Tankless Water Heater DeScaling - How To Flush
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- Опубликовано: 14 сен 2013
- Assemble your own kit with these parts. Pump amzn.to/16vJprP
Hose Kit amzn.to/193Z7YI and any 5 Gallon Bucket amzn.to/1gkAGdr
This is a very straightforward method to clean your Tankless Water Heater and remove scale build up. This method works regardless of your unit's manufacturer. Rinnai, Takagi, Rheem, Noritz, Bosch, etc. They will all work with this method. Want to thank me for saving you $150+ on your plumber doing this? Donate $10 to my PayPal button on my blog www.MattRisinger.com That small donation keeps me making videos! Thanks, Matt
Matt Risinger
Risinger Homes in Austin TX
Follow me on Twitter @MattRisinger
Or my blog www.mattrisinger.com
![How to descale a Tankless water heater. Chromex Tankless water heater descaler kit [557]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NNJEGX4AApo/mqdefault.jpg)
I watch this video once a year and I appreciate it every time.
Thanks Ryan! Appreciate your kind words. Best, Matt
Your videos are literally the best! The one on heat tape just saved me from the Texas Winterpocalypse.
One thing you should look into to doing. I am a plumber and do this alot by the way. I use a inline filter on the outlet line to catch all the sediment to keep from putting back into the unit. A sock and a couple rubber bands or hose clamps at the end of the hose works well too. It also shows you how much debris you really pull out of it.
Great idea.
Agree, good tip to add, thanks
Get this man a beer! Plumb on brotha
Or you can use two buckets so you are not putting dirty solution back in to the system plus they sell spacial solution to clean these water heaters and if I wasn't a licenced teck witch I am I would never touch this water heater it's hi teck and if you do brake it you will void worenty I would call some one how knows how to work on it ....
@dillan waters You mean you put a sock over the hose coming out of the hot water side which is going back to the bucket? Thanks
This has been my go to "how to" video. Have done it for at least 5 times so far.
How often should I be doing this?? Annually, every 6 months. I assumed a tankless was maintenance free until some friends corrected me.
Thanks for the video Matt. I appreciate the refresher course. I like that you didn't edit out the "things that happen" like the hose failure as such...Folks-"Stuff happens" and that is the reality of any fix it project. Our well water will leave white scale residue on a clear glass, so this is a great remedy for our tankless. Thanks again!
Thanks a ton for posting this Matt. I've been wanting to do this myself since we got our tankless installed and this was the perfect push to do so. As usual, awesome video.
Thanks Matt! This is one of the best DIY video I've come across. Why? Because, you kept it simple and focused, you spoke clearly and unrushed, you demonstrated the steps and what each step accomplishes, and finally you explained why doing this regularly is important. I'm going to subscribe to see what else I can learn. Mahalo!
This was an exact replacement for the old one that lasted about 10 years. ruclips.net/user/postUgkx7yWIKcrbA9KMHkGSfcgxW2lsjHT6B8Sh The top of my mitigation tube by my roofline was just a 90 elbow which allowed too much debris to fall down into the fan, eventually ruining it. Without this issue, I bet it would have kept running another 10 years. When I replaced this fan, I added an extra elbow joint so the top tube now it does a 180, which should solve that problem. The radon guys around here wanted to charge me a $300 diagnostic fee, then parts/labor (probably close to $600 total). I installed this all by myself in about an hour for the cost of the fan; it would probably be even easier/faster with two people. FYI the manufacturer's warranty greatly differs depending on whether you install it yourself (1 yr warranty) or have a licensed installer do it (10 yrs).
Completing your steps as I write this. All looks to be going perfect. I am doing a house with a water softener and this is a 1st time flush after the Rinnai has been installed for 2 years. The filter was pristine on removal. Tks for a great training tool!
I watch this video every six months. Thanks for the easy to follow instructions.
So I should be doing this every 6 months? Got my Saturday morning planned, I guess.
Check out our cold water inlet filter removal tool. Which prevents you from breaking the filter cap when servicing the unit! www.thetanklesstool.com/shop
Matt, thank you so much for providing this cost-saving, detailed, easy to follow video. I've followed your step by step process now for several years and it's given me the confidence to try other projects around the house, as well as save money on water heater maintenance every year. This is fantastic!
