Rheem Vs Rinnai Tankless Water Heater

Rheem Vs Rinnai Tankless Water Heater – Comparison in 2023

Tankless water heaters are essential home equipment that households need depending on their location. Under cold weather, having one of these units guarantees a comfortable supply line of hot water for many daily activities at home.

A discussion that homeowners often bring up is the Rheem VS Rinnai tankless water heater. Which company delivers the most efficient appliances? Today, we’ll review some of their products as we attempt to answer that question.

We’ve gathered a selection of tankless water heaters from each brand, hoping to establish differences and similarities between the two. Surprisingly enough, both brands are pretty similar, as we’ll find out during this read.

Rheem Vs Rinnai Tankless Water Heater – Comparison 2023

Are you wondering why would Rheem water heaters be a good addition to your home? Here, we’ll review three of its best products to answer that question.

1) Rheem RTEX-13 Residential Tankless Water Heater

The first Rheem product review is friendly to you and your wallet. It’s a tankless water heater that requires little effort to install, saving valuable time and money you’d spend hiring a professional. Thanks to the simple interface, everyone in the family can use the heater easily.


This unit offers an energy efficiency rating of 99.8%. It’s nothing new, as most Rheem’s water heaters have a similar performance. Of course, that means that the unit helps saving money by preventing energy loss.


Besides being a reliable water heater, this model is actually pretty good looking. It features a compact, modern design that makes it blend well in every household. The small size is also another advantage, as it allows you to install it anywhere around the house.

Once you activate it, the water heater provides a constant flow of hot water. There’s an external thermostatic control included, which is easy to operate and increases the temperature by 1°F value. The modern digital LED display allows you to keep track of the current temperature.

The two copper immersion heating elements guarantee a stable performance throughout the day. It includes self-modulating power control, meaning that this Rheem product is capable of heating the water almost instantly.

While this model is an incredible addition for small households, it won’t perform as good if the house is too big. In that case, you may need more than one of these water heaters to be able to supply every appliance around the house.

If you’re looking for a tankless water heater to supply the bathroom or kitchen, then the Rheem RTEX-13 is everything you need. It’s an incredible choice to complete household chores daily.

PROS

  • Easy to install
  • User-friendly features allow everyone to use the heater
  • Compact & beautiful design
  • Suitable for small houses

CONS

  • Not good for large households, as you may need more than one

Related Article: Takagi VS Rinnai Tankless Water Heater

2) Rheem RTEX-18 Residential

This device offered by Rheem has enough power to supply one to two bathrooms at once. Under that application, the water heater provides a continuous amount of hot water, efficiently using the energy to prevent interruptions. Due to its compact design, the RTEX-18 model is portable.

Installing this water heater is a hassle-free operation for almost every homeowner. As mentioned above, this product is compact, meaning that it doesn’t require many accommodations in the room to set it up.

However, if you feel the need to follow the instructions, you should be aware that the manual included isn’t that good. Some of the printings are not clear, and they may be confusing at times. Searching for online instructions would be a better decision if you require assistance.

The unit comes with user-friendly digital controls. Depending on what you need, you can adjust the temperature by increasing 1°F at a time. These temperature settings go between 80 to 140°F.

This tankless water heater has an energy efficiency of 99.8%, being one of the highest produced by Rheem. With that capacity, the unit helps saving energy and money at the end of the month.

While operating, the heater produces around 4.4 GPM. It’s not much, but it’s enough for dishwashing and a couple of hot showers, as we mentioned early.

Despite some minor issues with the instructions, the Rheem RTEX-18 water heater is an outstanding pick. Perhaps it isn’t enough for demanding commercial purposes, but most households would benefit from having it installed.

PROS

  • The compact design makes the unit easy to set up
  • Digital temp controls to adjust the temperature
  • 99.8% energy efficiency
  • Stable 4.4 GPMs capacity
  • Suitable for one to two showers
  • Self-modulation technology included

CONS

  • The instructions included could be confusing, especially if you haven’t handled water heaters before

3) Rheem RTGH-95DVLN

The RTGH 95DVLN model is among the newest additions to Rheem’s line of products. It’s a tankless unit that offers a convenient and economical method to heat up the water around the household. With 94% of energy efficiency, this water heater places itself as one of the most reliable.

This water heater features a stainless steel condensing exchanger that improves the unit’s efficiency. Additionally, the heater comes with smart electronic controls that allow homeowners to adapt and use the unit just the way they want.

Once installed and adjusted, this water heater delivers a flow rate of 9.5 GPM. Granted, other models may offer more GPM, but 9.5 is still more than most electric tankless water heaters. With this capacity, the RTGH 95DVLN model is capable of supplying from three to four bathrooms.

Much like the best, this tankless water heater works at 199,000 BTUs. Other than delivering constant water flow, this product also allows homeowners to save some money.

The technological features of this product are also something to admire. By including a hot-start programming system, the heater can minimize the fluctuations in water temperature. Also, the OFW (Overheat Film Wrap) feature maintains the whole unit protected in case there’s a breach of the exchanger.

Rheem also adds the EZ-Link system, which makes it possible to connect up to two tankless water heaters should you ever need them. This feature is essential because a single one of these units won’t be enough for commercial purposes.

PROS

  • Easy to install due to the self-guided manual
  • Low NOx emissions
  • Digital display for the temperature & digital remote controls
  • EZ-Link technology to connect more than one unit

CONS

  • A single unit won’t be enough for highly demanding tasks

Suggested Guide: Bosch vs Navien Combi Boilers

Rinnai Tankless Water Heater You Can Buy

Are you in need of an outstanding tankless water heater? Check out what Rinnai has to offer.

