So this little story starts off by trying to meet a small need (comfort), on my part, so I can enjoy more “water fun time” with my grandchildren.

I have four grandchildren (ages 4-7) who visit us from time to time. Besides enjoying the indoor playroom, they also make great use of the large driveway and the large backyard with a playground.  During the warm season they also enjoy the small inflatable swimming pool we set up for them …. And therein is where the problem lies.

Being very hyper and active kids, they have no problem with cool tap water temperature … but as for me (at age 67 and unhyper) …. the pool water has to sit in the sun for most of a long, hot summer day before I jump in and join my grandkids.  Of course, by this time … play time has moved back indoors.

I begin thinking of how best (convenient and cheap) to get hot water to the backyard and warm up the pool a little.  Since the small pool only holds a few hundred gallons I figured I didn’t need much hot water.

I quickly came up with some options to resolve my dilemma:

• Haul buckets of hot water from the kitchen
  • Yes, I have done this (ah for the love of gKids) … backbreaking, time consuming and messy .. and that does not account for the difficulty in getting a kitchen pass from grandma, aka Yaya, aka, my wife! lol)
• String a 50’ hose from the water heater drain valve to the pool
  • Yes, have done this too (ah for the love of gKids) … can end up with a water heater valve that won’t close again, a leaking hose in the house, and lots of cold ac going out a door left cracked open … aside from the difficulty of getting a pass to leave the door cracked open)
• Install a hot water faucet outdoors
  • Since I was already running new plumbing in the attic and also installing a new outdoor faucet … this was a viable option … but I just couldn’t justify the added expense and effort (still love those gKids though)
• Research the internet and find a small (and affordable) portable, tankless, electric, water heater
  • There are propane and electric portable tankless water heaters
  • Propane water heaters are less expensive and have more capacity for the same physical size
  • Electric water heaters, with an electric cord, cost a little bit more but are super convenient

Well … I chose the last option … and I was surprised how much I could find on the internet! … and how easily I could get distracted (old fogie like me).

Portable Tankless Electric Water Heater

I have decided to buy a portable tankless electric water heater that uses 110 voltage power (typical wall outlet power), has inlet and outlet connections for water hoses … and of course it is compact (small) and easy to handle.

Last, but not least, it has a very reasonable price at $139.  I can store the little thing in my garage and bring it out when I need it.  I already have an outdoor wall outlet and lots of hoses so this was a big win for me.  Note: I have not used this yet, but due to my research, this was the best choice for what I was looking for, so it is on order as we speak, from Amazon.

 

So What is a Portable Tankless Electric Water Heater?

Don’t worry, all my sons asked me the same question too.  Here it is in a nutshell:

• Portable – no permanent piping, small like a small box, can hand carry it, little storage required
• Tankless – just the heater in a container, no big water storage tank
• Electric – there are some portable tankless water heaters that require propane, but this doesn’t, it can plug right into your normal electrical outlet
• Water Heater –  the water is heated from inlet to outlet (cold water comes in and in seconds, hot water comes out)

In Conclusion

Thanks to the Portable Tankless Water Heater, no longer do I have to just sit and watch my grandkids from the sidelines, as they have their outdoor backyard water fun, but I can also get in and enjoy it with them.  This is a win-win-win;

• Grandkids are happy – They get to play outside in the water WITH grandad (aka Papa)
• Papa is happy – Papa gets to actively enjoy the outdoor water fun WITH the grandkids
• Yaya is happy – She doesn’t have to get in the water herself, and she gets to watch Papa and the grandkids have tons of fun together and make memories that will last a lifetime! 🙂

So if cold water is keeping you from enjoying outdoor water fun with your kids or grandkids, you can try all the options I mentioned above, but for me, the Portable Tankless Water Heater has been the best, most convenient, and  cheapest way for me to do it, and I would recommend it to anyone having the same challenges.

 

To Outdoor Water Fun,

Ruben Cancino (Papa)