How to keep outdoor tankless water heater from freezing

Having water frozen in your heater is one of the most annoying things one can experience during winters. An ideal water heater is engineered to offer hot water when turned on. But this process is obstructed when the water lines freeze. If you are also experiencing this issue, here are some tips that can prevent your tankless water heater from freezing.

Table of Contents Show

Will an outside tankless water heater freeze?
How do you insulate a tankless water heater outside?
Can you cover an outdoor tankless water heater?
How do you insulate a tankless water heater from freezing?

Choose a Warm Location – You see, the best prevention is to place your water heater in a warm or heated area. For instance, place your heater on a wall that receives direct sunlight throughout the year. You can also choose a sheltered location in the outdoors for this. Make sure you integrate vent terminations for additional wind resistance.
Drain Standing Water –If you have standing water in your heater, and the temperature is dropping down steadily, make sure you drain it completely. Once the water freezes inside the tank, your heater is vulnerable to more severe damages. You should follow this practice if you are away for more than 48 hours at a stretch. However, some advanced heaters have a built-in heating feature that prevents freezing. But, this feature is functional only till the time power is supplied to it.
Uninterrupted Power Source – Do you know that your freeze prevention system will operate only on a continuous power supply? So, if your residential area is prone to frequent power cuts, you should find an alternative to supplying regular power to the heater. Battery backups or drain-down solenoids can prove to be useful solutions here.
Re-Circulation System – Many advanced water heaters are compatible with the re-circulation system. You can consider mounting one if you reside in colder areas. Interestingly, this system will help in keeping your plumbing system warmer. This will almost eradicate the risk of water freezing in your heater. Connect with the best service providers in water heaters in Santa Rosa CA today to know more about it.
Insulation – Have you ever tried the method of insulation to keep your water heating system warm and functional? You can also use this technique on your pipes. This is quite a popular technique adopted by many homeowners. Crawl based and attic based pipes are most vulnerable to freezing. Hire a professional to install fiberglass insulation, polyethylene wrap, or heat tape wrap on your heaters.
Operating Plumbing System – You see, running water never freezes. This principle is applied to heaters as well. Keep your plumbing structure active and running. If you are running the risk of freezing waters, put your tap on for a night, and use that water the next day. Make sure you use the valve that is near to the tankless heater.

Having standing water in your heater tank can cause some severe damages to the heating system. And the most significant damage happens when this water expands during freezing weather. Indoor installations are at a lower risk as compared to the outdoor facilities. Connect with us at Holman Plumbing for employing the best services in the industry. Call us at 707-495-5002 to keep your units warm and functional throughout the year.

Tankless water heaters provide a continuous supply of hot water for you, but special considerations apply to installations in moderate to cold climates. The heaters themselves need no protection from freezing weather as long as the electricity and gas are working. If there is a power shortage, the heater might suffer from frozen water inside the system. Adding an emergency drain pipe during installation prevents that problem. Protecting the copper pipes that carry the water is the most important part of keeping an existing system operating during cold weather. It requires a combination of a heat source and insulation that is called "heat tracing" a water system.

Measure the length of the run of the pipes that are feeding into the tankless heater to know how much heating wire and insulated pipe tape you will need. Outdoor pipes, those running along the inside of exterior walls and those in uninsulated basement areas, are all vulnerable to freezing.
Plug the heater tape into the nearest 120V circuit at the beginning of the pipe by the heater. Run the tape along the pipe, with a twist in the tape every 12 inches to make a spiral pattern along the pipe. Secure the heater tape to the pipe every few inches with the electrical tape. Do not allow the heater tape to cross itself along the pipe. If you are a few inches short of the end of the pipe, it will be fine, as the rest of the heated water will keep that water at an above-freezing temperature. If you have extra heating tape, wrap it around the final few feet of the pipe in a tight spiral.
Wrap the pipe in a tight, spiral pattern with the insulated tape, keeping the sticky side down. With each pass of the tape, overlap the previous tape by about a quarter-inch so that the complete exterior of the pipe is covered. Continue to wrap the pipe until you have covered the entire run.

Will an outside tankless water heater freeze?

Most indoor and outdoor tankless water heaters have built-in freeze protection for when temperatures drop between -5 degrees and -22 degrees Fahrenheit. However, you still run the risk of having your water heater freeze if you aren't taking the necessary precautions for when the temperatures drop below a certain level.

How do you insulate a tankless water heater outside?

There are two general choices. You can apply either pipe insulation, a material that's similar to wall insulation but it's made specifically for plumbing pipes, or heating wire and pipe tape. Apply the insulation materials to the plumbing pipes, ensuring that the pipe insulation is adhering tightly to the piping.

Can you cover an outdoor tankless water heater?

Pipe covers enhance an indoor or outdoor installation by concealing the piping beneath the water heater. It provides protection from tampering and weather conditions. These covers come in a grey finish to match the tankless heater.

How do you insulate a tankless water heater from freezing?

Insulate your water heater and the pipes running to and from it using fiberglass or polyethylene insulation or heat tape. Run a trickle of warm water – Avoid a frozen pipe problem by running a trickle of hot water overnight from the tap furthest from the water heater.