Depending on jurisdiction that isn’t always legal. can one get the 15a version anywhere for DIY? Or only pro?
I suspect that technically that is not allowed since one of the intended uses for the pressure relief pipe is "show" when pressure relief valve is tripping. In my area the pressure relief has to run out somewhere visible. If you mix it in condensate then won't be able to tell why it is dripping. Of course practically speaking I'm sure it would work. For the one I had installed a few months ago the condensate pipe just drops into sink that is next to it and it passed inspection. Originally my plumbers quoted me a new run to the outside because they were thinking classic acidic condensate from a gas burner. I was thinking the same thing before I remembered that this condensate didn't have that problem and we can just send it down the sink.
That is a great point to make...although in my case, I was replacing a gas heater. I am pretty sure I read the installation instructions for an HPWH and felt overwhelmed, although my DIY skills are indeed poor so maybe it was just me...I don't remember the details.
Yeah, inside the house it might be too noisy unless the room it's in is sound insulated from nearby rooms. And then you have to make sure that you vent that room. Mine is in my garage, right next to my living room. You can hear it through the wall/door (exterior-type door, so well sealed), but it's barely noticeable. Through the wall/door, it's like being in the same room as the refrigerator when running, so not objectionable. It's really not that hard if you have basic plumbing and electrical skills (depending on what type of heater your old one is). I also opted to extend/reroute the lines for my Rheem HPHW, but honestly if you were trying to minimize the plumbing work, you could use PEX tubing which would have been a lot faster / easier than soldering a number of copper fittings. I've had my 50 gallon Rheem for a year now (family of 4) and still keep it in heat pump only mode. In heat pump only mode, especially now that it's cooled off (about 65F in my garage right now, 75-80F in the summer), recovery times are definitely longer and back to back or long showers at high flow rates can cause you to run out of hot water. This is NOT a problem in energy saver mode, but energy usage goes up and I use the cold water as a indication that we should be taking shorter showers! Energy usage for the last 12 months according to EcoNet is about 700 kWh. I estimate 6-8 therms/month on my old gas water heater (have a bit of gas house heating that's hard to separate out), but assuming about 7 therms/month, that's about 2500 kWh equivalent, or about 3.5x less energy in total. Efficiency would drop a bit more by using Energy Saver mode, but it's still a win. I would suggest that most people start off with that mode. I highly recommend the Rheem, would definitely buy again.
I have the 50gallon Rheem/Richmond ductable version and I don't find it all that loud. The well pressure tank and ejector pit are in that room which is itself adjacent to the laundry room so I guess I am accusted to some level of noise. Well that and who can hear anything with kids in the house.
Here's a short video demonstrating how loud it is. You can also see how its drained (it uses the same discharge as my zuba, which leads to the floor drain in my basement)