its great multipoint...it feeds 3 rainshower heads concurrently in different rooms.

Cost 7500bt, and as its german engineering you expect the price to be higher.

Its fair to say though like all electric showers if you don't have the pressure to send the water through the heater it will never work no matter how many bells and whistles your heater has.

By comparison I don't think you can buy an electric shower less than 7.5kw in the UK.....you can generate 3.6kw of heat by farting I think.

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[Guest siamjourney]

Could either person who purchased the Sharp 4500 tell me where you got it?

Or this one:

"stiebel eltron 8kw"

Thanks. I would like to get something new soon given the current temperature in CM.

[Suradit69]

I just replaced my 5 year old Fujika 6000 watt water heater with a new Fujika 6000 watt water heater from HomePro (in Pattaya) for Baht 5910.

Up to the day it died it was excellent and the new one is off to a good start. It had a five year guarantee and that's almost exactly how long it lasted. If you have a HomePro in CM, they'd probably have it. There was a good quantity on offer here and with "The 1 Card" discount, it seemed a good deal and safe bet for a replacement.

[Tywais]

Have 2 Panasonic 3.6k which are hopeless,even with the low water pressure barely warm now.

3.6K is not enough.

From reading others, seems to vary greatly from brand to brand, perhaps model to model. I have Sharp 3.5kw heaters and comfortably warm at around 80% in this temperature. At 100% it gets a bit uncomfortable. A lot will depend on how much water pressure is available through the unit from the mains.

[eyecatcher]

Could either person who purchased the Sharp 4500 tell me where you got it?

Or this one:

"stiebel eltron 8kw"

Thanks. I would like to get something new soon given the current temperature in CM.

I got the stiebel at Global house, but all models and makes are sold at all the big stores

Global, home pro, home mart, sukkapan, thai watsadu and some at siam tv

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[eyecatcher]

And don't forget, the higher wattage heaters need a higher ampage circuit breaker...40amp.

Advisable to fit a breaker though regardless of the wattage....just in case.

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[Thailand]

Have 2 Panasonic 3.6k which are hopeless,even with the low water pressure barely warm now.

3.6K is not enough.

From reading others, seems to vary greatly from brand to brand, perhaps model to model. I have Sharp 3.5kw heaters and comfortably warm at around 80% in this temperature. At 100% it gets a bit uncomfortable. A lot will depend on how much water pressure is available through the unit from the mains.

We have the pressure so the conclusion is Sharp over Panasonic perhaps?

[firefox999uk]

And don't forget, the higher wattage heaters need a higher ampage circuit breaker...40amp.

Advisable to fit a breaker though regardless of the wattage....just in case.

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

And maybe heavier wiring

[Suradit69]

I just replaced my 5 year old Fujika 6000 watt water heater with a new Fujika 6000 watt water heater from HomePro (in Pattaya) for Baht 5910.

Up to the day it died it was excellent and the new one is off to a good start. It had a five year guarantee and that's almost exactly how long it lasted. If you have a HomePro in CM, they'd probably have it. There was a good quantity on offer here and with "The 1 Card" discount, it seemed a good deal and safe bet for a replacement.

Oops, sorry, that should have been HomeWorks, not HomePro.

[MrGaoMungGawn]

I have this 6000 watt hot water heater that heats the shower water as it travels to the shower head.

In the Hot Season In CM, the water is obviously hot enough.

But during the past 2 or 3 days, the water from the pipe is getting cooler and colder and frigid.

Now, when I turn the rheostat all the way to HOT, still the water will not really get hot enough for a pleasurable shower.

I figure I can't be the only one having this problem.

But you would think that 6K Watts would be plenty.

I do not know what output of water I am using, but not a great deal.

This is a new Panasonic DH-6HS1

Definitely does not get very hot on a night like this.

This is used in Chiang Mai.

[wayned]

I have two Sharp WH-751's, 6000W. I have never turned the temp past 3/4 and the water is plenty hot without reducing flow rate.

[kaptainrob]

As Eyecatcher pointed out, anything above ~3,500watts will require a heavier breaker than standard ~16amp. Check your Load Centre breakers now!

Water pressure, if too high/flow too strong, will reduce output temp. Very noticeable this time of year as supply water is ~10 degrees colder. One may reduce pressure on the inlet side of heater easily enough however this reduces water spray strength. Fitting a more appropriate spray head and/or a 25 satang restricting (water-saver) washer in the outlet hose is the best way to go.

