Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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46 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Concept Good. Reliability, Durability, Servicibility BAD, February 15, 2008
My wife and I bought this from Lowes in summer 2006 thinking it would save our energy bills even though the initial cost for the unit and the required installation for a new electrical service to it was expensive. Right out of the box, the electrician we hired to install it had to order from Bosch a replacement control board because the one we got was bad. Fast forward to February 2008, and we had issues with the control board again and no hot water for showers. Now we are screwed because that part is not covered in the warranty and costs roughly $300 dollars. Not to mention, it was difficult to reach Bosch Hot Water Technical Support because they put you on hold for God awful long time and they are really not that much help. All it is now is a hanging piece of junk on our wall. So, now my wife and I have decided to invest in a normal electric water heater that would just cost more or less the same as purchasing the control board. Buyers Beware! The concept is great but, I do not recommend getting this product.
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70 of 73 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Broken after 14 months - repairs very difficult to get, November 2, 2006
I like this hot water heater, but it has stopped working after 14 months. I live in a city 60 miles from Seattle. Unfortunately, the nearest tankless-skilled repairman is in Seattle. Roto-Rooter claimed to have a skilled repairman, but when he arrived he admitted had never seen one of these before. That's not good, since he would have charged $330 per hour. I called Bosch, who manufactures this item. After being on hold 35 minutes at 6:30 am PST, the company offered to send me a new heating component part, but who will install it? As I ponder tomorrow's cold shower, I'm leaning toward cutting my losses and spending $900 to return to an archaic yet reliable tank hot water heater.
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37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not for homes on a well, September 16, 2008
I purchased the Bosch AE125 Electric Tankless Water Heater 4 months ago and have regretted it. Several considerations should be taken.
First the unit is not an analogue to a conventional tank-type water heater. It delivers hot water based upon a system that measures the incoming water temperature and flow rate and then "calculates" the number of elements (it actually has 6) that it turns on to provide an outflow temperature based on the setting of the temperature control. This system is not satisfactory for a water supply which varies in pressure, SUCH AS A WELL, as the unit itself provides substantial resistance to flow and thus the flow rate through the unit varies and thus the temperature of the outgoing water. This causes the delivered water to vary widely in temperature, from VERY HOT to VERY COLD. The unit would be improved if it was "smart enough" to not only measure incoming temp, but, also, outgoing temperature and flow rate and maintain the outgoing temp at a constant level.
Second: The unit has a flow sensor, which will shut the heaters off at low flow, so, therefore, if you wish to have a small amount of hot water flowing into your sink for shaving purposes, the water will not be heated at all. This "Feature" also has considerable influence on the use of "low flow" faucets.
Third: If you have a home which is heated by electricity and you install this unit, be aware that it consumes 120 AMPS at maximum heat rate. In my case, my electric heat consumes 120 Amps, also; my home has a 200AMP panel. Do the math, turn on the heat to warm the house and then take a bath, and suddenly the entire house is plunged into darkness. I have decided that I must sense when the water heater is turned on and prevent the central heat from coming on. This should be doable, and since the unit only runs when hot water is required, should disable the central heat only for short periods. HOWEVER, this is a feature that should be provided by Bosch and/or their literature should make clear to the potential purchaser that this is a problem with the electric heater.
Fourth: The unit apparently switches one or more of its six elements on or off as it attempts to heat the water. There does not appear to be any partially on for any of the elements. This leads to the problem of "stepped" heating of the water. And because the unit measures flow in and calculates the outgoing rate, if the water is mildly too hot or too cold, simply changing the mix at the faucet does not necessarily result in mild changes in temperature, a tiny change at the faucet can cause one or all of the elements to switch off resulting in a dramatic change at the faucet. AGAIN an argument for sensing the outgoing temperature and maintaining it by modulating the elements for a smoother temperature curve.
I would rate this unit as unsatisfactory for any home with a well, and only marginally acceptable for any home with electric heat (but only if modified as I indicated above).
Had I known then, what I know now, I would have saved myself a lot of money and frustration by purchasing a conventional tank-type water heater.
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