Customer Reviews

Eccotemp L5 Portable Tankless Water Heater and Outdoor Shower

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

2010.12.2 Update:

I have now used the L5 daily for over two years (sometimes up to three times per day). Everything I posted below is accurate and the L5 has never failed me. Running it at midnight, in the middle of winter, in well-below-zero weather, with high winds rocking the trailer, high on an exposed ridge at 7,500 feet, I have never had to turn the L5's propane regulator control (i.e. temperature control) above 50% as doing so would raise blisters . . . and I like a shower so hot that I have to keep moving.

This is an incredible shower.


---- Posted 2008.11.25 ----

Greetings!

I have a lot to say about the L5 as I am pushing the limits of its functionality; I have been using it daily for the past six weeks, completely off-grid, and am thrilled to have it! To distill the following details into a few words:

Pros: A Godsend for someone completely off-grid, living under extreme conditions! There is nothing else available like it (that I could find).
Cons: It is designed to minimize any risks, no matter how used--thus limiting its versatility and, possibly, its long-term reliability, though it has functioned perfectly for the past six weeks.

The following notes are in four parts:

- Installation (where I have it installed)
- Operation (how it must be set up under such conditions)
- Praise
- Concerns

Installation:

I am using the L5 completely off-grid. It is inside a custom-built, remote-camping, clear polycarbonate trailer that was built to test the infrastructure of the Lotus Dome ( LotusDome dot com ). The trailer is currently at an elevation of 7,500 feet in the mountains of Utah. The temperature range here can get above 100 degreesF during the summer and can get down to well below zero during the winter. Great conditions for testing purposes!

The roof of the trailer holds a custom, 218-gallon, aluminum water tank (it needs to be on the roof to keep ice from clogging the drain). The drain feeds down to the L5 which is suspended about six inches beneath the tank. A 12VDC SHURflo Nautilus pump is mounted directly beneath the L5 pumping water up into the l5's water intake fitting.

Operation:

To get this pump to work under these conditions requires very strict installation and operation, as the Nautilus pump is rated at 1GPM, 10 PSI, max.:

- The pump must be installed directly under the L5's water intake fitting.
- The set screw for adjusting the pressure needed to open the L5 diaphragm (located under the right side of the water regulator, pointing straight down), which controls whether the L5 will ignite or not, needs to be unscrewed (i.e. "backed out") until water starts to drip out around the screw. The screw is then re-tightened about one-half turn.
- The L5 water regulator (the dial on the right side of the front panel of the L5) needs to be turned fully clockwise--to the "MIN" setting

In setting up the L5, I have discovered--through repeated trial and error--that the L5 WILL NOT IGNITE if these conditions are not met. To reiterate: if the pump is not _immediately_ below the L5, pumping up into it; if the set screw is not backed out to minimize the required water pressure; and if the Water Regulator dial is not set all the way clockwise to the "MIN" setting, the L5 will NOT ignite. This is my experience, "your mileage may vary." (It may be possible to remove the spring that controls the diaphragm, but I have not tried to do so.)

Praise:

The L5, when functioning as intended, is a spectacular unit; there is no other water heater that can generate 37.5K BTUs worth of hot water in such a compact, portable unit. It has no competition; it is a Godsend for me. The L5 with a 12VDC Nautilus pump is perfect for my showering needs, pumping a minimum amount of water through the L5 and out through a Zodi shower head--at one-half gallon per minute!--provides a wonderful amount of water, at a very comfortable pressure and temperature. It even has a drain for use in sub-freezing temperatures!

Pumping much less water through the L5 than it is designed to handle, results in water that is _much_ hotter than when using the included shower head. This is a great help when the water is at or below 32 degreesF (and, yes, this is possible if the water is flowing) and, of course, it then also uses much less water and much less propane!

It has also been noted (and often not favorably) that the control unit will shut the burners off after seventeen minutes. I, too, was very concerned about this. However, after talking to John at GES, he confirmed what is stated in the user's manual: "[the timer] is reset each time operation stops or the shower head is turned off and back on." What this means is that if, during your shower, the burners are suddenly turned off by the timer, you need only turn the On/Off switch (under the unit) off and then immediately back on again, and the burners will immediately fire back up. I tried this out a few times and found that if you just quickly turn the L5 off and back on again, you will have just a very few seconds of _slightly_ cooler water and then the water temperature is restored. It really became a non-issue for me . . .

