Tankless water heaters are commonly referred to as “Instantaneous” or “On Demand” water heaters. These names tend to insinuate that when you open the faucet, the hot water will be there “instantaneously”. However, just like with your tank style water heater, the hot water has to travel through the pipes, whatever the distance is, before it comes out the open faucet. From the time you turn on the faucet, it takes about 3-4 seconds before the unit ignites and begins sending hot water into the pipes leading to the open faucet, then you have your normal wait time to get the water there. Sometimes we end up relocating the tankless system, which helps shorten the distance, and thereby the time it takes to get hot water to your faucets. We can also shorten the time it takes by installing a recirculation system in conjunction with your tankless system.
