Combo heat/hot water units

There's been prior postings about this, but I don't think there are firm opinions.

I chimed in with my opinion that I would be concerned about having both functions in a single unit and the consequences of a breakdown. Also, someone said that getting someone to repair a tankless water heater is problematic, and extrapolating this would give me concern about service on a combo unit.

Also, my contractor had a heck of a time getting a basic, 1 zone, mini-split A/C to come on line, a device that has been out in the market for a while.

Thus, anything you do in Eichlers puts you in the 10% minority where you will have difficulty finding competent service or knowledge.

Point of use water heaters seem pretty simple. When there is water flow, the heater comes on. A dual unit has two coils filled with water and only one burner. Domestic water takes priority over the house heater; meaning that if you turn on the hot water, the flow stops in the house heater coil until you turn off the hot water. Then the heater flow starts again.
One of your neighbors in the Highlands has had a dual unit for 20 months. It was installed by one of the service providers on this site at the same time we installed his roof. The unit is compact and may be just what you have in mind. If you can't get what you want from the service provider, please contact me on Dura-Foam's website (using the 'I need Service' banner) and I'll e-mail you some photos of the unit.

If you are going to put in a high efficiency, or combined system, just be sure that the folks who do it are willing, and capabable, of servicing it. I do more than a bit of work for those who won't, or can't. While I have my favorites (based on low maintenance since I have to do it for free, duh), a properly installed system should be trouble free for many years. Good luck Jerry Rothfeld

Combined systems can solve your problems, but you need to know what you're getting. A flow through on demand heater may not be what you expect. Be sure to get your facts straight befpre you jump.
I am planning on replacing my hot water tank and original radiant heat boiler with a solution that saves the most space. I would like to compact both functions into one unit in a closet where the old units used to be, and capture the newly unused space for a new bathroom.

Now that it has been some time since the combo units have been out there, can anyone comment on how they feel about it? I know Anderson advertises a combo unit, but it looks huge. I also read about the BAXI Luna on other posts on this site, and the space savings is amazing.

Any thoughts/recommendations? Thanks!

-A