"60 minutes to an hour" - priceless! :D Good you've corrected yourself immediately. :) I like the video. It explains a lot. I was just wondering how that kind of flush is done. I wouldn't like to miss some step while doing it. And here I found your video. It's a nicely done one and educative. I like to learn new things like that. Congrats on your teaching skills. :) Have a nice day.
This was the video that got me started watching all your videos and the world of building science.
wow. glad I ran across this video. I built a new house in '16 for my family of 9 that has 2 tankless heaters in it, no one ever told me I need to do this. Ill get to it. Thanks for the video!
Matt, thank you for the simple explanation. First year in new home that came with Takagi tankless so this was my first attempt at descaling. Went very smooth. After reading differing opinions on whether this should be done or not I called manufacturer and they confirmed all Takagi models need this descaling. Thanks again!
I had the same tankless water heater installed 10 years ago and I never knew i had to clean it.Im getting the items together now and will clean it this weekend.Thank you for showing me what an easy job this is to do.
How bad was it ? Did you see the comment above about using an old sock for a filter on the hot line going back in the bucket? Kind of ingenious lol.
Matt,
Thanks for the terrifically helpful video. Vinegar is circulating through my Rennai TWH as I type this. You have a real gift for communicating clearly and confidently, a real blessing to jittery DIYers tackling this for the first time. I was a bit concerned when the unit started beeping a me - temperature warning - but just figured I should turn the On/Off switch to off, even though I left the power hooked up as you said. Thanks again, Matt. Best of success to you!
Rod Schwartz
Pullman, WA
Ron, Thanks so much for you kind words! You did the right thing, if it's beeping it's not realizing that the gas is shut off and it's beeping to say there's a problem firing the boiler. Turning off the power is the right thing to do. Good work buddy, you just saved yourself a hefty bill from a plumber to do this simple procedure. Best, Matt
Very glad to help! Appreciate your kind words. Best, Matt
Should I still do it if I have clean water no hard water I live off water catchment in Hawaii
As always Matt, very clear and concise how to video. Love these. Please keep doing what you are doing. Thumbs Up!
Thank you SOOOOO much! This was all so confusing to me because none of the other videos looked like the set up I have and I couldn't even figure out how to turn off the water. Yours looks exactly like mine, and the instructions were clear, so I have successfully done this and am so grateful. Thank you!
So Awesome! Nice Job Lorraine! Put a note in your iPhone to remind you again in 12-18 months. Best, Matt
Great instructional video. I followed exact steps on my Rinnai heater and it worked perfectly. Thanks!
Great vid. I'm cleaning my tankless water heater now. I hope you got a new hose. Thanks for the vid.
You are worth gold! In the co-op housing unit we lived in we had an extremely expensive several thousand dollar instantaneous hot water heater. After 7 years of not being descaled we had to buy a whole new instantaneous hot water heater. A couple of bottles of white vinegar and the right fittings would have been much cheaper than paying another 8 to $12,000 for another unit.
Thanks Matt, great video you solved the question as where and what circulating pump is needed to preform this task! I have to say Rinnai completely drops the ball when it comes to flushing these units! I might as well have been speaking a foreign language when I asked their customer service where I could get a circulating pump to flush my unit!
2020: just did my house and my moms house. Thank you! This video is forever saved in my archive!
Matt,
Thank you for taking the time to make this video. Big help.
I come back to this video every spring. It’s easy to understand. Thank you.
Straightforward and easy to understand video. I feel confident in tackling this myself. Thank you so much good sir 👍
Great comment to check the filter; none of the other videos pointed out this item to check. Note, if you check the filter, there is an O-ring that may have to be replaced.
I've had this tankless system for yrs, NO ONE, told me this might be why I'm having hot water issues. Gonna give this a try, and thank you, whoever said to use a swamp cooler pump.
this work prefectly...thanks for saving me almost $300 ... after you stated that your hose was rusty. I decided to fill the bucket with clear water and sit the pump back in the bucket and run through the hose...just to clear out that vinegar....but again, this is a great video...well done!
Good advice
Nice video
Thank you Matt Risinger! I watched your video 3 times and paused many to go step by step with you...I am so proud to be able to do this myself...you took any fear away that I had about doing this myself...
+Tracy Spencer that's so awesome! Very welcome!
