Tankless heats water on demand instead of holding 40 to 50 gallons hot all the time. For a Vancouver home the math is good but it is not automatic, and the honest answer depends on your household, your gas service and how long you plan to stay.

Tankless makes sense when your gas tank is dying anyway, so the install premium buys 20 years plus instead of 10. When you are a high usage household, meaning three or more people, simultaneous showers or a large soaker tub, where tankless saves 25 to 40% on water heating gas against a tank. When you want the floor space back, because a wall mounted unit is about the size of a carry on suitcase next to a tank that stands 60 inches tall and 22 inches wide. When you expect to be in the house long enough to be the one collecting on a 20 year warranty. And when you are already opening the gas line for another renovation, so the BTU upgrade can ride along with it.

Tankless makes less sense when you are low usage, one or two people on mostly low flow fixtures, because the saving shrinks to 5 to 15% a year and the payback stretches out past 15 years. When your gas service is undersized and would need a line upgrade just to feed the unit, which is common on pre 1985 Vancouver homes still running 3/4 inch gas mains that cannot carry a 199,000 BTU draw. When your existing tank still has five good years in it, since waiting for natural replacement captures more of what you already paid for. And when you are planning to sell soon and will not be around to collect the operating savings.

We tell you which one you are. About 30% of our tankless consults end with stick with a tank for now. We will not push tankless when the numbers do not support it.

A real install is more than swapping the box. The gas line comes first. Tankless draws 150,000 to 199,000 BTU under full load against 38,000 to 50,000 for a standard tank, so most Vancouver homes built before 1990 need the line taken up to 3/4 inch or 1 inch. We measure gas pressure and BTU capacity on the assessment visit, under load rather than at idle, because a line that reads fine idle can starve the unit at peak demand.

Then the venting. Tankless vents direct or condensing through a sidewall, not up the chimney like a tank. We run new 3 inch or 4 inch PVC vent on a condensing unit, or stainless concentric on a non condensing one, and the run length and direction both change how the unit performs.

Then condensate and power. A condensing unit makes acidic condensate at pH 3 to 5 that has to reach a drain or a neutraliser cartridge, and skipping the dedicated line voids the warranty. The ignition controls also need 120V power within about 6 feet of the unit, which usually means a dedicated outlet.

Then the paperwork and the old tank. The Class B gas fitter permit gets pulled through City of Vancouver Plumbing and Gas, and the inspector signs off on gas, vent and condensate before we close the wall. We disconnect, drain and haul the old water heater away, recycled at the City transfer station, with a certificate of disposal if your insurer wants one.

And then commissioning. We run the unit through its setup, test every hot water fixture in the house for flow and temperature, walk you through the maintenance schedule, and register the warranty with you on the day.