Concerns:

That the Nautilus pump can push water through the L5 at a very comfortable (I would say "luxurious"!) rate and pressure--when used with the one-half-gallon-per-minute Zodi shower head--causes me to feel that the unit is too restrictive with its safety features. The many safety features compromise the L5 when used in conditions where its reliability is essential. Out in the field, "simple" is very important and in this regard, Zodi is king! (FYI, I found that the use of a 12VDC water pump that produces 45 PSI will either blow the fuse of the line supplying power to the pump--due to turning the L5 water regulator down so far--or it will generate an very unpleasant amount of water pressure . . . and waste a lot of water.)

The entire control system for the L5 could have been replaced with one push-button igniter and two sentences in the user's manual (and thus also reducing the price of the L5):

- Do not ignite the burners until water is flowing freely from the output fitting, and
- Do not stop the flow of water until the burners have been turned off and the water is cool to the touch.

This is why I was, and remain, a very strong fan of the Zodi products: they make very reliable (and very highly regarded!) products and their user's manuals are very clear and concise. If they made a 30K BTU version of the HotTap HP (I suggested they call it the "HotTap HP3"), I would not have found the L5.

As I have to import water from a distant town, it is imperative that I conserve water; I go through approximately 200 gallons per month, for all my water needs, including showering every day. Zodi's shower head uses one-half gallon of water per minute and is the lowest-flow shower head that I have ever found. One of my biggest concerns about the L5 is that the L5 provides such luxurious showers, I have difficulty turning it off and end up using more water than I normally would!

----

For those of you who waded through this tome, blessings to you and to all your loved ones!

I received my tankless water heater this morning. It was well-packed and the instructions are pretty good. I appreciated the "extras" that are usually "optional at additional cost," like the shower head, mounting hardware, and propane tank hookup.

But (there's always a "but!"), unless you have plumbing fittings handy, plan on a trip to the hardware store. The threads you must connect to are rough and not cut especially well, something that seems common on items from China, so you definitely need to have teflon tape or plumber's putty handy. On my unit, the hose connections to the shower head leak badly at both ends. Not that big a deal since it's intended as a shower, just an annoyance. And, the shower head male threads are a bit short, so one end of the hose would screw on far enough to not leak too badly, but the other end would spray water all over the place until I reversed the hose. Then it just leaked at the water output of the heater. The hose connection (another nice included item) didn't have a rubber gasket.

As far as heating water, it works pretty well. My input water is at about 50 degrees, and with the water flow turned all the way down and the gas flow all the way up, it got hot enough to be uncomfortable.

Until a slight wind blew out the flame. Be sure to plan to use this unit someplace very well protected from the wind. Even a slight breeze, about 10 MPH (guesstimate), will blow out the flame, give you a slug of cold water, and require you to turn the switch off and back on to relight the flame.

I haven't played with it enough to be sure, but my impression is that the unit won't hold a constant temperature of water output. I mention this because it may require you to use the unit in a place where you can actually reach the controls during use to adjust the temperature of your shower.

Even with the shortcomings, I recommend the unit as a camping or backup water heater. For the price, you can't go too far wrong. Just keep it within reach and out of the wind.

Living in an area prone to the occassional bad weather/loss of electricity prompted me to look into a reliable hot water alternative. Sometimes its the little things that matter - like the ability to take a hot shower after days of no hot water due to a hurricane. It makes a bad day little more bearable. Wasn't sure what to expect from this little unit but after nearly a 2 wk wait, opened the box, set it up in just minutes and instant hot water!

Connected a routine garden hose and water was instantly hot - the ability to set the temperature is conveniently located in the front and set on high it was uncomfortably hot so should do decently if your water source is colder than average. For relatively warm areas where the water remains a more or less temperate, this easily brings it to a temperature as hot as you would like...plus a little.

Very easy to set-up/take down. Unit is fairly heavy so will need solid support but overall, impressed by operation. Shower head is decent and output flow more than adequate. It won't take the place of your normal shower head but you won't feel like it takes forever to get wet either.

Unit specifies you will need teflon tape for securing seals so keep some handy. We used to begin with and unit operated perfectly - no leaks. Turns off immediately when water is shut down and turns on again quickly. Impressive little unit and exceptionally glad to have purchased. In fact, like it so much may permanently install one outside for dog washing and other quick clean-up. Waiting to see how this one endures over time...still too new to tell. Well worth the $.

