Can You Use A Tankless Water Heater For Radiant Heat

Tankless water heater can be used to produce radiant heating.

Can you use a tankless water heater for radiant heat. A tankless hot water heater is ideal for this application since there is no water to be kept hot at all times. Sample temperature curve for an on demand unit. Because the slab installations will require less than 140 deg f water it is safe to use a water heater to heat the radiant slabs. If you don t want to use a boiler you may be able to use a tank style water heater but only in some jurisdictions since using a water heater as a boiler may be a code violation.

Though they are sold primarily for domestic hot water tankless heaters are actually well suited for radiant heating which operates at low temperatures compared with for example hot water baseboard. Make sure you invest in a high efficiency tankless water heater. You actually have a choice between them as you can use a water heater or tankless for radiant floor heating and not just a boiler. So using the unit for radiant heating generally has little or no effect on the sizing calculation.

Water heater for radiant heat water heaters are good for radiant floor heating because they maintain a low temperature. You really only need a maximum of 120 f for your floor. The system with a tankless water heater will also be much more responsive have unlimited supply of hot water and clean water running through the floor heating pipes without sediments and other mineral build ups. And i would never recommend the use of a tankless water heater for a hydronic space heating system.