Should You Install a Tankless Water Heater?

Traditional water heater vs. tankless water heater – which is better? Which is more appropriate for your home?

Traditional water heater vs. tankless water heater – which is better?  Which is more appropriate for your home?  Many homeowners are asking themselves the same question.  It seems wasteful for your water heater to heat water around the clock, even if you are not using hot water.  Energy.Gov describes what tankless water heaters are and how they work, “Tankless water heaters, also known as demand-type or instantaneous water heaters, provide hot water only as it is needed. They don’t produce the standby energy losses associated with storage water heaters, which can save you money… Tankless water heaters heat water directly without the use of a storage tank. When a hot water tap is turned on, cold water travels through a pipe into the unit. Either a gas burner or an electric element heats the water. As a result, tankless water heaters deliver a constant supply of hot water. You don’t need to wait for a storage tank to fill up with enough hot water. However, a tankless water heater’s output limits the flow rate.Typically, tankless water heaters provide hot water at a rate of 2–5 gallons (7.6–15.2 liters) per minute. Gas-fired tankless water heaters produce higher flow rates than electric ones.”

Tankless water heaters obvious significant energy savings which is better for the environment and will significantly lower your energy bills each month.  Water will not be heated until the moment you need it so waste is reduced dramatically.  Also, tankless water heaters take up less space so if space is running low, a tankless water heater will give you a little bit more room to work with.  But, while this is appealing to many, there are drawbacks to the tankless water heater.  First, changing to a tankless water heater comes at a cost (typically under $1500 so there is an initial investment.  It is typically more expensive than conventional water heaters. But, many people consider that investment something that they will recuperate in savings.  Second, because water is heated on demand, it is not ideal for every household, particularly those that have a lot of inhabitants or use a lot of hot water at one time.  If multiple people need to take a shower in the morning each day, or the dishwasher or clothes washer need to run simultaneously or at the same time as the shower the chances of running out of hot water increase.   To mitigate the problems, some people install a larger tankless water heater or multiple tankless water heaters to ensure there is always hot water available.  Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of a tankless water heater carefully before having a professional install your new water heater for your home.