I did it! I ordered the parts; got them delivered, and BAM!
Thank you!
Thank you! This was a great step-by-step how-to - I picked up a pump, 5 gallon bucket, and hoses, and it took only a few minutes to get my Rinnai cleaning under way! I did have a good bit of trouble getting the small cylindrical filter out (maybe a sign that I was due for a cleaning!), otherwise so easy to follow. I did find I needed to power off the remote display, as it started beeping when I started the process. I let the pump run a couple of hours - next cleaning I'll adhere to the 60-90 minute cleaning cycle, as the vinegar was dark and hot by the time I was done. I paid the plumber who'd installed it a few years ago $125 or so when he came out a couple of years ago to do a flush service, and he teased that I really should be doing it myself and saving over $100 - while the set-up cost me that much this year, now that I know how, $8 in vinegar will make for great savings next year... Thanks again!!
I've watched a ton of these for my tankless video. This is by far the best for someone who is a layman. Your videos are straightforward and easy to understand. Because of your video, I completed my tankless flush with zero mistakes. I purchased a Tankless Water Flush kit from Home Depot which includes the 5GAL bucket, hoses, and the pump.
Thank you..! I am doing this right now.. I was lucky to have stumbled across this video because.. You and I have the same brand water heater.. And set up was seamless..!
I greatly thank you for the walkthrough, I appreciate the effort and time you put into helping others.
Love the way those valves turn with finger pressure. I had to use a wrench and a hammer. They closed way easier than they opened. May have cleared a little crust. Much thanks for the very clear instructions.
Thank you for this very helpful video. I was able to do this with the parts you recommended and a few gallons of white vinegar. Only took about 1.5 hours including setup and cleanup and saved me several hundred dollars. Some other folks in our community are following your instructions as well. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.
Great instructional video. I went to Home Depot and made my own DIY kit with a 5 gal bucket, pump, and hoses. definitely easier than I thought to do and saves a couple hundred bucks plumbers want to charge to do a flush.
Nice Job Michael! Glad the video helped!
Michael I'm interested in doing this. Any chance you could help by giving a little more detail on what you used. Especially in the place of the pump? Thanks
Thank you so much for the vid. I'm in Texas and also have a Rinnai. Vid saved me $ not needing someone to come out to do it.
Super comprehensive description of what needs to be done I really enjoyed doing this process it was interesting because the dinner eager afternoon I have had a slightly aqua blue look to it
that work killer
I had some schooling on these water heaters they are awesome we own one for proximately nine years thank you for your important maintenance video.
Thank you! Also, thank you Dillan Waters! You guys just saved me hundreds of dollars!
Man I've paid the last 2 years for someone to do this for me. I heard the process was easy, but I didn't know it was this easy. I'll try to knock this out this weekend. I have that same tankless unit and I'm in Austin so it's like this video was made for me!
Mike, How did it go?
Matt Risinger Forgot I had guest coming in last weekend. I got my pump though now so I'll tackle this eventually haha.
I stretched mine to almost 3 years. Very glad I watched your video, I totally forgot about the pre-filter, which was clogged. Thanks from Chicago!
That's all? 3 years?
Thank you Matt for your FABULOUS videos. I am so impressed with your extensive knowledge and how great you are to share these helpful videos.
Awesome little video, sir! Plus the links to all the necessary goodies ... top notch!
Never knew to do this until my brother mentioned it. Great explanation! Thanks Matt!
Those are great tips for when I get my tankless water heater. Great Video Matt.
This was very helpful video. I have hard water and a lot of sediment got pumped out of my Rinnai
Great article as I didn't realize that my system needed to be cleaned and frequency. Although I have soft water I will still do this, after 5 years of 2 person use and then maybe ever year or so unless residue is no longer a problem.
great vid, I called local plummer/hvac company as we have been in our home for exactly 1 year and this is standard to do annually, he wanted 275.00 to perform this cleaning. I was going to have someone do a PM on the A/C and Tankless water heater but it just seems crazy this is what people want for a simple exercise.
I appreciate the good quality video and detailed steps.
Thanks Jeff! Even with the pump kit you saved a bundle! Glad it went well for you. Best, Matt
Easy, helpful, and to the point. Thanks for this video!
