Most homes have traditional water heaters with a large holding tank. These units keep that tank of water hot 24/7 for use from any fixture or faucet in your home. But when you are considering the tankless water heater option, it is essential that you understand the different process it uses to meet your home’s hot water needs.
How Tankless Water Heaters Work
The tankless water heater only heats water when there is a demand for it. When you open a faucet or shower, cold water flows into the unit and over a heating element. This powerful heating device can be powered by electricity or gas, much like a traditional water heater. The water is instantly heated when passing over the heating element. Then it flows onto the shower or sink where you have the hot water faucet open. The most commonly appreciated benefit of this on-demand heating is that you never need to wait for the holding tank to refill with hot water.
Other Valuable Benefits To Tankless Water Heaters
Having an unlimited supply of hot water is very appealing to a busy household. With a traditional water heater, it can be a challenge for everyone to have hot water to bathe. But it is essential to consider all the benefits of tankless water heaters and not just the unlimited supply of hot water.
- No holding tank means that there is significantly less potential from water damage to your home. A compromised holding tank is often to blame for a leak that creases costly water damage. But with no holding tank, you never need to worry about that catastrophe again.
- Tankless water heaters are very compact, about the size of a small carry-on piece of luggage. These units are easy to mount under a sink or in a small closet.
- Tankless water heaters are far more economical to operate because they don’t waste energy maintaining a large tank of hot water 24/7. Some homeowners report that their water heating expenses decreased by as much as 50%.
- The energy-efficiency rating on tankless water heaters is nearly 99%. Most traditional units struggle to reach 90%.
- The average life expectancy of a tankless water heater is 20 years, making it about twice as long as a traditional water heater.
Whole-House And Point-Of-Use Options
One of these compact water heaters’ great features is that they can be installed throughout your home. So rather than a single water heater, you can opt for multiple units in various locations in your home rather than a single larger tankless unit to service the entire household. The benefit here is that you will never need to worry about no hot water in your home. Even when one unit is being serviced or must be replaced, you can use another shower with its own tankless water heater. This is just one more flexibility that allows you to meet your household’s hot water needs.
More Honest Information
No appliance is ever perfect. And there is another fact about tankless water heaters that is not as well known. There can be a lag between turning on the hot water spigot and getting hot water. Like with a traditional water heater, there is cold water in the line that must be flushed out. So the closer your tankless water heater is to your shower or sink, the faster you will be enjoying hot water.
To learn more about installing a tankless water heater, call (720) 650-2455. A Flatirons Plumbing licensed plumber will visit your home, answer your questions and provide you with a complete cost quote.
