Traditional vs. Tankless Water Heaters
If you are building a new home or just need to replace an existing water heater you may be considering whether or not, you should choose a traditional water heater or a tankless water heater. Traditional water heaters store hot water in the tank so it a certain amount of hot water is ready at all times while tankless water heaters heat water on demand. That means that a traditional water heater continuously heats water and stores it, regardless of whether it is being used in the near future but a tankless water heater only heats water when hot water is needed. And, that is not only difference between the two types of water heaters.
Because tankless water heaters only heat water when needed, they tend to be far more energy efficient than traditional water heaters. That is great not only for the environment but for your utility bills each month. Energy.Gov explains just how much more energy efficient tankless water heaters are, “For homes that use 41 gallons or less of hot water daily, demand water heaters can be 24%–34% more energy efficient than conventional storage tank water heaters. They can be 8%–14% more energy efficient for homes that use a lot of hot water — around 86 gallons per day. You can achieve even greater energy savings of 27%–50% if you install a demand water heater at each hot water outlet. ENERGY STAR® estimates that a typical family can save $100 or more per year with an ENERGY STAR qualified tankless water heater.” In addition to being more energy efficient, they are much more compact than traditional water heaters so they take up less room in your garage. Further, because they heat water on demand, there is virtually a limitless supply of hot water for a household but it just may be at a slower flow rate. And, tankless water heaters are a modern tea enology that is designed to last longer and be lower maintenance.
Traditional water heaters can provide very fast flow rate of hot water but eventually that hot water in the tank will run out so if multiple people are taking showers or multiple parts of the home are using hot water someone could wind up getting a blast of cold water when the hot runs out. But, traditional water heaters are not without their advantages. They are generally more cost-effective than tankless water heaters which makes the initial investment lower. Ultimately, which type of water heater you choose will depend on your budget, water usage, lifestyle and other factors but tankless water heaters have more advantages than traditional water heaters.