Just did mine !!!!!!! Wow !!!!!!!!! Brass never looked so clean !!!!!! Thanks for the video !!!
Thank you so much for the video sir. Just taught me something new to help me with maintenance
Every year or so, I come to this video right before I flush my tank less... Thank you so much!
Great presentation in a professional level.
Thanks for the video. Just got a Rinnai installed yesterday. In San Antonio, so we have hard water as well. Again, thanks!
As usual...great vid Matt, very helpful!
Matt thank you for your easy to understand video, the Rinnai system you showed is just like my installation, I would add to your instructions to turn off the electric to the tank, it will beep for an hour and a half, one other point here in Raleigh, North Carolina the temps got down to six above last winter, I had to insulate my two water valves. Again thank you Matt you did a great video. John A Sullivan Raleigh, North Carolina.
Thank you for this. I have a Rinnai too and when I ran the flow into the cold side, the heater was cutting off and on and beeping (I guess it was trying to heat the vinegar) so I thought I was doing it wrong and breaking it. So then I ran it into the hot side and everything was fine.
Now taking your advice, I shut the system off and ran it into the cold side. Hopefully running it both directions won’t hurt anything. Also, I’m in Charlotte and don’t seem to have any scaling or sediment.
Thanks You, Very Helpful. Step by step, great Job !
Thanks, Matt. Very gracious of you!
Thanks for this video Matt. Always fun when I randomly come across a video and they mention our home town! My plumber wanted $250 to flush mine. I said no thanks and I've been meaning to find a video to show me how to do this.
Logan Boyd you still need to clean the fan and burner once in a while too.I am a plumber and always recommend to my customers if they can do it to do it by themselves. Of course plumber will charge you for his time to come to your house and 1 hour flush no one works for free.
Thanks, I'll check in to how to clean those items. We are selling the house later this year and moving into a new house. It will have 2 thankless units. I'll have plenty of practice!
Matt's one of the best out there. Nice job!
I re watch this video every year and it’s my favorite thing in the world thank you
Thank you for this video. Short, clear and easy to understand.
Project completed. Thank you.
It is important to check the prefilter before you turn the water back on.
Wow looks like a lot of fun once a year, can't wait to get one.
Great Video, thanks for making it. I'd add a good flush with cold water from the cold side is a good idea before closing up the hot side and returning all the valves back to the operational positions.
These can be mounted outside in cold climates, but I probably wouldn't. They have an internal heater that works to keep the boiler from freezing down to about Zero degrees. However, if the power goes out you are in trouble. Mount it inside your garage or basement if you live in the North. In Texas or the South you can easily mount this outside. Best, Matt Risinger
Can't you just drain it through the flush valves and let it freeze? Turn it off, of course. You can drain it before you leave town in winter.
I have the Rinnai RL75 two years old. Just finished its first flush with your method worked great except I put an old sock held on with a coupe of rubber bands over the return hose to keep from pumping junk back thru the tank. Plus I unplugged the unit after turning the gas off so I wouldn't get error code 11.
......or part of a woman's stocking..... Great extra tip! Too bad this "flushing system" could not be made integral to the instantaneous water heater....esp. if it must be performed biennially.....?!?
Thanks for your video Matt. I did call Rinnai and i was suggested to keep the gas line on. Turn on hot water and when getting a stream of hot water, unplug the unit. This will keep the valves open. Use vinegar for 45 minutes, as it's effectiveness is pretty much gone after 45 min. Maybe use 3 gallons for 45 min and another 2 for 45 more minutes. This is for my model # of RUC98i. Different units may have slightly different directions.
Another suggestion is to put a cloth such as panty hose or similar over the sump pump which will keep the scale from going back into the heater
Thanks for your video, doing this was a breeze.
Great info! Just what I needed to know! Thanks a million!
This is the most helpful video after viewing multiple videos. I could see all the connections, parts, pieces, and way to proceed in a sequential order. Thank you, Matt. My neighbors who have tankless water heaters have asked me to descale theirs. A new career after retiring from teaching high school English.
Great quality video Matt. I am hear just to learn as I don't have any experience and don't have tankless.
I didnt know you had done one of these vids already . thx for this👍
You've come so far! I just missed the "Let's get started" tag line...
