Tankless Water Heaters 101

HVAC contractors that perform water heater repairs are getting used to hearing questions about tankless water heaters and the benefits and drawbacks of replacing your big, bulky storage-style water heater with the more streamlined, targeted tankless water heater. Tankless water heaters instantly heat water as it passes through the unit only as you need it, which is more efficient than keeping a huge tank of water hot and ready for use all of the time.

While tankless water heaters can reduce your energy bill, they are currently more expensive than traditional water heaters and may require changes to your electrical system that could add to costs. If you're considering switching to a tankless system, you should balance the benefits of the long-term energy savings versus the initial higher cost. For the most thorough and professional evaluation of whether your home or business hot water needs are better met by a storage or tankless water heater system, call a trustworthy, reliable HVAC contractor like Muse Heating And Cooling.

Tankless water heaters are the newest thing and offer a more targeted, energy-efficient option, but be sure to do your due diligence and enroll in Tankless Water Heaters 101, before making the switch to tankless.

Water Heaters In Space

One advantage that tankless water heaters have over storage water heaters is easy to see: they take up less space because they don't require as big of a footprint as a 20-gallon storage tank. Tankless, or demand-type, water heaters deliver hot water in a more efficient way than a conventional tank-style water heater. Instead of holding water in a tank, they heat the water when it's needed, wherever it's needed. Whether you can use the additional storage space freed up by losing your tanked water heater is a result you should weigh in your new water heater decision.

Cost: Short Term Versus Long Term

Water heating accounts for a surprising 18 percent of your home's total energy use and according to energy.gov, tankless water heaters can be up to 34 percent more efficient than a conventional storage tank water heater in homes that use 41 gallons or less of hot water, on average, per day, and save around $100 a year in energy costs.

But, tankless water heaters are presently more expensive to purchase than traditional storage water heaters. Also, in large households or businesses where a lot of hot water is used, it may require more than one unit at different points of water use to provide the necessary hot water for all applications on the property. Many of the whole-home tankless systems can require major changes to your electrical system to function properly, and that can escalate initial costs drastically. Professional fees can easily exceed the initial cost of the unit, as high as $1,000 for installation and $3.500 for electric service upgrades.

Demand Versus Energy Efficiency

Like low flor toilets and showers, there always seems t be a trade-off of performance for energy efficiency, and so it is with tankless versus storage water heaters. One complaint about tankless water heaters is that they don't always provide whole house hot water. In colder climates or if demand is high due to many users and applications, there is a drop in water temperature and pressure. This is due to built-in internal controls that limit water output when demand increases, restricting the flow to each faucet. Another complaint is that it takes over a minute for hot water to reach the faucet or shower, even when the unit is fairly close by.