Archive for November, 2009
Tankless Hot Water Heaters
Due to rising energy costs and people becoming more environmental aware tankless hot water heaters are growing in popularity. They can deliver instant clean hot water on demand and they are relatively simple to install for a qualified professional.
As the name indicates tankless water heaters heat your water without the need of a storage tank. Essential there are 2 types of heater, an electric and a gas powered heater. What fuel type of heater is the first decision you will need to make when considering a tankless water heater.
With an electric heater the water is heated by an electric element and in a gas heater the water is heated with a gas burner. Also with gas heaters you need to establish whether you are using propane or natural gas and you will also require the correct gas venting. This is usually made of stainless steel, galvanized steel or aluminum. You will need to ensure that you have the right category of venting and that it complys with the manufacturers guidelines for the appliance you are installing
As the water is heated on demand you will never run out of hot water as can happen when the hot water was stored in a tank. The size of your tankless hot water heater is the next thing to consider. On average they supply hot water at approx 2- 5 gallons a minute and you have to decide if you want to supply the whole of the property or have a smaller unit that will heat the water specifically for say the dish washer. The number of people and the number of appliances together with whether they are all using hot water at the same time will be the determining factor in the size you will require for your home.
You can find out more about tankless hot water heaters by clicking here.
Any good Brands in Tankless Electric Water Heater in India ?
why tankless water heater is not successful in India ?
I would give Ebay a try. As far as tank less water heaters not being successful in India would probably be because they haven’t been promoted like they’ve been in Europe & North America. As efficient as they are, their popularity wasn’t stimulated up until the past five or so years, to wheres Europe & Canada having been using them many years prior…Be patient, I’m sure that eventually they’ll have to be popular everywhere, considering the dwindling energy sources…
Water heater vs. tankless system?
Our gas water heater is going out and needs to be replaced. Our insurance will cover the water heater and installation, but not the additional costs to bring it up to code, about $900. We can take the cash out and make our own arrangements to get it fixed instead of having it replaced with an equivalent unit. We are thinking about a tankless system.
I presume we would put it in the water heater closet, and we do want gas, not electric. Most of our plumbing is in the "core" of the house, so none of the hot water lines are more than 20 feet, and only the kitchen sink/dishwasher line is that long. If it matters, our house was built in the early seventies, and the current water heater is about 14 years old.
If you have replaced yours this way, what do you think? How do the costs of the two systems compare? Is there a difference in your gas bill now? What about maintenance/repair/reliability? Would it still have the same code requirements, or would most of that stuff not apply? Would it still need the new thingamajig to cut off the water if there were a leak? Would it still need a pan installed? (Either way, we’re going to have to change out a couple of gas lines.) Are there any brands much better/worse than others? What else do we need to know?
All words of wisdom appreciated! Thanks!
I only know what my plumber told me about these when we were building our house and considering the tankless heaters. He said the gas was the best/fastest/most reliable and that we would would need one for each bathroom that had a shower/bath and one for the kitchen/laundry. We opted for a large electric hot water tank and do not run out of water, and are very happy with it. (I don’t mean a huge tank, just one capable of handling our needs). You might want to check to be sure your needs can be met when you want hot water, and not have to stagger what you wish to do to ensure enough hot water.