Stiebel Eltron DHC-E12 Tankless Water Heater, 9000/12000W, 208/240V

I bought this to replace a 50-gallon electric tank heater that developed late-life incontinence and finally stopped working. I'd been considering a tankless heater for a while, attracted by the lower running costs. Frankly the purchase cost is attractive too; compared to the $500+ that a non-garbage tank heater would cost, $260 for this Siebel-Eltron unit seemed like a bargain. It's important to note that in my case, the tank was only serving: a kitchen, a laundry/utility room with sluice sink & washing machine, and an occasional shower room (used for hosing down after gardening, etc.). I am in the Pacific Northwest and on well-water; my guess is that my water is at approx. 52°F. For whole-house use at this input temp or lower, and certainly if you intend to use a shower at the same time as something else, you WILL need a larger-wattage unit. Quick version: I installed it this afternoon and am happy; it provides enough heating capacity to allow a shower. Longer version: Installation was fairly easy. The most complex part was having to upgrade the cable from my breaker box, which was, fortunately, only 5 feet away from the heater's location. The old water tank used a dual-pole 30A breaker, and 10AWG wire. This Siebel-Eltron DHC-E12 needs a 60A DP breaker, and that in turn mandates 8WG cable to meet code. I was able to pull new cable through and upgrade the breaker myself, only needing to cut a small hole in the drywall for access - but I was lucky, and in most cases I suggest you'd need to engage a professional electrician. One reason I chose this heater is that any higher rated devices generally need TWO dual-pole breakers - and there just isn't space in my breaker panel for that. Once the wiring was in place - with a junction box and conduit to make it look neater, where the old tank heater only had the wire sticking straight out of the drywall - I mounted the heater to the wall. I had to remove a section of drywall and install 2x4 cross-bracing for this; the heater mounts using 2 screws at the top and bottom, meaning that if I'd been able to align it with a wall stud this last step wouldn't have been necessary. The front panel control dial must be connected to the inside of the unit. As the (very helpful) installation manual makes clear, there are 2 possible connection points. Using connection point A1 allows selection of the full temperature range up to 140°F; if you connect to point A2, however, the temp is restricted to 109°F. I can see this being useful if you have small children, for example. I then hooked up the cold & hot water lines. **IMPORTANT!** Pretty much every water heater I've seen uses 3/4" MIP fittings, and the flexible supply lines are sized correspondingly. This unit however uses 1/2" MIP, so I had to obtain a 1/2" FIP-3/4" MIP brass bushing for each line - these were not included. Once installed and tightened, it was time to turn on the cold water feed, let the water run through the system, and then flip the breaker. Success first time! The unit immediately started heating water. I had to play a little with the valve on my cold water supply line to reduce the flow rate; the red light on this unit blinks if it's having trouble heating the water to the target temperature. But as you can see in the included video, the end result is that I can have a perfectly acceptable hot shower. Overall, I'm happy with this. I hope this review helps you make a purchasing decision.

Buy the Stiebel! I became acquainted using these heaters when I lived in Costa Rica and operated a construction company. I consider them to be a premium product and they are expensive when compared to others, but I believe worth the cost especially with cheaper steel tanked units locally produced there. Glad amazon warehouse deals had one of these on sale, I am forever thankful for finding this one at half price! I recommend to all to install these as they are all copper construction inside, which is great to reduce the affects of poor water quality and varying pressures. They're also German engineered and have a great warranty. I only experienced one that failed when I was still in Costa Rica, it was less than a year old and cycled between extreme hot and cold. It's nearly impossible to return anything there even if broken or defective, but after emailing the parent company of the antics the local seller was putting me through, they promptly sent a replacement direct to me. Now back in the US and installed in my home, the 12kW DHC-E is installed upstairs as a booster to service two full sized bathrooms. Before, it would take around 40 seconds for hot water to arrive from the crawlspace water heater, and now I have hot water in 5-10 seconds. So, saving water and less waiting. I do like the fact this unit is smart enough to turn off when hot water from the main tank reaches it, so its saving all around. Do yourself a favor and install one of these and no more waiting and endless hot water. Installation is straightforward and these heaters are the size of a shoebox so they mount almost anywhere.

Had this installed as a whole house water heater in 2022. It has worked great since for up to four people in the house, showering, laundry dishwashers. I love it. I would do it again. I have a four bathroom, three bedroom house.

In my tiny house was a tiny tank water heater that gave maybe 10 minutes of water. Just got married so that had to change. This was perfect. Had to run a new 60 amp line from the pole. It runs the shower great but not a shower and a faucet. If I wash my hands with hot water while my wife is showering I hear her yelp. Haha! The winter is causing the water to be colder that enters the house and thus the water heater is not able to make the water as steamy as before. We just put the shower head on a setting that is more myst than a hard stream or the rain shower head. That reduces the flow and helps the heater keep up even when temps are 15 F outside.

The heater works great. It heats fast and gives you constant hot water. I would have given it a 5 star rating, however the design and install left ease of installation lacking. The unit requires 6 gauge wire but the design only gives you a minimal amount of room to work and mount the wires. I could not install the wire clamp as the stiff wires would not allow. It is a great unit as far as heating the water, and I would recommend to all. My only advice is take your time on the wire connections or hire an electrician.

