Is a Tankless Water Heater Right for Your Home?

A typical water heater has a useful life of approximately 15 to 20 years. Most homeowners will have to replace a hot water heater at least once or twice over the course of their time as homeowners, and some will choose to make an optional upgrade. For example, you may upgrade to a more energy-efficient model in order to save money on utilities each month. Whether your upcoming water heater replacement project is mandatory or optional on your part, you may be wondering if a tankless water heater is a great option for you.

Never Run Out of Hot Water (…Maybe)

You may have heard that you never will run out of hot water with a tankless water heater, and this is true to an extent. A tank-style hot water heater may heat a certain number of gallons of hot water, and when this water is used, cold water will flow through the tap. With a tankless hot water heater, the unit will heat water on demand, but it can only heat so much water. This means that you may be able to take a shower using hot water for hours if you like, but you may have trouble taking a shower, running the dishwasher and washing clothes all at the same time. A solution to this problem in busy homes is to use two tankless hot water heaters piggy-backed on top of each other.

Save on Energy Costs

You may have also heard that you can save money on energy costs, and there is some truth to this. Consider that with a tank-style hot water heater, you are keeping the water in the tank heated at a specific level regardless of whether you use the water or not. For example, even when you are on vacation and do not use hot water for several weeks, the hot water is still being heated in the tank. With a tankless hot water heater, the water is heated only when you need it, and there are energy savings in this.

When you wonder if this is the right model of hot water heater for your home, think about how frequently you need to feed water into multiple different appliances or features at the same time. This will help you to determine if a tank-style or tankless model is better for your needs.