Going With A Tankless Water Heater? More Is Often Better
When it comes to energy efficiency, it isn’t often you’ll hear the phrase “more is better.” A tankless water heater is an exception, though. This is one appliance where installing more units in your Delaware home could lower your energy use.
The greatest advantage of a tankless (on-demand) water heater is that it doesn’t waste energy by storing hot water in a tank. Instead, when you turn on your hot water tap, cold water flows into the water heater where either a gas burner or an electric element heats it. Although you won’t run out of hot water, you may not get as high a flow rate as you would with a conventional storage model.
For a small household with low water demands, a single unit may provide a high enough flow rate for all uses. One unit isn’t likely to be sufficient for a large household with high water demands in multiple areas, such as someone taking a shower while someone else runs the washing machine.
The solution is simple: install multiple tankless water heaters. You may want one for the bathroom and another one for the kitchen. Installing separate tankless water heaters for appliances with high hot-water demands, such as the washing machine or dishwasher, is also an option.
If you use less than 41 gallons of hot water daily, a tankless water heating system could be 24 to 34 percent more energy efficient for you than a conventional model. If you use a lot of hot water, tankless models may be 8 to 14 percent more energy efficient for you.
Installing multiple units gives you an even greater advantage. With a tankless unit at each hot water outlet, you could lower your energy use by 27 to 50 percent.
When you’re comparing tankless water heaters, also note each model’s energy factor (EF). The higher the EF, the more efficient the model.
For more pro tips on choosing tankless water heaters and other energy-efficient appliances, contact us at Sobieski Services.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Wilmington, Delaware and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC & plumbing systems).
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