I actually do like this water heater, and luckily since I'd read a few of the reviews on here before buying, I had bought the things that some people had suggested as necessities so assembly was very easy.

I do have a few problems with it though. Number one, If you are planning on having an outdoor shower, like I currently have...pray to god that it's not windy out while you're showering! Because the wind WILL blow out the pilot and suddenly you will be taking a cold shower.

Number two, I've found that the water gets VERY hot sometimes. Painfully hot! So much so that lately I've had to switch it off every few seconds in order to not burn myself.

Also, as other people have stated before, you either get water pressure, or you get hot water. I've tried turning up the water pressure but it instantly turns off the pilot. So the pressure has to be set to the very lowest setting in order for any hot water. And sadly turning up the pressure does not even out the SUPERHOT water problem. It just shuts off the hot water entirely.

But, for a cheap water heater this thing does the trick. And it is better than a cold shower, or no shower at all!

After receiving the unit in the mail I went out to pick up an LP tank since I did not own one yet. I also picked up a 10 pack of hose gaskets just in case I needed them. As it turns out, I did not. The unit came with everything that was needed to hook it up to a garden hose and to use it as an outdoor shower. It had the mounting hardware for masonry and wood, gaskets for the LP water and shower head, LP regulator with hose and of course a spray pattern shower head with hose. I hooked it all up and hung it on the wall and had hot water running in about 10 minutes.

The Shower Head:
This is identical to your average all plastic shower head and hose that you would buy for your home shower. All the fittings are 1/2" NPT and require a 1/2" flat gasket at both ends of the 3'6" hose. The gaskets are supplied. The fitting on the unit is male and the hose is female. The shower head has a slide switch to turn the water flow on and off. It does a good job of stopping the water flow with no dripping. The more pressure in the hose the harder it switch is to slide to the on position. It is always easy to slide to the off position. The three settings are fine mist, 3 jet focused (inner ring), and shower (full outer ring). I believe it is a 1.5 GPM flow rate but the documentation is not clear. It is plenty of water.

Water Inlet:
The water inlet is 1/2" NPT male. This fitting also comes with a 1/2" flat gasket. The unit comes with a brass 1/2" NPT female to garden hose female adapter. The adapters threads are not cut very smoothly and leaked a bit. A replacement was only US$2.00 at the hardware store.

LP Inlet and regulator:
The LP inlet port is also 1/2" NPT male and uses a 1/2" flat gasket identical to the ones for the shower head hose. The unit comes with a tank mounted LP regulator and 5' hose.

My Setup:
I intend to use my shower when camping at a location where water is supplied. The water pressure varies greatly throughout the day from barely a trickle to >50 PSI. I placed a 20 gallon precharged pressure tank between a check valve and the water heater. This supplies me with 10+ minutes of full pressure hot water with no supply pressure. When the supply pressure gets high enough the tank recharges. No water pump needed.

Supply--->>-one-way valve->>-T1->>-T2->>----->Heater

T1 goes to Precharged 20 Gallon water tank
T2 goes to pressure gauge which is optional

5/29/2011 Update: After two years the water heater still works flawlessly. It's still a great product at an even better price than when I bought it.

Original review:

I bought this water heater for my boat. Installation was straightforward and performance was exactly what I was looking for. I was replacing an older water heater that had stopped working due to corrosion problems. The previous owner of the boat had disconnected it because he said even on the lowest setting the water was too hot. I find the water hot but not uncomfortable at the maximum flame and flow settings. I can raise the water temperature by turning down the flow and lower the temperature by turning down the flame, so I get good results in the middle of the adjustment range.

This water heater was intended for portable use, so the fittings on it are designed to take a garden hose (with the included adapter) on the input side and the included shower head and hose on the output side. Also included in the package was a gas regulator to connect the water heater to a 20-pound propane tank. I tested it with that configuration before I installed in on the boat and it worked fine. If you have a cabin or campsite with cold pressure water available this is an easy way to get a hot shower.

The documentation contains emphatic warnings that this water heater is not intended for indoor use. Since I was replacing one that worked the same way--vented exhaust into the cabin--I figured that was more a consequence of changing safety standards than real risk. Moreover, I can ventilate the compartment where it is installed by opening the hatch directly overhead. That will allow the exhaust gasses (and heat) to vent outside. When showering on a boat you don't let the water run very long, so the water heater doesn't operate very long at a time.

