Water Heaters

Where to Place Instant Hot Water Heaters

admin — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 08:10:17 +0000

If you are going to switch your system from a tank type water heater to an instant hot water heater system, it may be the time to start thinking about where to place it in your home. The size and design of your home as well as the geographic location are the main aspects the affect the placement. However, there are other factors that will determine the efficiency.

Geographic Location

The simplest way to explain how the geography affects the efficiency of your instant hot water heater is that they all work better in the warmer climates because of the ambient temperature of the water. If you are located in a northern cold-weather climate such as Minnesota or New England, where the weather is cold in the winter, a tankless gas or electric water heater will take more energy to raise the incoming cold water to the correct hot water temperature. In a Southern climate, the water starts out at a higher temperature and requires less energy to make it efficient. Each company has a geographic zone map that will show you the type of tankless heater you will need.

Size and Design of Your Home

If your home is small, or if you have a small condominium, then you may be able to get away with just one central instant hot water system. But if your home sprawls out with bathrooms located on opposite ends of the house and a washer and dryer and kitchen located elsewhere, then you need to look into using a smaller unit for each of the remote areas.

Hot Water Usage

The amount of water you use also affects the type of hot water heater you’ll need. The family of four or five is not much different than a family of two if the size of the house is the same. However, if everyone uses the water at the same time, then there is a possibility of not getting the best use out of just one centralized tankless gas water heater.

Availability of Natural Gas

Natural gas is more efficient then electricity because of the cost involved. However, there are some limitations on placing a gas tankless hot water unit because of the need for ventilation of the gas. It is a major safety concern and should be installed only by a licensed plumber or gas company technician. If your area does not have natural gas, then liquid propane would be the alternative.

In either case placing instant hot water heaters requires more than just a simple explanation to determine its most efficient and cost effective use. Knowing some of the details is not complicated and it will save you a lot of money in the long run. Find out as much as you can before installing a tankless gas water heater.

Al Boyle knows everything mechanical for the homeowner, from instant hot water heaters to landscaping, cabinets and financing [http://www.directmortgages.blogspot.com/] and mortgages. There is always additional help available for those who wish to make things easier and cost effective.

Electric Tankless Water Heaters – Will They Save Electricity Or Will They Cost You and the Planet?

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:12:42 +0000

On demand electric heaters will cut your utility costs at first but are more harmful to the environment, and are not as good for the efforts of the electrical utilities managing the supply of power. That is why these water heaters are losing ground in countries such as Japan where until recently they were very popular.

The main way in which tankless water heaters save money is that in a tank water heater, you produce heat throughout the day for use later, and some of that heat flows from the tank into the surrounding living space (or furnace room or wherever your hot water tank is installed).

You can alleviate this heat loss somewhat by thoroughly insulating your hot water tank (special insulating blankets are available for this purpose – buy the thickest kind available), putting pipe insulation on your hot water pipes, and by lowering the thermostat on the heater from the factory default of 140F to 120F, which is both more efficient and less likely to cause burns. But you will still likely discover that an on-demand heater costs less to operate, at least in the short term, because there is so little heat loss, since there’s no heat storage reservoir.

The reason I say on demand electric heaters are not as good for the environment is that they create random spikes in electrical demand, which makes it more challenging for electrical utilities to manage generation load. An electric tankless water heater draws a huge amount of electrical current while it is in use. A tank heater, however, draws a lesser current for a longer period, and stores that energy as heat. Imagine if in a city of a million people, every home had an on demand electric heater, and everyone showered when they got up. The utility would need to find a way to quickly ramp up electricity generation in time for the tankless electric water heaters to fire up and heat water for showers, then to rapidly drop electricity production once the showering time (say, 9:00 in the morning) is pretty much finished. Since the utility can’t scale up this quickly with things such as coal or nuclear, they have to ramp up much sooner (say, 3 am), and then ramp down much later (for instance, 11 in the morning), so that while you have saved electricity, you have indirectly required the utility to generate a bunch of energy that isn’t actually required, and may be wasted.

That’s why in Japan for example, there is an aggressive effort underway to get homeowners to switch away from on demand electric heaters, and instead use an electric tank heater with some smarts built into it so that the element heats water hotter when there is excess power available, and then blends that water with colder water if necessary, to supply hot water at a preset temperature.

Note that in some states and provinces you are charged for electricity based on the time of day it is consumed, and in some states and provinces you even pay based on the peak amount you use. So if you shower at 8:30 in the morning you are using electricity during peak load for electricity prices, and that means an electric tankless water heater will cost you a lot of the higher-priced power, whereas a tank heater, if it has the smarts designed into it to predict that no hot water is needed while you’re off at work, can let out hot water heated at night, then not start reheating the tank until the next evening, when time-of-use prices have dropped.

