Water Heaters

When compared to traditional tanks, tankless water heaters have numerous benefits. Tankless water heaters require less room, last longer, save money, and provide an endless supply of hot water.

Traditional tank style water heaters come in a large variety of sizes and shapes, but if you are using one for your entire home, you can guarantee that it will be quite a bit larger than a tankless water heater. Electric tankless water heaters are usually about the size of a briefcase, while their gas counterparts are approximately the size of a suitcase. With either power source, you are usually looking at saving a considerable amount of space if replacing a traditional tank.

In the past, traditional tank water heaters were built to last. It wouldn’t be unusual for a water heater to last twenty years with proper maintenance. Most of the traditional tanks on the market today are lucky if they last the average 8 – 12 years. Due to their lack of water storage, tankless water heaters often last quite a bit longer. Gas powered units will usually last about 15 – 20 years, while their electric counterparts will last 30 – 40 years.

One of the biggest benefits of tankless water heaters is financial. Although tankless usually cost slightly more to purchase than a traditional tank, they quickly make this back and more with their lower operating costs. Compared to a traditional electric tank water heater, a tankless will usually save a homeowner 40 – 50 percent on their water heating bill. When taken over their longer lifespan this savings can add up to a substantial amount.

Larger families are often most impressed with a tankless water heaters ability to provide an endless stream of hot water. In most homes with a traditional tank, the third person to take a shower in the morning either has a shortened or a cold shower as the tank has been depleted and must get up to temperature again. Since tankless water heaters heat the water as it flows through, you can run it for as long as you like, and never have the water go cold.

With their smaller size, longer lifespan, greater efficiency, and ability to produce endless amounts of hot water, tankless water heaters offer a great many benefits over traditional tank water heaters.

Mark Coupe has been involved in the tankless water heater industry for 9 years, and provides detailed information on tankless, including flow rate and temperature rise comparisons on E-Tankless.com

The cost of home energy is reaching the point where the average person is constantly on the lookout for ways to transfer that hard earned money back into their pocket instead of the money grubbing power companies.

If saving money on utilities is on your most wanted list, lets discuss a few ways to help ease the cash payout and hopefully have extra cash for more leisurely pursuits. There are really only two main ways to make this work to your advantage. One is to use your energy sucking devices less and the other is to seek out devices that will be less costly to operate.

The ideal situation would be to save money and still have unrestricted use the devices.

Two of the major users of energy are the home heating and cooling system and the constant heating and reheating of the water in your homes water system. Finding a couple of ways to control these cash suckers would certainly be a huge help.

Using a centralized heating and cooling system would allow you to set the temperature different for each room or zone in your home. Rooms that are unused most of the time really don’t need to be heated or cooled twenty four hours a day. If your home is set up with an old fashioned system it may pay you to look into a centralized system, if not now at least when it’s time to replace your old unit.

Installing a programmable thermostat would allow you to control the temperature of your house automatically while you are away. These thermostats can be set up to program your heating and cooling to coincide with your return from work or play and reduce your energy consumption when no one is home.

The heating and cooling in your home can also be controlled with a remote control system. These systems can be programmed with a phone call to set the temperature to have your home nice and comfy when you return.

Controlling the second biggest drain on your energy consumption,the water system may be the easiest and most cost effective place to start saving your hard earned money.

The installation of a low flow shower head is an ideal and inexpensive place to start. These devices can save you up to forty percent of your consumption without sacrificing your water pressure. In fact you would be hard pressed to tell the difference and they won’t cost you an arm and a leg.

Another inexpensive alternative is a shower head similar to what you would find in a camper. These shower heads allow you to turn the water off without reducing the water temperature while you lather up and turn it back on when you are ready to rinse.

You can reduce your water consumption in your toilet by installing a water saving flusher or through the use of a low consumption toilet. Many people have found that placing a brick in the water tank of their older toilets will reduce water consumption without effecting the flushing ability.

Making and installing a solar power water heater will save the average home owner around forty dollars a month. These systems are easy to build with a proper set of instructions and can be build and installed for under a hundred dollars. Now that is a payback you can begin getting immediately.

Every little thing you do can turn into big time savings in the long run. By CLICKING HERE you can learn more about saving energy costs and read reviews of some inexpensive solar power water heater plans that can have you saving money right away.

Tankless Water Heater Marketing Is Everywhere

If you have had a reason to think about water heaters lately you have probably heard a lot about tankless water heaters. In the last couple of years the tankless water heater manufacturers have really stepped up their promotional campaigns and spent some big bucks building consumer awareness and interest in their products. Tankless water heaters have been portrayed as providing huge energy savings and endless hot water. How much of this is true?

Just The Facts, Ma’am

Today we are going to start cutting through some of the marketing hype and find out exactly how tankless water heaters stack up in the energy savings arena. Just how efficient are they, anyway?

Electric Tankless Water Heaters

Now is a good time to go ahead and say that we will be discussing gas (or LP) tankless heaters. Electric tankless heaters really make no sense 99% of the time. They just don’t do the job in most cases and usually require extensive (and expensive) rewiring. Electricity is really a fairly expensive way to heat water in most cases.

While we are on the subject of electric water heaters lets clear up one more thing. Even though most electric tank type water heaters are rated with a higher efficiency factor than similar gas models, they are not usually an good choice to lower your energy bills.

It’s true that electric water heaters are technically more efficient, because there is no energy wasted up the flue pipe common to all gas water heaters. The problem is that, at least for now in most places, the electricity required to operate a water heater costs more than either natural gas or LP. So even though it takes less energy, the energy used costs more. Enough said.