There were two installation issues I had to deal with. The water fittings on the water heater are flat on the bottom and designed to be used with washers. Since I was connecting to the boat's existing hot water circuit I had to use a tapered pipe thread fitting with lots of Teflon tape and lots of torque to seal the hot water connection. For the cold water connection I put a garden hose adapter on the boat's cold water hose. I could make that plenty tight before connecting it to the water heater, so there was no difficulty tightening the cold water supply enough that it wouldn't leak.

The second issue was the old water heater stood farther away from the bulkhead than the new one. In order to connect with the boat's gas line I had to make a couple of stand-off brackets. That was easily done by bending some aluminum rectangular bar I had on hand. Once I replace the boat's gas line with new flexible tubing I can relocate the water heater higher and closer to the bulkhead and do away with the brackets.

The water heater uses two D cell batteries to make a spark when water is flowing. Operation couldn't be simpler. With the cold water supply and gas lines turned on and the electric ignition switch turned on, you simply turn on the hot water tap and the heater lights and produces hot water within 20 seconds. Turn off the hot water tap and the heater shuts off immediately.

Before I found this water heater I was looking at units costing $180 and more. I can't see that they offer any advantages over this model, so I think it is very good value for the money. Only time will tell, of course, but right now I think it is an excellent product at an excellent price.

works better than i hoped. works better tham coleman tankless water heater, wich i have also, and cost way less. you could mount this in your home, but i have it mounted on my boat. set it and turn it on [once].When the flow of water stops it shuts off and when the flow start again it fires back up, you dont have to reset it again and again like the coleman. runs off of 2 D batteries this is what i have been looking for. makes my boat hot water system, just like home. plan on getting a nother for my 38 ft. sail boat too.

I'm so glad to have bought this little portable tankless water heater. We live in an off grid and still do not have septic therefore no indoor shower ability and have gone all winter with four kids doing the bird bath! Last fall our Zodi - bit the biscuit. We used it for over three years and it worked BUT OMG this little heater is so much better! The Zodi had very little water pressure supplied by a dble D battery pump, when that went I rigged up an electric pump that worked for awhile. It did not heat the water the way this does. I was always feared a fire might start because flames would come out of the top of the Zodi while your having a shower!

The GREAT THINGS about this product:
1. the easy to hook - except the poor things below.
2. it looks so great compared to the Zodi
3. the water pressure we have is great so the shower water pressure is great as well
4. heats the water almost instantaneously - the Zodi would take five minutes to heat the water in a five gallon bucket.
5. the on off switch is such a nice feature - with the Zodi you would have to light the heater with a match - the little heater does it for you and if the wind blows out the flames then just turn the switch to off then on and wah la you have hot water again
6. the shower nozzle is nice - it has three different modes - very nice for sore muscles

The POOR THINGS:
1. the gas connections must have gas tape - it states so in the instructions but I was in a hurry and just wanted to get it started, but haste makes waste!
2. the water connections must have the washers and plumbers tape
3. the shower nozzle must have a washer and plumbers tape
4. the shower has an water on/off switch - which works to turn off but is very hard to turn on. So I got a little hose connector that is an on/off switch - this works much better and is easy for the kids.

We decided not to get an rv but to upgrade our camping gear. Our new shower with this heater is the BOMB! Getting clean with a hot shower within your campsite makes camping soooo much nicer. This unit is heavy and you have to make something sturdy to hang from, but its TOTALLY worth it!

We purchased our Eccotemp tankless hot water heater for our 5th wheel Komfort travel trailer. Along with 55 gallon drums for extra water, we can enjoy nice long marathon showers in the middle of nowhere. I am pleased to report that the temperature of the water seems constant and that scalding has not been a problem. It has also been nice for doing dishes and laundry. Our former hot water heater was 5 gallons and just about worthless, having to watch water usage like Captain Bligh and his crew. No more, we are delighted with the product and it has taken the camp out of camping. For those who like creature comforts while in the wilderness, you can't go wrong. Your going to get a lot of bang for the buck with this water heater.

- Ken Fritz author of The United States Radio Directory: A Traveler's Favorite Companion 2008-2009