[jonwilly]

I have a 6.5 Panasonic and no problems in this very cold Chiang Mai weather, luvverly hot showers.

I received mail from a 94 years old friend who has been resident up here since 1960. He used to collect weather data and below his a relevant part of his e mail to me. john

Quite cold weather. Yesterday my driver took some warm clothing and a woolly cap for his father in Chom Tong, temperature there was down to 4 degrees. Coldest in CM used to be 6 degrees.

john

Edited December 20, 2013 by jonwilly

[MrGaoMungGawn]

I have a 6.5 Panasonic and no problems in this very cold Chiang Mai weather, luvverly hot showers.

I received mail from a 94 years old friend who has been resident up here since 1960. He used to collect weather data and below his a relevant part of his e mail to me. john

Quite cold weather. Yesterday my driver took some warm clothing and a woolly cap for his father in Chom Tong, temperature there was down to 4 degrees. Coldest in CM used to be 6 degrees.

john

Obviously, this is some sort of plot by the Chinese weather manipulators up there near Mongolia. We are lucky that they do not makes us dip down to Harbin temperatures which go as low as Negative Fifty, or maybe lower.

Could be the Chinese are using more than just saltpeter to shoot into their clouds.

The water on this Panasonic will get warm enough to shower with, BUT it will not get steaming even at full hot.

[meechai]

The thing about on demand water heaters is it works on temp rise.

So if water is starting out at 21c & your heater takes it up 10c you have 31c water

But if the cold season is on you may be starting with colder water so the 10c rise

will seem inadequate

A simple fix is to reduce the volume of water entering the heater.

Of course your output/flow will be less but your heat/temp will be much higher

All these heaters have a inlet valve that can be closed some & are usually set wide open

for highest flow/volume.

Just turn it in ( clockwise ) to reduce inlet volume

Of course if you close it too much you will not only have very low output but you may see your heater

click off in self preservation as it need X amount of flow to turn on in the first place lest it melt itself

[eyecatcher]

The stiebel eltron dogs <deleted> I referred to earlier...decided to test it on heat setting two today.....

Had the proverbial hot steam shower, it was great......until my breaker decided either the shower unit or the breaker didn't like steam.

So...firstly ensure your breaker is up to par and outside the bathroom (this is a rarety)

And secondly dont enjoy the hot water too much.....a colder shower will save water, save electric and stimulate the blood vessels bringing them to the surface for an all round feel good factor.

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[kaptainrob]

^ exactly what I said, in a different way

Waiting on someone to query my wattage/breaker amps post ... ? The point (perhaps missed) being that one cannot have a 6000watt heater running off a standard 16amp circuit breaker.

[worgeordie]

I have a SolarHeart water heater on the roof,had it for 20 years,it was

expensive at the time,but I am quiet sure it has paid for its self,basically

maintenance free,even at cold times like now the water gets hot with

just a couple of hours of sun,in summer it gets scalding hot.

It works in showers ,bath,and have hot cold at sinks in kitchens,most

likely the best money i ever spent,they are quite expensive now at

around 200,000 bht.

regards worgeordie

[eyecatcher]

Yes we are both singing from the same hymn sheet.

I did say my 8kw shower is on a 40 amp breaker.

But they are not steam proof it seems

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[Naam]

We have a Mazuma gas heater which is hotter than a gas model. It's situated outside but you can use it inside but you will need to put in a flue for the fumes to escape. We have mixer taps in the kitchen and two bathrooms. This morning I had a piping hot shower under a big rain shower head with plenty of pressure. With the electric ones, you have to turn down the pressure to increase the heat and you end up with a drizzle. I had a nice warm shave too as the sinks have mixer taps. This unit produces water hot enough to travel up one story and an electric heater struggles with a one meter shower pipe. We paid about B6,000 or B7,000 for it which is about the same as the most powerful electric models. I'm afraid I can't remember the name of the shop, but it is a place similar to Global House on the Hang Dong Road. It's about half a kilometer from Kad Falang (going to C.M.) on the opposite side or the road.

Hope this helps.

"an electric heater struggles with a one meter shower pipe"

tell us more fairy tales please even though they don't really help but provide entertainment