Installation, repair and descaling. Straight talk about what hard Prescott water does to a tankless unit — and how to make one actually last 20 years.
CreekWell installs the flagship condensing units from the two tankless brands Neil works with most — Navien and Rinnai, and he is factory-certified on both. The price is for the complete tank-to-tankless upgrade — $3,100 flat, installed, natural gas or propane — so the choice comes down to features, not price. Want hot water at the far bathroom in seconds? The built-in recirculation models are $3,500 flat, just $400 more.
Not bookable yet. This work involves a gas connection, which puts it outside what CreekWell can take on until its Arizona contractor licenses issue. The details here are accurate so you can plan and compare. Why
Reading the specs: BTU is the size of the burner, GPM is how many gallons of hot water a minute the unit can keep up with, and UEF is the efficiency rating — the closer to 1, the less gas is wasted.
The standard-setter. 199,900 BTU · up to 11.2 GPM · 0.96 UEF · ENERGY STAR®
Installed: $3,100 flat
$2,800 replacing an existing same-brand tankless
Hot water with no waiting. The same engine as the S2 plus ComfortFlow® — a built-in recirculation pump and buffer tank.
Installed: $3,500 flat
$3,200 replacing an existing same-brand tankless
The efficiency leader. 199,000 BTU · up to 11 GPM · 0.98 UEF — highest in its class
Installed: $3,100 flat
$2,800 replacing an existing same-brand tankless
The smart recirculator. The RX engine plus an integrated recirculation pump and thermal bypass valve.
Installed: $3,500 flat
$3,200 replacing an existing same-brand tankless
| Which unit | Installed | Replacing a same-brand tankless |
|---|---|---|
| Standard models: Navien NPE-240S2 or Rinnai RX199iN | $3,100 | $2,800 |
| Built-in recirculation: Navien NPE-240A2 or Rinnai RXP199iN | $3,500 | $3,200 |
Already have a tankless? Replacing it with the same brand (Navien to Navien, Rinnai to Rinnai) costs less — the same-brand prices above — because the venting and gas are already right, so you keep the difference.
Why the price is this good: no showroom and no commissioned salesmen — the owner does the install. And skip the online “bargains”: Navien’s warranty does not cover consumer internet purchases, so a unit bought online can arrive with no warranty at all. The units Neil installs come through Navien’s authorized supply chain with full coverage intact.
The same flat rates apply anywhere in Yavapai County — Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Dewey-Humboldt, Mayer, Paulden and the communities around them — with no trip fee.
A tankless upgrade is one of the few plumbing purchases that pays you back. These numbers are not ours — they come from the U.S. Department of Energy and ENERGY STAR®.
The Department of Energy’s efficiency estimate for homes using 41 gallons of hot water a day or less.
ENERGY STAR’s estimate for a family of four against a standard gas tank — about $95 a year on gas.
A standard tank is rated 0.58–0.64 UEF. ENERGY STAR certifies gas tankless units at 0.95 UEF or better, and these four are 0.96 and 0.98.
The Department of Energy puts tankless life expectancy past 20 years; storage tanks last 10–15. One install instead of two.
On propane? You save the most. The efficiency gain is the same, but propane heat costs considerably more per therm than UniSource piped gas in Prescott — so every therm you do not burn is worth more. Propane and natural gas versions are the same flat price.
Sources: ENERGY STAR, Save more with ENERGY STAR gas tankless water heaters ($95 a year, $1,800 over its lifetime, 20-year life expectancy) and water heater key product criteria (UEF of 0.95 or more), both checked 23 September 2026. The 24–34% and 10–15-year figures are from the Department of Energy’s Energy Saver guide to tankless water heaters.
A tankless water heater is a good product sold badly in this region. Here is the part usually left out of the sales pitch: hard water scales a tankless heat exchanger faster than it scales a conventional tank, because the water is heated rapidly as it passes through a narrow exchanger. Yavapai County water is hard — how hard, town by town.
The result is predictable: an expensive unit that needs descaling every year, loses efficiency, throws error codes, and can fail well short of the 20-year lifespan it was sold on. The homeowner concludes tankless is overrated. It is not; it was installed into water that was never addressed.
Do it in the right order and a tankless unit performs exactly as promised: soften the water first, then install the tankless. A $185 lab water test tells you your actual hardness (so does the free hardness check at any estimate), and a water softener protects the investment.
If your budget covers only one of the two right now, the softener is the better first purchase — it protects the water heater you already own, plus your fixtures and your pipes.
Gas line sizing, venting, mounting and commissioning — assessed on site, at the flat rate above.
from $3,100Reference priceThe four unitsThe maintenance that decides whether you get 20 years or 8 out of the unit: descaling solution through the heat exchanger, the inlet filter cleaned, and the unit checked over.
$250Flat rate · bookableWater heater serviceIgnition, flow sensor, exchanger and venting faults diagnosed properly before parts are replaced. A repair that touches the gas valve or gas line waits on the license, like the installs.
FreeDiagnosis, Mon–Sat 7am–7pmIncluding a straight answer on whether the conversion actually pays off for your household.
