I was just about to write that. Leave the propane tank supplying the kitchen. But, put the electric tankless in the hot water line. That should give you instant hot water for start up, and also the advantage of propane heat for bigger uses of hot water.
When pilot lights are outlawed, only outlaws will have pilot lights.
Many dishwashers have a heating element that will heat the water anyway so you don't really gain anything by adding a water heater for the dishwasher.
Any small point of use in-line water heater would work for the kitchen faucet. Or maybe consider a separate electric point of use faucet. I have one of those on my kitchen sink but don't use it much as the water is very hot, near boiling.
Kevin
Incorrecto there Kevin Boi. You cannot run cold water in a dishwasher and expect the heating element to heat the water up over 120 degrees. It is meant as a supplemental heater and is also used in the drying process. Bubba
cycle time will skyrocket to many hours for just a single load.
dishwashers arent designed to start with cold water.........
the multi hour cycle time will be inconvenient, wear out dishwasher parts sooner, and run up energy costs
I had a Whirlpool gold DW that has a cycle (automatic) just for heating the water if it was not hot enough. Many times I would save the dishwasher to last after doing showers or laundry. The water would be too cold to take a shower but I didn't worry about the DW, I just let the heat cycle work as designed. The dishwasher would take noticeably longer but not hours, maybe 20 min longer. Though my water was not ice cold, but I believe my situation was similar to the OP. The OP said (in his 2nd post) that the main water heater is too far away. He never said the DW was connected to the cold line.
For the OP energy cost are a wash because he has to add a 2nd water heater just for the kitchen so the same energy cost goes to the WH instead of the DW. If it were me I would get a small under-cabinet water heater for the sink and not worry about the DW unless the DW did not have the heating cycle. Kevin
Convenience is my primary reason for adding the heater for the kitchen. Every time you go to rinse something in the kitchen, it takes the better part of a minute before warm water begins to arrive at the faucet. Often you only want warm water for a brief period, but it requires filling the line, (mostly 3/4"), with hot water which will be wasted.... plus the inconvenience of having to wait for it. As you suggested, I could add a small heater just for the sink, but that would require adding another faucet as I'd still need the existing faucet in order to bring hot water to that point prior to starting the DW. My remodel doesn't include the sink area. It is my intention to isolate the kitchen from the hot water line supplied by the propane heater at the other end of the house.
I'd isolate the kitchen from the rest of the house hot water line, by puting a gate valve in the line just before the kitchen. This has the added convenience of turning a minor emergency into less urgent repair if the main hot water heater fails. This happened to me at my previous house, where I had added a second heater for the bathroom as part of a bathroom remodel. Some time later, the heater in the garage failed and I was able to simply cap it off, and open the gate valve, and then choose a replacement heater for the garage at my convenience, instead of it having an emergency replacement situation on my hands.
Energy costs are not my consideration. There are so many variables including the widely fluctuating price I pay for propane at various times of the year, to be able to make any meaningful comparison. As I said, my motivation is convenience. Incidently, rather than asking for advice on the merits of adding a seperate heater for the kitchen, my original question was for suggestions about which brands of electric heaters might be better. Only one poster has addressed that question.
Thanks, Kevin
Kev> I had a Whirlpool gold DW that has a cycle (automatic) just for heating
you could also add a recirculation line, either manually or automatically controlled, to provide hot water at all times to the kitchen without wasting watwer.
for electric you need the coldest water temperature you ever get in late winter, the tem rise of the perspective heater, and the maximum flow with both dishwaser and sink full on, then see how many spare amps your main service has spare.
I understand that.
"Seems to me" that if your have "regular" and conservative habbits you would be about as well off with a small "tank" style electric water heater. The small ones have a capacity of a few gallons and a quite good recovery rate. They will run off a 20 amp breaker and #12 wire. Perfect for a sink and a dishwasher. Buy on price.
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