You're not obligated to get the heater and faucet from the same brand. My understanding is that most heaters are made by two companies, ISE (Insinkerator) and Anaheim (Quick n Hot). The same two companies that dominate the disposal market, ISE and Waste King, respectively. Most others are just rebadged. You can just search for the faucet that you like and match it to one of the two systems. The faucet manufacturer will tell you which system is compatible with their faucet.

I bought Quick n Hot from Costco and then bought another faucet made by Tomlinson even though the kit came with a faucet, albeit a cheap one. I was thinking of putting the extra faucet on EBay.

We have lived in our house for almost 10 years. When we moved in it had a Kitchenaid dispenser that worked so well that when we remodelled we got another. We had the bisque color all over and to upgrade got a stainless one. It has a tall neck and a streamlined knob. At first the knob was tough for me to turn but in the year we have had it either I have gotten stronger or the thing loosened up a bit. Also the new one had a tendency to occasionally drip when I let go. Now that hasn't happened for over 8 months. Again it looks like the packing was a bit tight at first and just loosened up with time. Perfectly happy now. I will say that the tech support was awfully surly when I called them about it at the time. Seemed to have been unusual to be over tight.

The Insinkerator changed over to a stainless tank. No more problems with leaking. And the corrosion of the old non stainless tanks had more to do with people who had poor quality water and didn't treat it and then heated it than any poor quality of the previous tank design. Their water heaters probably crapped out after 3-4 years too and then they posted about how poor a quality GE water heaters are these days rather than treating their water.

I have the Insinkerator SST use it everyday for past 5 years. Never a problem and the most handy thing I have in the kitchen. Had one in the old house that we sold to people who have become friends, its over 13 years old and still works great. These two had levers not knobs.
We also have two we installed in our office. These have knobs, about 10 years old and one of them quit after the knob gave out.
All were insinkerator. My faucet for the insinkerator looks so close to matching my water faucet guests are confused as to which is the soap dispenser.
Just get one- lifes to short to wait around for hot water.
DH gave me the first for a BD gift. Just love that man!

So what does everyone use these for? I've never had one so I don't miss it, but in trying to decide if I want to add one during our upcoming renovation I can't see what it helps with.

Please enlighten me! I'd hate to pass it over just because I couldn't see how it might make my life easier.

Thanks all! ppbenn - what model faucet do you have and what finish (i.e. - stainless, chrome, etc)? Just wondering what finishes you have in each that matched up. I am feeling a bit better about getting one of these after hearing that some are having great experiences with no leaking. Williamsem - I am a huge tea drinker and simply want the convenience of instant gratification without boiling a pot of water!

Williamsem:

I was skeptical about these things until I moved into a house that had one and now I can't imagine not having it. I use mine primarily to clean, the super hot water pulls gunk off anything.

My wife uses it to make tea or hot cocoa.

I use the instant hot a lot. In addition to the aforementioned tea, cocoa, and cleaning, I use it for instant/quick oatmeal and other similar cereals, adding near boiling water to a roasting pan, speeding up the coffee maker or moka pot, and re-hydrating/steeping dried goods like mushrooms, beans, etc. Basically, anything you might need a cup or two of (near)boiling water for and you'd normally have to use a small saucepan or even MW. There have been times when I needed the small amount of really hot water, but the small sauce pan was in use. Without the instant hot I would have resorted to either a larger pan or the MW. So it's a matter of convenience. I can certainly survive without it. But now that I have it, it's a REALLY nice-to-have item.

jscout - how long have you had the Quick and Hot tank? Wondering longevity? I do fear ruining my brand new kitchen. Keep reading horror stories of tanks leaking and destroying cabinets, floors, etc. But I REALLY want a hot water dispenser. So perhaps a risk I'll need to take...

I've only had mine in for 10 months, so the jury's still out on reliability. It is a one year warranty. I know the Q&H also has an Elite model that comes with a 3 year in-home warranty, I believe. I also run RO (reverse osmosis filtered) water into it. I think mineral deposits can cause a shortened lifespan on these things, so that should help longevity.

I think the main difference between Q&H and ISE is that Q&H requires a vented faucet. Excess pressure in the tank is released via the faucet. ISE is closed. It's vented at the tank so it can have a hotter water rating. Whether this makes a difference in longevity, I don't know.

JScout - when you say a "hotter water rating" does that mean the water that comes out is hotter? sorry, it might be an obvious answer, but i'm not sure.
thanks!

Yes, the ISE has a slightly higher temperature ceiling of 210 degrees, while the Q&H is 200.

thank you!