$3,100Reference priceDone together on one visit, in the right order: soften first, then the tankless.
Water softenersNot sold on tankless? Tank service and repair, and a straight answer on replacement — no upsell.
Tank water heatersAqua Cat Plumbing & Water Treatment is now CreekWell Plumbing & Water Treatment. Same owner, same phone number.
We are adding Arizona contractor licenses, and we are not booking new work until that is done. New work restarts the first week of November. Jobs already on the schedule are not affected.
For new work, request a November visit or call or text 928-228-5770. Bookings go in the order they come in, at the prices published on this site. No deposit.
Not for new work. We are rebranding and adding Arizona contractor licenses. New work restarts the first week of November, once the licenses are issued. Jobs already on the schedule are not affected.
Leave your name on the list or call or text 928-228-5770. Bookings go in the order they come in, at the prices published on this site, with no deposit.
Usually, yes — and not just for the endless hot water.
The U.S. Department of Energy reports tankless units can be 24–34% more energy efficient than storage tanks for homes using 41 gallons of hot water a day or less, and ENERGY STAR estimates a certified gas tankless saves a family of four about $95 a year — roughly $1,800 over its life — against a standard gas tank. The unit also lasts: the Department of Energy puts tankless life expectancy past 20 years against 10–15 for a storage tank, so one tankless can outlive two tanks. And if your home runs on propane, you save the most: the efficiency gain is the same, but propane heat costs considerably more per therm than piped gas, so every therm you do not burn is worth more.
If anyone in the house waits on hot water at a far bathroom, yes.
The recirculation models — Navien NPE-240A2 with ComfortFlow® and Rinnai SENSEI™ RXP199iN with Smart-Circ™ — put hot water at the tap in seconds instead of a minute or more, and both work without a dedicated return line. Rinnai’s learns your household’s routine over seven days and schedules itself; Navien’s adds a push-button on-demand mode. At $3,500 flat — just $400 over the standard model — it is worth deciding up front, because the pump is built into the unit and cannot easily be added later.
Either — there is no wrong answer. Both are flagship 199,000 BTU-class condensing units at the same flat rate, and Neil is factory-certified on both.
Navien’s NPE-2 series brings dual stainless-steel heat exchangers and runs on ½-inch gas pipe in many homes; Rinnai’s SENSEI™ RX has the highest efficiency in its class at 0.98 UEF and runs natural gas or propane without a conversion kit. The honest answer: the venting layout of your home usually decides it, and that gets sorted at the free fit check. Neil stocks parts for both.
CreekWell — Neil Staiger, factory-certified by Navien and Rinnai — across Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Dewey-Humboldt, Sedona and Cottonwood.
Descaling ($250 flat) and repairs that do not touch the gas line are bookable once booking reopens in the first week of November. New installations and tank-to-tankless conversions involve a gas connection, so they wait on the contractor license; the prices are published so you can plan. Conventional tank work is on the water heater service page.
Commonly around 20 years with proper maintenance, against roughly 8–12 for a conventional tank here.
That lifespan assumes the descaling actually happens — in hard water without a softener, expect considerably less. Lifespan is the main argument for tankless, so protecting it with water treatment is what makes the investment work.
Tankless suits a household that runs out of hot water, wants the floor space back, plans to stay long enough to earn back the higher cost, and will soften the water.
A conventional tank makes more sense when the upfront budget is the binding constraint, when the existing gas line and venting will not support tankless without significant work, or when the home is being sold soon. Neil will tell you plainly when a tank is the better financial decision for your situation.
In hard water without softening, roughly once a year — sometimes more.
With a properly sized softener ahead of it, that interval stretches considerably. Descaling circulates a flushing solution through the heat exchanger to dissolve mineral buildup, and skipping it is the single most common reason tankless units underperform or fail early in Yavapai County. CreekWell’s flush and descaling is $250 flat, and it is bookable.
Only if you treat the water.
This is the question that matters most in Yavapai County. Hard water scales a tankless heat exchanger faster than it scales a tank, because the water is heated rapidly across a narrow passage. An untreated tankless unit in hard Prescott water will need descaling far more often and can fail early, which is how people end up disappointed by an expensive appliance. Paired with a water softener, a tankless unit performs as advertised. Installing one without addressing hardness first is a decision worth reconsidering.
$3,100 flat for the complete tank-to-tankless conversion, $3,500 with built-in recirculation.
That is a flagship Navien NPE-240S2 or Rinnai SENSEI™ RX199iN (or the NPE-240A2 or RXP199iN with recirculation), natural gas or propane, all parts and labor to code, haul-away of the old tank, and the plumbing adaptation included. Replacing an existing tankless with the same brand, with the venting and gas already correct, is $2,800, or $3,200 with recirculation. A difficult location or not-to-code existing plumbing is priced before any work begins, and the free fit check confirms the number before install day. These are reference prices for now: the install involves a gas connection, which waits on the contractor license.
New work restarts the first week of November, once we finish rebranding and the contractor licenses are issued. Jobs already scheduled are not affected.
