Sorry to bump this back up, but we finally have hot water again
We ended up going with the Rinnai B26 60 deg continuous flow unit. Went for the 60 deg unit because we like the idea of really hot water for the kitchen when required and the 60 deg unit can be adjusted / programed to achieve up to 75 deg, the 50 deg compliant units wont allow that from what I understand. I should add to install a hot water unit capable of supplying in excess of 50 deg, a tempering valve must be fitted to limit water temp to 50 deg in areas such as bathrooms to be compliant.. Note storage units should always be run at 60 deg or above so nasty things don't grow in the tank... Oh also read something about min temps recommended for washing dishes that also influenced the 60 deg + capable unit decision..
Have to say it's really worth shopping around if anyone is thinking of installing something like this, ended up getting the unit for $830.00 from a supplier (Their trade price) $155.00 cheaper than otherwise quoted for the unit from another supply/install units only supplied by them mob.. Also ended up getting it installed for $490.00 (that's including the $30 for the compliance certificate) so that was $180.00 less than the other mob that quoted $600 install and $70 compliance cert...
Also agree with Tom604 that adjusting the temp (although doable) is a bit of a pain without the controller unit....
I have two in the post on their way now to sort that out $71.00 ea online way cheaper than we found locally (Less than two for the price of one
)
&THX for the recommendation Tom... Seems the controllers will also make the unit run more efficiently, logically no point heating the water hotter than required at the time and then cooling it down by adding cold water
There are certainly other options like the solar assisted setups etc.. that would be even more efficient to run, however they are considerably more expensive from what we looked at.. No doubt be worth it in the long run but more than we wanted to spend at this time.
Anyhoo..
Thanks again to all..
Jeff