The tankless water heater has been around for a good while now — long enough for most plumbing companies to have formed some realistic views about the pros and cons of this technology. If you’ve heard some buzz about tankless and you’re thinking that might be the way to go in your home, you may want to read the following assessment before you buy.

What Is Tankless Technology?

Tankless water heaters are the opposite of storage water heaters. Just as the name suggests, there’s no tank and no storage; the water is heated by an electric element or a gas burner, and is delivered continuously, although the flow rate may be limited. Gas-powered types provide higher flow rates than electric ones.

Pros and Cons

While hot water on demand sounds enticing, be aware that even the largest model won’t supply enough hot water for large households when the demand includes multiple, simultaneous uses.

Homeowners should plan on installing more than one of these tankless models to meet the higher demand. It may also be necessary to install additional units for appliances, such as a dishwasher or a clothes washer.

For households with lower hot water demand — less than 41 gallons a day — tankless technology can be very efficient, while for homes that use at least 86 gallons a day, that efficiency is considerably less.

Another advantage is that tankless models last a long time. Although they cost more initially than a storage-type water heater, homeowners may realize savings over time because of the appliance’s long life, in addition to lower operating and energy costs. Parts are also fairly easy to replace, so that the lifetime of the tankless appliance can be as much as 20 years. Storage heaters, by comparison, are expected to last only 10 to 15 years.

Yet another advantage of interest to homeowners with smaller homes and garages is that the tankless units save on space, since there’s no tank to accommodate.

If you’d like to learn whether a tankless water heater would work in your home, contact Powers Heating and Air of Peachtree City, at 770-487-2949.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Peachtree City, Georgia and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 770-487-2040.

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