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Stiebel Eltron is a world-famous German manufacturer of electric on-demand water heaters for over 90 years now. They have created and distributed many water heaters over the decades in various shapes, sizes, and applications. Today we are looking into one of their more compact models which provide continuous hot water.
With instant water heaters like the one we are describing in this article, you will never have to worry about having enough hot water for your shower, even if you are the last one to go. In our Stiebel Eltron DHC 3-1 review, we will be going into the various details of this small but functional water heater.
By reading our independent review, we hope to properly inform you of the benefits and drawbacks of using one of these units in your home. To get that valuable information, all you need to do is read on.
Stiebel Eltron DHC 3-1 Specifications
The most obvious challenge people face, once they are building or remodeling a room, is finding space for everything. With this unit, you won’t have to worry much as the dimensions are 14.18 x 4.12 x 7.87 inches, which is still pretty compact. The weight of the heater comes to just 4.6 pounds, meaning installation won’t be labor-intensive at all.
The savings from this unit are easy to see from the start, as it only uses up 3kW at a 120V single-phase current. With such a small energy requirement, the amp draw on your circuit panel comes to a small 25 amps. This means using one or a few of these on-demand water heaters won’t cost you that much, and won’t pose much of a threat for your service panel.
From an output point of view, you won’t be getting much from the unit. Reason being it can produce a max flow rate of 0.5GPM/1.9 LPM when the inlet temperature is around 75°F (23.8°C). Being so small and having such a low output makes it an excellent point-of-use solution for garages, individual sinks in a beauty salon, something for your boat or other similar undemanding applications.
Customer Support and Warranty
Contacting the company for info is quite straightforward. Customers can contact various departments of the company by the standards means of email, phone, and fax. Generally, consumers consider their customer service to be good, but service can vary between centers.
This on-demand water heater comes with a 3-year warranty for the parts, and a 7-year guarantee against leaks.
What to Expect from Stiebel Eltron DHC 3-1?
Going by the reputation Stiebel Eltron enjoys, you should get a water heater that outlasts its warranty. That is what happens in most cases with this company. This specific model does have a limited flow rate and areas of application because of it. For more information on what influences the flow rate in tankless water heaters, refer to the buying guide we created.
If you happen to live in a place where the water is 80°F (26.6°C) you can get the machine to raise the temperature up to 105°F (40.5°C) at 0.86GPM/3.25 LPM. When you combine a small on-demand water heater like this one with low-flow faucets, you get to see a difference in your power bill. As energy usage is quite low, you could have multiple units installed in one place, like a salon, and they would support the sinks.
Pros
- Very budget-friendly model
- Lightweight and compact design makes it easy to install
- Detailed operation & installation manual
Cons
- Can only support a single sink in a warm climate
Wrap Up
Finding a perfect solution can often be stressful and time-consuming. Hopefully, our guide has answered some, if not all, of your questions. From our research, you can see that this tankless water heater was designed for the specific purpose of being a single sink solution.
If you follow the installation guide and use it in the climate most recommended for the water heater, then you can expect this inexpensive unit to provide a couple of years of dependable service. Granted the output water flow isn’t that great, but the compact size allows for various applications which aren’t possible with bigger models.
Having said that, our Stiebel Eltron DHC 3-1 review has reached its end. If you have any further questions about this model, you can contact us via the comment section, and we will happily reply in due time.
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