Another thing to consider is the lifestyle changes you will need to make when you go to an electric tankless water heater. The house I live in now has one, and I find that it does not perform that well. The flow of water is much less than you would get from a tank heater (because the tankless heater only lets through as much hot water as it can produce at that time), and for something like washing dishes, where you might turn the tap on, then switch it off, then on, then back off, it just doesn’t work the way a tank heater does, because you experience a lag between when the water starts running and when the tankless heater engages. So your pipe is like a sediment core of cold and hot sections moving towards the tap.

While electric tankless water heaters are getting a lot of coverage at present, and may gain some ground in the US over the next two or three years, I predict that their popularity will not last, because of all the drawbacks mentioned above, both to homeowners and utilities trying to manage peak demand. If you’re thinking about buying an electric tankless water heater, don’t be surprised to see short-term savings replaced by higher costs over time, as electricity companies put more pressure on users to cut their peak usage, and don’t say I didn’t warn you if the performance of your heater isn’t what you thought it would be, in terms of constant heat output or its ability to meet your intermittent hot water needs.

Robin Green owns Green-Energy-Efficient-Homes.com, a website that helps people cut their home energy use. For more on energy efficient electric tankless heaters, see Electric tankless water heaters on Green Energy Efficient Homes.

Picking the Best Tankless Hot Water Heater

admin — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:14:23 +0000

I over heard a couple at a home improvement store asking a clerk why their 125 gal hot water tank wasn’t doing the job. The clerk tried to help them work through the possibilities but what was certain was it far exceeded their needs even if it was working right.

Rust, corrosion and deposits will, over time reduce the efficiency of a hot water tank. You get a hint of this the first time you have to turn the heat up a notch. It’s all part of the aging process, but hopefully, when the time comes, this will be last tank to go to the landfill. Instead, why not turn to the new technology that has been around for 50 years – tankless water heaters.

Tankless water heaters, a familiar sight in Europe and other places, have a reputation for energy efficiency, which translates into more money in your pocket and less strain on the environment.

If you are in the market for an upgrade do a little research of your own. Most websites have helpful information to make decision making easier.

Finding the right tankless hot water heater is simple to do. The rate of flow is determined by the difference between winter ground water temperature and what’s called for at the showerhead. Another factor is the more faucets running at one time the greater the flow, which means the higher energy use. Like this:

temperature rise x flow rate = energy

Energy is measured in British thermal units (Btu) for gas water heaters and kilowatt hours (KWH) or amps for electric. Manufacturer’s websites have tables to help you with this.

Basically there are three things to consider when picking the tankless unit right for your needs:

Energy rise

Faucets running simultaneously

Hours of hot water consumed per day

Since gas is the most efficient of the two energy sources, higher numbers in these three points above would recommend gas as the best choice. Remember propane is an alternative. Lower numbers makes electric units more competitive. Gas or electric, either will gain you energy savings.

Considering the three points mentioned, it is estimated that cost savings could be anywhere from 20 to 80 percent.

Gas tankless water heaters are more expensive to install. Most warranties require installation by a technician. Outdoor models could require protection against freezing with heating and draining devices, supplied by the manufacturer. Interior models should also be safe from sub freezing temperatures. They also require special venting – some with a combined fresh air pipe and exhaust system. A unit can usually be installed in a day.

Because electric power is more expensive than gas, these units are better suited for smaller jobs. Smaller meaning 2-3 people in a house in the southern half of the U.S. This is just a rough estimate of what is possible.

Whichever you choose, the result will be more energy savings and less pollution. Add to that a continuous stream of instant hot water. A tankless water heater means you can enjoy plentiful hot water and save.

Installing a tankless hot water heater can be a DIY project. See for yourself how easy it is to: install a tankless hot water heater.

Find out how to choose the best tankless hot water heater.

Cost Savings With Tankless Water Heaters

admin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 08:16:41 +0000

In today’s current situations, many people are becoming more and more concerned about energy conservation as well as cutting back on waste. One way to do this is to switch to a tankless water heating system that will give efficient water heating system for your home.

One of the best advantages of an instant heating system is that you can heat up the amount of water you need and only when you need it. There is less energy wastage compared to heating a full tank of water, and reheating it again after it has cooled down. The tankless water heating system seems to be the best option as it significantly saves time and energy.

Tankless water heating systems effectively cancels out the standby heat losses made by storage type heaters. Once you open the hot tap, you simultaneously start the flow through a pipe. With electric tanks, water is heated through the heating element while gas-fired tankless models use a gas burner as the heating medium. With a tankless water heater installed in your house, you are sure to have a constant supply of hot water without the need to store and waste energy.

