Your water heater provides heated water to all the faucets in the entire house. From time to time, you’ve got to replace them. Otherwise, you might end up getting stuck with a broken-down piece of equipment. Here’s a guide to help you decide which type of water heater to get.
Storage Tank Heaters
The first thing you’ve got to consider is going to be what type of equipment you’d like. Traditionally, most homes use storage tank heaters for their water system. These fill up with water, and then they heat up the water while it’s in the tank. They supply hot water from the tank each time you turn on a hot faucet.
Typically, they’re able to provide enough water for an entire family. It takes a little while for them to have refills with hot water once you’ve drained their tanks, though.
Tankless Heaters
Tankless systems have become rather popular in recent years, thanks to their affordability. Plus, on top of being rather affordable, you can place them pretty much anywhere.
If you live somewhere with limited space, you might want to get a tankless system. You can put them on the wall in the crawlspace. These systems can provide quite a bit of hot water on demand.
You can get them with enough capacity for your whole family. That way, everyone will have hot water while they’re in the house throughout the day.
Solar Heaters
There are a lot of ways you can limit your environmental impact while you’re selecting a hot water heater. One of the best would be to choose a solar heater system.
These collect heat from the sun whenever it’s shining during the day. As a result, they are able to use the collected heat to warm up the water when you need it.
You don’t have to burn any fuels to warm up the water when you’re using a solar system. That’s going to lower how much you’re spending on utility bills each month if you had one of them.
Size and Fuel Type
Larger homes require larger water heaters. Most of the time, they are rated using BTUs, or British thermal units. Look at the guide on the water heater itself. It should tell you how many BTUs are recommended in a home of your size.
You should also pay attention to which type of fuel the system uses. If your home has a natural gas hookup, it’s probably the most cost-efficient way to go. Sometimes, homes come with electric hookups for their water heating systems. That’s when we would recommend going with an electric heating unit.
Energy Efficiency
While you’re comparing different models, look for something called the Energy Factor. That tells you how efficient they are at heating up water. A higher EF would indicate it’s capable of heating up more water without using as much fuel, saving you money.
A lot of the most efficient units are tankless models. They’ve got a more efficient design, so they don’t use as much energy. Picking a water heater that’s energy-efficient could help you reduce your energy bills. You wouldn’t have to use as much energy to heat up the water how you’d like.
Equipment Cost
Saving money on your energy bills is great, but what about the equipment cost? Don’t spend too much on a new piece of equipment, even if it saves you money. You’ve got to look at how much you’re likely to save and compare it to the equipment cost. Check out water heater repair in Edmonton or your local area to see how much stuff costs.
Sometimes, it makes sense to spend a little less upfront on something that’s not efficient. If the difference can influence your decision, then you’ve got an answer already. Choose the equipment that’s going to make the most sense for you and your family. Don’t put yourself in a tight financial situation to save a couple of bucks on your energy bill.
Replacing Your Water Heater
Picking the right water heater might feel a little stressful. That’s normal when you’re a first-time homeowner. We are here, and we’d love to help you find the right one for your home. Following the advice in our guide should get you off to a good start, too.
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