With he cold season coming soon, we were looking at changing out the instant water heaters in our place...we have low water pressure and really like it consistently hot.

 

So far...seen a few brands Mex, Siebel & Panasonic...we like the copper ones better and the sale people at different places are telling us you need at least 5000 watts to get it nice and warm in the cold season. I am not a fan of cold water showers..

 

any recommendations ?

I would agree the colder the input water, the more wattage you need. 
Some of them have more safety features than others. 
I bought a cheap one about 6 years ago and it is still working fine, so, I don't know how much a brand name helps.

I'm not in Chiang Mai, so, don't know how cold your input water is. 
 

We installed Panasonic 6000 Watt heaters in all bathrooms 8 yearts ago.  They have worked perfectly ever since. 

 

And I agree - you  need higher wattages during the winter months.

You either need higher wattage or reduce water flow (water saving shower heads might help - I just reduce the flow control as like wet shower).  But for Chiang Mai you probably will want a higher wattage than the normal 3.5KW models.  

 

Here in Bangkok have found the 3.5kw Panasonic to be excellent.  

Yes, in the north you'll need 5-6kW.

 

Go with one of the big names and you should be ok. We have two RedRing 6kW multipoint heaters which have given sterling service for 4 years now.

 

Do check that your wiring is up to a bigger heater. For 6kW (27A) you'll be needing 4mm² cable and a 32A breaker. The biggest you can safely put on 2.5 mm² cable and 20A would be 4.5kW.

 

31 minutes ago, Rotweiler said:

We installed Panasonic 6000 Watt heaters in all bathrooms 8 yearts ago.  They have worked perfectly ever since. 

 

And I agree - you  need higher wattages during the winter months.

 

We also have some of these , work really well.

However also have some of the cheaper less wattage ones from Panasonic (3500w?). works well for me as don't like really hot water.

Joven used to be good, not so much now. Fujika had some good ones a few years back.

Had problems with Mex and Toshiba but maybe just the model.

On balance Panasonic is one of the best at the moment.

Panasonic

 

most parts (heating element) are guaranteed for 5 years. we have 3 units. only had a problem once with one unit. we took it for repair and they looked in the computer and found it was still under warranty almost 5 years later! they told us to take it to Niyom as they are the rep in C.M. they got the parts from Bangkok and sent a guy to re-install it once it was ready. we only had to pay about 200 Baht for a new switch or something. great service.

We've used several brands over the years, both in our own home and also in my wife's three rental houses.

The Japanese brand Rinnai can be recommended. Not cheap, but excellent quality.

Bought 3x    Panasonic  early 2004, still work perfect, no idea about any other brands as never had a fault or problem in over 12 years..

Thanks for all the suggestions we will be looking at the Japanese ones


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I recently replaced out heater with

 

PANASONIC DH-6GM4 - 6 Kw

Paid Baht 6670 from HomePro

 

The guy who I know installed the heater and recommended PANASONIC

 

The heater is a multi-point, which means you can use various outlets / taps

 

Work well, would not go for smaller Kw

 

Hitachi now in its 7th year, no issues. BUT as said above make sure your wiring is up to the job and the place has the correct EARTH !!

I bought a MEX from Home Pro about 18 months ago.

When I had a problem with it I rang the service center who are based in Chiang Mai and they came out to the house and fixed it on site at no cost.

The problem was not the unit but a circuit overload due to running too many things (A/C, washing machine etc) at the same time.

 

I was very impressed!

On 8/6/2016 at 8:09 AM, Crossy said:

Yes, in the north you'll need 5-6kW.

 

Go with one of the big names and you should be ok. We have two RedRing 6kW multipoint heaters which have given sterling service for 4 years now.

 

Do check that your wiring is up to a bigger heater. For 6kW (27A) you'll be needing 4mm² cable and a 32A breaker. The biggest you can safely put on 2.5 mm² cable and 20A would be 4.5kW.

 

It's been three years, but they showed the math to me on a 4500w and it can exceed 20A slightly...so I upgraded to a 30A elcb switch.  4500 is enough on the coldest days here...always on full flow...I use a gear driven Delta showerhead that max flows at about 6 lpm.  I do live in a condo,,so my water might be a bit warmer off the roof. I use Electrolux...been excellent and was cheaper than panasonic (highly respect).  I do let it flow until it's room temp, when I', done, as opposed to turning it off blazing hot...on the advice of the tech...and it actually makes sense.

 

4500/220=20.454545