When deciding on the kind of heater that you’d need, you must first consider a few things. You should look into the kind of fuel used for the heating system that you will purchase and install, as well the size and the specific use for it. Tankless water heaters may run on electric, gas or oil power.

An important consideration when purchasing a tankless heater is the current temperature that will be applied on the heater which is dependent on the location and the atmospheric conditions of the place. You must also check on the requirements that these systems need to have in your house as well as the ideal location for installing the unit.

Usually, these tankless water heaters have slight delays in providing hot water. Hot water will not be produced unless the tap is switched on and the water is continuously flowing. However, this lag may be addressed through the use of a specially designed pump. A specialized pump system will also deal with the issue of wastage as it looks on these two concerns. It gives you the dual advantage as it takes care of the conservation and the guarantee of unlimited hot water supply. This way, all the members of your family can have hot water anytime they need it while you keep your energy bill at a reasonable rate. No more unnecessary wastage as you enjoy the advantages of having immediate hot water supply each time you open your hot water tap.

Switching to tankless water heaters [http://www.tanklesswaterheatertips.com/saving-money-with-a-gas-tankless-water-heater] will surely save you energy and provide you with cost savings from energy use. You will soon notice a substantial reduction in your standby losses. Keep in mind that about 20 percent of the household energy consumption goes to the heating and reheating of tank storage systems, so using a tankless heating system will make a great difference.

Eco Friendly Water Heaters

admin — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 08:18:55 +0000

Save Energy and Save Money!

We all know that we spend a lot of money heating our water for domestic use and these days there is a good choice of eco friendly water heaters which use less energy and cost you far less money to run. If you’re still using an electric hot water heater, consider switching to natural gas because that will save you a whole heap of money in the long term.

The new tankless gas and propane are environmentally friendly because they don’t store water kept at a certain temperature like electric hot water heaters. You get instant water heating although the flow rate is lower. To find which are the best eco friendly water heaters, look for ones marked Energy Star certified. This is a government backed initiative which tests new water heaters and certifies them as eco friendly water heaters if they pass certain criteria.

Energy Star criteria cover five categories for residential products: whole house gas tankless, high performance gas storage, advanced drop in or integrated heat pump, gas condensing and solar water heaters. Another good place to find eco friendly heaters is by looking on websites such as Low Impact Living, which lists all the environmentally friendly products and gives useful information. Here’s a rundown of some of the latest eco friendly.

The Gas Condensing Heater is due to be available by the middle of 2010 and it’s worth waiting for because it’s an Energy Star product which will reduce your energy use by about 30%. This would be a minimum saving of about $100 per year of use and would significantly reduce your greenhouse gas emissions. Although this eco friendly water heater uses a storage tank, the replacement water reheats nearly as quickly as the tank is filled and you never run out of hot water.

Here are some eco friendly heaters from the gas fueled tankless category:

The Bosch AquaStar Whole House Tankless Gas Water Heater can cut your water heating costs by as much as 50%. Tankless models don’t use energy keeping stored water hot and this makes them good eco friendly. This model only heats water as it’s needed but can supply hot water at a rate of 4.3 gallons per minute, which is sufficient to allow you to use one major water application at a time such as the shower or a dishwasher. When the hot tap is not being used the gas valve closes automatically and the burners go off which saves gas energy.

The Bosch AquaStar 250SX-LP Whole House Tankless Propane Heater supplies instant water heating at a rate of 6.4 gallons per minute which is sufficient for two major appliances to be used at the same time. This model is an eco friendly rated propane heater.

The Bosch 125BO-NG AquaStar Outdoor Whole House Tankless Gas Heater is for outdoor installation and this saves you money on expensive venting components. This instant heater device could cut your heating costs by as much as 50% which makes it an extremely eco-friendly water heater. The hot water is instant and this model provides water at a rate of 4.3 gallons per minute which is only sufficient for one major application at a time. It has a freeze protection rating for temperatures down to 5 Fahrenheit.

Solar water heaters are great eco friendly water heaters if you live in an area which has plenty of continuous sunshine and the modern units are more reliable than they were in the past. They are quite expensive to buy but if you live in a suitable area you should find that prices are going down and choice is expanding.

That just about covers the best eco friendly systems on the market for this year. Try to buy the most environmentally friendly model you can afford because it will pay for itself in the long term by saving the most energy and cutting your bills.

Hassan Ouda is a sublime devoted author He writes articles on several subjects including publishing ebook. You can read more of Hassan’s articles at Hassan’s Publishing located at

http://www.healthywaterheater.com

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