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How to safe guard Hot water Heater Burst
Dunno what your natural gas or propane options are, but I suffered through two electric heater ruptures. Think it has to do with iron content in the water, tanks rust from the inside out. So I went tankless. Since we already have propane heat, I got a 199,000 BTU Bosch that is rated to support two simultaneous showers. Available for either propane or natural gas. Only about 18"x31"x9", it hangs on the basement wall, vents horizontally through the wall. In my case, through a basement window. Rather than bore two vent holes through 18" of plaster/block/brick, I boxed in a basement window.
Uses electricity only to power the temperature control board and spark the propane. When you turn on a hot water faucet, a flow switch opens the gas valve, sparks the flame; hot water anywhere in the house in about 15 seconds. Turn off the hot water tap, the flow switch terminates gas flow, flame goes out. You can power the controller with a generator during power outages, or just use a car battery and a cheap inverter.
Not sure about your county, but this type heater doesn't even require inspection/certification in mine. Takes up no floor space at all. No tank to leak, no heating element to replace, no oil filters to change, basically maintenance free. A little pricey up front, but I consider it to be the last water heater I'll ever have to buy.
//greg//
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How to safe guard Hot water Heater Burst
Ok. But it would seem to me to be just as destructive to any water heating method. So is this calcium based neutralizer system too expensive, or is there some other reason you've never installed one? I added a whole house filtration unit years ago. Carbon filters improve the taste of the water, but - from the perspective of the plumbing system (to include the heater) - blocks a helluva lot of iron too. I'm sure it blocks other minerals as well, but the captured iron is always visible because the filter turns a red-brown color near the end of its lifespan. Two micron replacement carbon filters cost $5 each, and are usually good for at least 3 months. Seems to me something similar should be available for your calcium-based issue.
I added the whole house system as part of a PVC upgrade. The original plumbing was all steel. Anyway, I don't know how to split out the labor cost for the filter part. I watched the plumber though, the whole thing took <30 minutes to install. It goes inline where right after the shut off valve for the public water supply. The hardware amounts to nothing more than a filter housing and a cut off valve (to keep previously filtered water from draining back while changing the filter). I'm gonna speculate $150 parts and labor up front, then just replacement filters after that.
//greg//
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07-14-2012, 11:47 
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