Gas Tankless Water Heaters

Let’s talk about the possible energy savings with gas tankless water heaters. It is a fact that gas tankless water heaters are rated almost 50% more efficient than a standard tank type gas water heater. The reason tankless heaters beat tank type in efficiency is because there is no energy used keeping a tank full of water hot. The only time any energy is used is when hot water is actually being used. As soon as the faucet is turned off the heater stops heating the water. This is one of the big selling points for tankless water heaters.

It’s Not All Hype

So it’s not all hype, tankless water heaters really are more efficient, but the payback period that is often stated in marketing literature is probably based on the best case scenario. In the real world, the more frequently hot water is used the smaller the gap in efficiency between tankless and tank type water heaters. This is because there is less “non use” or “temperature maintenance” energy use as the frequency increases of “hot water usage events” (a fancy way of saying a hot water faucet was turned on).

Basically, if you are using hot water any type of heater will be using energy. It takes the same amount of BTUs to heat a gallon of water in either type of water heater. In plain English, the more often you use hot water the less a tankless will save you on your gas bill.

Check Your Usage Pattern

So, are tankless water heaters really more more efficient? The answer, strictly speaking is, yes. How much more efficient depends on your individual usage pattern. If you are thinking about going tankless you should probably pay attention to when and how often you use hot water now. The more frequently you use hot water, the less money you will save in energy costs.

Copyright 2008 Bryan Stevens

Bryan Stevens is a Licensed Master Plumber and Certified Green Plumber with a knack for teaching homeowners how to do their own basic plumbing repairs themselves. He has a step by step mini-course called “How To Unstop A Toilet And Other DIY Plumbing Tips”. To claim your FREE copy visit How To Unclog A Toilet

It seems as though everyone is going green, but some people may not be sure how to begin. Being eco-friendly seems too hard or expensive. Many people like the idea of using new geothermal regulators in their home because it is energy efficient. You can be very eco-friendly by installing a geothermal heat pump. Being earth friendly does not have to be expensive, or even that time consuming. You can choose your level of dedication to it. If you are interested in joining the cause, but it is not your passion then you can take little steps. On the other hand, if you really enjoy the idea and want to donate a lot of energy to it; you can.

For individuals who just want to make some subtle changes to their lifestyle, follow these simple steps.

• Start carrying around a water bottle. Buy a stainless steal or durable water bottle that you can refill and reuse. This keeps you from using numerous plastic water bottles. Many stores sell these types of bottles made out of recycled material.

• Use canvas grocery bags. These bags are great. You can fit many more groceries in them and you do not have plastic sitting around your house. They usually cost just a few dollars, and some stores even give you discounts for using them.

• Mow your lawn in the early morning or evening. Mowing your lawn in the heat of the day adds more smog in the atmosphere. Doing it when the sun is not as strong allows for less intense smog emission. An added bonus is that it is less hot at these times as well, so there is no reason to disagree!

• Get out your bike. If you live within a few miles of your destination, grab your bike and ride there. If you can bike to the grocery store, invest in a basket and put your bags on your bike. It may seem trivial, but every time someone chooses to use a bike instead of a car, it makes a little difference.

• Do a walk through of your house and check that all unused appliances and lights are turned off. Do not light an empty home. When you leave a room, turn off the lights and appliances. Try to shut your computer down at the end of the day, instead of wasting energy all night long. Even doing something as easy as turning the monitor off when you are not using the computer will save energy. You can invest in energy efficient light bulbs for your house as well.

• Run your heat and air conditioner like a pro. Do not blast the AC if you do not need to. If a fan would cool you off enough, do that instead. If its ninety degrees outside, then air conditioning is understandable, but when it is in the eighties you probably do not need it quite as high. Same with the heat do not turn on it in October. Wear socks or sweatpants if it is a little chilly for your liking. Once it actually gets cold outside, by all means use your heater. Do not be extravagant!

Connor Sullivan recently contacted a Louisville geothermal specialist to fix a problem at his office. He made an appointment to have a Louisville geothermal heat pump installed in his home which is more energy efficient.

Buying a new water heater is not a whole lot of fun. It’s something that most homeowners have to go through and all want to get over with the process as soon as possible. However, taking just a bit of time to do some research will go a long way in helping you to secure the lowest price on the unit you buy. This is especially true when researching tankless water heater prices.

Because of the tremendous demand for these new types of heaters, there are many companies now manufacturing them. These companies range from reputable and well respected to fly by night. The first thing to consider when researching tankless water heater prices is the reputation of the manufacturer. Basically, you don’t want to go too cheap. You want to make sure that the unit you buy is made by a quality company and will last you a while.

Once you have decided on the specific brand you want to buy, look online for the lowest prices you can find. It is always a better idea to buy a tankless hot water heater online than in person. The overhead that the online stores carry is significantly less than the one the stores carry. Therefore, the prices are lower.

Look for deals directly from the manufacturer. Often, they will sell directly to the consumer and this is a great way to save some money because you can buy the unit before it is marked up by the distributor and/or the retailer.

Lastly, look for online sales and specials. The prices of tankless water heaters can vary dramatically at the same online store, depending on how many units they have in stock. If an online retailer becomes overstocked, they can offer sales that will drop the price drastically.

There are some great websites online to help you find the lowest prices on all water heaters. Hot Water Heater Prices is a great one.

For consumer and expert reviews of some of the top selling water heaters check out Hot Water Heater Reviews.