Oops,
we no longer sell these.
Please click here to get back to our
LP Gas appliance home page
|
|
|
|
Are you tired of wasting
energy and money by constantly heating
and re-heating a tank of water?
|
| Do you have a large family and frequently
run out of hot water just when it’s your turn to take a shower? If
you answered "yes" to either of these questions then an
Aquastar instantaneous water heater by Bosch may be the solution for
you. Why you ask? Simple. As their name implies an instantaneous water
heater only heats the water when you need it
and as long as you supply it with natural gas or propane and cold
water you’ll never run out of hot water
again.
Bosch does this with their simple flow-through design which only
turns the gas burners on when a hot water faucet is opened and water
is flowing through it. They have several units available to meet your
needs based on the gallon per minute flow rate and temperature rise
that you desire. There are limitations to an instantaneous water
heater in that you can’t open every hot water faucet in the house at
the same time and expect them all to deliver piping hot water. The
higher the flow rate through these units, the lower the temperature
rise.
|
 |
The most popular Aquastar line for
residential use is the 125 unit, and there are several models within
this line which are all listed in the chart below. Basically all of
the 125 models can provide about 3.3 gpm of hot water with a 55°
F increase in water temperature from that of the incoming cold water
supply. This should be enough to supply one major outlet (bath tub,
shower, washing machine, etc.) or two minor outlets (sinks) at a time.
The 125 line offers three different options to ignite the gas burners.
The 125FX uses a 120 VAC piezo electronic ignition, the 125B uses a
standing pilot light and the new 125HX uses the water flowing through
it when you open a hot water faucet to power a piezo electronic
ignitor. Kind of like having your own miniature hydro electric dam
built inside! |
| Their 125BS model uses a pilot light for
ignition and it can be used in conjunction with a solar water heating
system where it will automatically adjust its burners (or not even
turn them on at all if it isn’t needed) based on the temperature of
the incoming water. The Aquastar 38B model is well suited for small
homes or cabins where the flow rate requirement is small. Bosch
recently expanded their Aquastar line with the addition of the 240FX
model which is actually manufactured for them by Takagi industries.
The 240FX needs a 120 VAC source to ignite the burners and it will
provide 4.75 gpm at a 55 degree increase in temperature which should
supply two showers at the same time (unless you aren’t using low
flow shower heads).
|
| In February ’02 I replaced my old small
tank-type electric water heater with an Aquastar 125B propane unit and
overall have been very pleased with its performance. My
electric bills are less than half of what they were
with the old electric water heater (honest) and even when I have
guests, nobody ever gets a cold shower. There are some things that are
a little different about owning and using an instantaneous versus a
tank type water heater, but they just take getting used to. First is
that the Aquastar 125 needs a minimum of 0.5 gpm to light the burners
(0.75 gpm on the 240FX). All this means is that you can’t get a
small trickle of hot water out of your faucet. The other difference is
that the Aquastar’s outlet water temperature varies slightly with
water pressure. I have a well pump and small 30 gallon pressure tank
with a 30-50 psi pressure switch. If you start your shower when the
pressure tank is full, the water temperature decreases slightly along
with the pressure requiring you to adjust the faucet a couple times
before your shower is done. If you are on city water or have a larger
pressure tank than I do, then the water pressure won’t fluctuate as
much during your shower and this won’t be a problem. Call us. |
|
| Model |
240FX |
125FX |
125HX |
125B |
125BS |
38B |
| Gallons per minute |
| @ 50 degree rise |
5.2 |
3.6 |
3.6 |
3.6 |
3.6 |
1.2 |
| @ 55 degree rise |
4.8 |
3.3 |
3.3 |
3.3 |
3.3 |
1.0 |
| @ 65 degree rise |
4.0 |
2.8 |
2.8 |
2.8 |
2.8 |
0.9 |
| @ 75 degree rise |
3.5 |
2.4 |
2.4 |
2.4 |
2.4 |
0.8 |
| @ 90 degree rise |
2.9 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
0.6 |
|
| |
| Energy Factor |
0.84 |
0.78 |
0.78 |
0.69 |
0.69 |
N/A |
| Efficiency (percent) |
83 |
80 |
82 |
82 |
82 |
80 |
| BTU/Input (thousands) |
165 |
125 |
117 |
117 |
117 |
40 |
| Minimum flow rate (gpm) |
0.75 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.6 |
| Ignition source |
120V |
120V |
Hydro |
Pilot w/
Solar |
Pilot |
Pilot |
| Flue size (inchs) |
4 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
| Water inlet (NPT) |
3/4" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
| Gas inlet (NPT) |
3/4" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
1/2" |
| Height (inches) |
24.5 |
29.75 |
29.75 |
29.75 |
29.75 |
25.38 |
| Width (inches) |
16.5 |
18.25 |
18.25 |
18.25 |
18.25 |
10.62 |
| Depth (inches) |
8.3 |
8.75 |
8.75 |
8.75 |
8.75 |
9.12 |
| Shipping weight (lbs.) |
65 |
52 |
44 |
44 |
44 |
25 |
| Price |
$1,299 |
$949 |
$799 |
$699 |
$862 |
$441 |
|
|
|
|
