Who writes the guidesMeet our editors
Three of us write and edit every guide and ranking on Best Tankless Heaters. None of these heaters has hung on our walls for the site, and we won't write as if it had. The work is reading: spec sheets, installation manuals, flow charts, venting and wiring requirements, warranty terms and a great many owner reviews, especially the ones written after a first winter. Then we line the heaters up side by side, and we reopen a ranking whenever a price moves or a model drops out. Every guide names the person who wrote it and the person who edited it.
Senior editor
Christine is the senior editor of Best Tankless Heaters. She decides which heaters make each ranking and starts every guide with the same question: what runs at the same time in your house? She reads the one-star reviews first, because that's where the lukewarm second shower and the surprise gas-line bill show up, and she will say so when a tank is still the smarter buy.
- Tankless or tank for your household
- Point-of-use vs whole-house units
- Peak demand: what runs at once
- Lifespan and what shortens it
- Keeping the rankings current
Gas & venting writer
Patrick writes our gas guides. He opens the installation manual at the venting chapter before anything else, checks the BTU input against what a gas line of that size can feed, and keeps track of which propane models are separate versions and which need a conversion kit. When a listing promises an easy install, he wants to see the vent run first.
- Gas vs electric for your house
- Natural gas vs propane versions
- Condensing vs non-condensing venting
- Indoor vs outdoor installs and freeze protection
- BTU input and gas line sizing
Sizing & electrical editor
Kara handles sizing and the electrical side. She works out the flow a heater gives at your temperature rise instead of quoting the headline GPM, and she adds up the amps and breakers an electric model needs before it goes anywhere near a ranking. She's also the one who reads the warranty small print, especially the part about hard water and scale.
- GPM at your temperature rise
- Amps, kW and breakers for electric units
- Installation: what the manual requires
- What drives the install quote
- Descaling, upkeep and warranty terms