Hamilton Evolution 99

[MProvise]

Does anyone have any experience with the Hamilton Evolution 99 water heater? I am thinking of putting one in my store and would like to here what people think.

[Howard]

I almost bought one, but went with the Natco Super-E instead. Neither Hamilton nor Natco make these units, they are made by another company for them. This other company talked me out of the Hamilton. They sell them both under their own name and explained that the Munchkin, which is what the Hamilton is, is designed for hotwater baseboard heating where you are only heating a clean water stream under a no-flow condition. When you have new water coming into the unit all the time it will quickly fowl and fail on you.

[Larry_Sitz]

You should consider the AO Smith Super Cyclone water heater. It is an excellent unit.

[Jeff Deal]

I am President of Hamilton Engineering, Inc. and feel a thorough response is in order. First and foremost, if you would like some honest feedback on the Evolution 99 product and it's reliability and ability to deliver what we state, we have over 600 units out in the Coin Laundry Industry to date without a single failure as described by "Howard". We design and sell engineered hot water solutions and water quality is taken into account in that design process. We would be more than happy to provide you with as many names and phone numbers of Hamilton customers that have used this product for some time as you would like. That way you could have solid information to base your decision on, not hearsay or salesman's perceptions.

The Evolution 99 is certified as a Water Heater, where the Munchkin is not. It is true that we are not the manufacturer of this unit (neither is the Munchkin Company); we assemble it into working hot water systems in our production facility in Michigan. It is assembled in steps beginning with the heat exchanger being manufactured in France and the burner assembly manufactured by Honeywell in Germany. We have taken European technology and experience (the same heat exchanger and burner is in over 400,000 units in operation in Europe that were assembled under 8 different brand names similar to Hamilton) and brought it to the laundry industry in the form of ultra efficient, reliable hot water systems.

Please don't hesitate to call me (Jeff Deal) directly at 800-968-5530 and we will provide you with whatever specific information you require to be comfortable in your decision making process.

[Howard]

That is very interesting Jeff because that is not what the company in Mass that make or supplies you with the unit claims. Their claim is that the unit is not suitable for heating raw water. I suggest that you discuss this with them, as they had a significant impact on my not buying your unit. Seems they are supplying you and marketing against you if what you say is true.

[trek]

I purchased three Hamilton 99 units for my laundry in October, and to date have been very happy. They are extremely efficient, are not noisy, and keep a constant supply of hot water ready for my customers. At this time, I have nothing bad to say about this unit, and would recommend it to anyone.

[Charlie]

While I don't have experience with the Evolution, I do have experience with Hamilton.

First, I have met Jeff Deal on several occasions. He has been very open, helpful, and seems to have a high level of integrity. He is very knowledgeable about his business and very supportive of the coin laundry industry.

Second - When I built my new store, I was able to find a deal on a used Hamilton "stack pack" water heater system that was several years old. Jeff Deal had personally worked up a water heater analysis for me, but I chose not to buy new. I had no manuals or information, so I called Hamilton tech support. They were very supportive, sending installation manuals at no cost and spent significant phone time in helping me to install the system and in sending a couple of parts that I needed. This says a lot to me when a company supports even secondary customers in such a fashion. I recently bought a used propane buffer, and when I asked that company for information, they acted like I had leprosy and were barely cordial.

The stack pack system has run flawlessly since installed.

Bottom line - Hamilton has a reputation for well built equipment, and, from my experience, they do a good job of standing behind their product.

Charlie