I wonder if this white vinegar trick works on cast iron boiler, and SUPER HOT copper tubing boiler.
Edmonton Alberta..
Pls. And thank you.
Worked great but I had to double up the washers to stop it from leaking on the intake. I had an estimate from a local plumber to do this for $400 (can I say rip off?). I spent less than $80 bucks, and can do it yearly, or so now. Thanks Matt for this video it was pretty easy!!
When you doing maintenence for any tankless water heater, combi, hybrid etc. While you runing your vinegar you need to inspect burner assembly, heat exchenger, condition of ignitor and flame rod, fan blower wheel, and clean them if need, also im recomend first to run vinegar then inspect inline strainer( for rinnai specificlly) if your water hard enough you wil brake that plastic. Also needle nose pliers is only tool to open inline water strainer. Regards Greg.
Thanks, I watched you a year ago............wanted to refresh my memory.
Thanks for the video. I've got a Navien that's about a year old. I think I will make this happen soon.
Very helpful and thorough. Gret job, keep it up!
Very well done, excellent instruction.
would have been nice to have a visual on what your setup looked like with your sump pump and your buckets.
you're very articulate, but that would have completed the clarity you seemed to present.
Dump vinegar in a 5 gallon bucket. There is literally one hose to hook up on the pump. Drop the pump in. Come back in 1 hour, or 60 minutes. You're choice.
Thank you Matt for tour informative videos!
Thanks for video, what can you do if inlet filter itself is very hard to turn with any tool? The plastic pieces inside broken off.
Very informative video...Thank you for posting!
I bought a near new high-dollar tankless for cheap. Homeowner hated the wait time for warm water in her 2nd floor bath, so i put back a 50-gallon/circulation system. Yes she was told tankless was very efficient & the best? She had to wake up turn on lav faucet, go to the kitchen, make coffee & back upstairs,,,maybe by then (warm-wash-water)? Thankx Matt!
Thank you Sir, that was a big help!😀
Thank you for instructional video. Great job!
Very welcome! Best, Matt
Thanks for the information Matt.
6:25 Well equipped plumber with the right tools. 🤣
Thank you for this video. I will make a donation. (1) Find and use a hose kit with plastic connectors. The vinegar reacted with the brass connectors in my hose kit. The in-line filter caught the flakes of reacted metal from the connectors, so it was really not an issue. (2) The Rinnai manual indicates to rinse the vinegar from the water heater by not opening the hot water shut-off valve, retaining the drain hose from the hot water line, and running water through the system for five minutes.
+Paul Dobson Thanks Paul!
For me 5 min are not enough. I ran vinegar over the system tap to tap, and it stayed smelly for some time, like a day.
thanks for the vid, gonna do this myself from now on. save some dough :)
Matt, thanks for posting this video. I plan to try this out later this weekend. One question...a employee at Home Depot recommended using CLR to descale the pipes. Would that be to risky? Should you just stick to vinegar? And advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for the great video Matt, it really helped me do the job. My question is "What are the signs that your unit needs flushed? Thanks again for the detailed video.
There are no signs. Always follow manufacture recommendations. Rinnai says every year. Unless you have a water softener, then every 2 years.
when you do have problems with these units, it's amazing no plumbers know how to work on them. They just want to install new units
Yup they to technical , just like HP waterhester
Great video and it was very helpful. Thanks to you, I de-scaled my Rinnai tankless today. I did run across a few things that would have been beneficial to know beforehand. I noticed when I began the flushing process, the temperature control panel in the house began beeping with an alarm. You mention to leave the power to the unit on so do you press the off button on the panel to silence the alarm or just leave it on? I have the inside control panel as well an on / off switch at the unit. I cut the alarm at the panel off and left the switch at the unit on. I'm not sure if that was what I was supposed to do. Also, it would have been helpful if you had shown the flow rate coming out of the unit in to bucket to be recycled. I had the right sized pump but I wasn't sure if my flow rate was strong enough, if I had any obstructions, etc. I would also like to have seen what you were able to flush from the system. I kept looking for hard water "scales" in the bucket but didn't see anything and was wondering if what was flushed out could actually been seen. My vinegar ended up being slightly darker / dirty but I didn't see any visible "scales". I was hoping to see some debris to feel like I was flushing it correctly. Your thought? Again, thanks for the video.