4) Rinnai RL Series HE+

If you need any display of what a high-quality water heater can do, then you have to check out the RL Series from Rinnai. Each unit in this line of products delivers reliability, efficiency, and plenty of controls easy to use for anyone.

In this series of water heaters, Rinnai offers four units. Those models are the following: RL75iN, RL94iN, RL75iP, and RL94iP. Both the RL75iN and RL94iN work on natural gas, with an estimated GPM capacity of 7.5 and 9.4, respectively.

The last two work on propane. One of them, the RL75iP, delivers 7.5 GPM, while the last one offers 9.4 GPM. All of the units in this series are indoor water heaters, working at 199,000 BTUs capacity. Another similarity between all of those models is the weight, which is 50 lbs average.

A single person can handle these water heaters and install them without assistance. Since they’re water heaters easy to install, you can save some money. Another feature that helps saving money is the anti-scale system, which helps you maintain the units. Scale build-ups often decrease the efficiency of water heaters, which is why we appreciate these preventive measures.

Depending on what you need, you can attach several temperature controls to operate the unit easily. These additional tools allow you to keep track of the water temperature at all times, which helps to improve the efficiency of the heaters.

Although there aren’t many disadvantages while using these models, you must know a couple of things. For example, the RL94iN model does get loud sometimes, which may be unpleasant under some circumstances.

If you search online, you may encounter that previous customers didn’t like how long the water takes to come out. Now, that’s not necessarily an issue caused by the heaters, but rather many other variables such as the distance between the appliances.

Overall, the RL Series from Rinnai has remarkable tankless water heaters. You get to choose the one you like the most out of four options.

PROS

  • Constant water flow
  • Provide 7.5 to 9.4 GPM
  • Circ-Logic tech allows recirculation patterns
  • Compact & easy to install

CONS

  • Models like the RL94iN can be noisy

5) Rinnai V Series HE

Similar to the RL Series, the V Series of HE tankless heaters from Rinnai offers four units: v53, v65, v75, and v94. While the V53 is among the most affordable, they’re outdoor units only. Also, this particular model has a BTU capacity different from the others, being only 120,000 BTU.

That’s why V53 models are most suitable for small areas. On the other hand, models like the v65i and v75i would do well in medium-sized households. These two models will deliver 7.5 GPMs, and they work at 180,000 BTUs.

Lastly, there are the v94 water heaters. Though this heater is not just one, but rather three: the v94i, v94Xi, and v94e. While the first two are indoor units, the third one works as an outdoor water heater.

As you can see, there are many water heaters included in the V Series. They may have some slight differences, but they all share the same goal, which is to provide hot water for residential purposes. And it’s not a stretch to say they’re pretty good at it.

Once they’re active, the V Series water heaters have an estimated efficiency of 0.82. Compared to other brands, this rating may seem low, but it still manages to be better than other gas water heaters.

Homeowners will also appreciate how user-friendly these water heaters are. From the small v53 to the large v94 models, all of them are easy to install. Operating them isn’t hard either, as these units include helpful features like the MC-91-2US temperature controller.

However, if you decide to get a product from this series, you may need to buy extra accessories. One of those accessories is the Rinnai Vent Kit, which allows the units to work at their best capacity.

PROS

  • User-friendly series of tankless water heaters
  • Scale control system
  • Temperature controller & lock system to prevent unwanted changes
  • Water flow sensor included

CONS

  • These water heaters may require you to purchase extra accessories for their installation

6) Rinnai RU Series Sensei SE+

Finally, we have the RU Series. Rinnai has earned its place in many households over the years, and this line of products is a clear reason why. These units are gas water heaters, and they work as indoor appliances only.

The RU Sensei Series offers a total amount of eight water heaters. Those are the RU130ip, RU130in, RU160ip, RU160in, RU180ip, RU180in, RU199ip, and the RU199in. These units deliver a GPM amount from 7 to 11, depending on which model you end up choosing.

Besides delivering powerful performance, these units also share plenty of the same technology. That’s the case of the Circ-Logic system, which makes it possible for users to create water recirculation patterns. You get the option to adjust the system as much as needed to secure the water flow.

All of the models included in the RU Sensei Series are vertically integrated products. Each one of the parts is an authentic piece produced by Rinnai, which makes them durable and reliable. Also, every piece works perfectly to provide better performance.

And what about the performance of these water heaters? Well, they meet almost all of our expectations successfully. The units take only one or two minutes to heat up. After they do, the water flows continuously, guaranteeing proper supply for two or more showers simultaneously.

If you decide to go for one of the heaters from the RU Sensei Series, keep in mind that location is essential. Before installing it, find the perfect spot at a convenient distance from the other appliances. Otherwise, the water will take a long time to come out.

PROS

  • Natural gas power source
  • Vertically integrated heaters
  • Circ-Logic technology for recirculation patterns
  • Powerful GPM capacity between 7 to 11

CONS

  • These heaters may be slow to provide the water, which means you have to find an ideal installation place for them

Conclusion – Which One Wins?

As we’ve seen throughout our review of these brands, their tankless water heaters are fairly similar to one another. In some cases, Rinnai would surpass Rheem, delivering units with a higher efficiency rate overall. Despite that, Rheem units are capable of compensating in other areas too.

For example, Rheem water heaters are rather simple, which makes it easy to understand them. Technology in these appliances is incredible, as it allows users to change temperature settings and supply several water outlets at once.

Rinnai heaters, on the other hand, may have some regular issues like a drop in temperature, but the units quickly recover after a couple of seconds. Once they do, the water flow continues supplying kitchen, sinks, and many other areas of the house without interruption.

Sometimes, a third option may present itself, like Dux. Their products are great, but there’s no denying that, when compared, Rinnai and Rheem come on top of this brand.
After reading our Rheem VS Rinnai tankless water heater article, you will now understand a little better why Rinnai is the better pick here.

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