There are so many to choose from and honestly it was a bit overwhelming trying to decide which company to buy from. I searched all over the internet from reviews and ratings and settled on this one. I live in a tropical climate so tap water is between 70 and 75 deg F. The DHC-E12 is more than ample. I probably could have gone with the E8/10 but wanted to err on the higher side. Installation went quick. Had to run 6/2 wire and had a 50amp breaker installed from the old 30amp breaker that ran the old 28 gallon shorty water heater. I had a 1/4 turn ball valve installed with a hard water filter to make sure this thing lasts. I have pretty good water pressure and just turned the ball valve enough to reduce the flow. I currently have the E12 set at 115F and it is exactly 115F coming out of the faucet. I have a bit higher flow in the shower and that's around 110. This thing does have a flow sensor so apparently it's not suppose to scorch you if you turn down the shower or faucet. Originally I had it at 120 and omg that was too hot and 115 seems about perfect. It's nice to know that should I decide on a bath or a hotter shower I can crank this thing up to 140. Most people don't realize that this thing will only heat up to 140F if your tap water coming in is at 70-75F. With that being said....read the charts and the water flow increases, etc. Add a shower reducer or just turn your pressure down. I honestly can't believe how well this unit performs. Do your research, but I'd assume with this unit even at a water temp coming in at 55F you still could get up to 120F by setting this thing to 140F. The design is solid and only had one issue of a leak internally that was fixed by tightening up an interior connection. Also, there is a metal plate on the inside that acts like a wrench...make sure this metal plate is locked in place on both the cold and hot water sides inside otherwise you could end up torquing something out. The only reason I noticed this is because it was loose when installing it and took a closer look at it and realized what its purpose was. Aside from running a new heavy gauge wire and new breaker, this unit hooked up easy. Do realize that the npt connections are 1/2" and you will either need a 3/4" reducer or I guess they make specialty hoses as well as most of the inlet water connections are 3/4" NPT. I'll update the review should anything arise but so far this has exceeded my expectations. Black+Decker made a similar unit but seems to manufactured by another company for Black+Decker and upon researching those units, the reveiws and ratings were sub par. Another big seller for this unit and company was the customer service response. I've yet to use them but others say they are very helpful. Warranty looks good and excited to see the actual lifespan of this DHC-E12. Hope this helps.

We live in northern CA. We've had 2 of these for over 2 years now and really love them. One is for our washing machine and kitchen, the other is for our 2 full bathrooms. The only drawbacks are that you can only run one shower at a time. Even washing your hands with hot water will make the shower cold. Also you have to fill the bathtub very slowly. The best part is that the temperature in the shower is rock solid. Unlike with a tanked water heater, the shower doesn't slowly grow colder over time or run out. It's great! It also requires no maintenance and should last roughly twice as long as a tanked water heater. Be sure to test water flow rates and cold water temperature to accurately calculate which model is right for you. Also make sure you have soft water or have a non-salt water softener or the unit will fail prematurely. Closely follow wiring and load requirements. You will almost aways have to rewire to use these units.

Works decently well for our tiny home. Instructiobs could have been a bit more detailed. HOT water at both kitchen and bathroom sink. Will only work with a simple shower head that has a water regulator. Our fancy wand shower head with multiple settings with regulator only gave us a dribble. When we removed the regulator, water was pulled too quick through the water heater to heat it properly. Forget trying to use it with a washer... good thing I don't wash anything in hot water. We could have used a bigger one, but this will work for the time being.

Es una delicia que es "plog and play", super calienta el agua a la temperatura que le indiques... Solo cuida el sarro que es super facil de limpiar y dar manteniento!!

Neat water heater, well engineered & designed. Quality product & easy to install. Works very adequately on the medium setting providing above average warm water. Good design results in a simple plumbing installation.

I have been using the unit for a week or so - it's more than meeting my expectations. I purchased a small unit since there are only 2 people living in my home. I was concerned that the water wouldn't be hot enough - I live in Vancouver BC - the inlet temperature is about 55 degree - the copper supply line runs through an uninsulated crawlspace to the kitchen sink. I was pleasantly surprised - it does take 20-30 seconds for the hot water to travel to the faucet - but it was similar with the 40 gallon hot water tank. If don't open the faucet fully - the flow more than meets my needs - this ensures that the water is hot and reduces the energy requirements of the heater. I've actually reduced the heater water temperature setting to ~ 110 F - and it' plenty hot enough. As an added benefit, I now have extra space in the utility room to install some storage cabinets. My main installation challenge was finding a 50 amp double pole breaker to fit my Federal Pacific panel - they are no longer made. I was able to find one locally.

We like that if we use too much water flow, Stiebel Eltron DHC-E12 E output water temperature drops a little. (Our previous on demand water heater, from a different manufacturer, would cut to full cold when we used too much water flow. Brr.) Stiebel Eltron DHC-E12 E works better for our needs. Enjoy

Fabulous little heater! Well made, easy to install and hot water comes through swiftly. Installed in a newly built garden office and just running for a basin in a bathroom. Very quiet whilst in operation and small footprint on the wall. Would definitely recommend!