Water Heater Advice! In addition to gas systems, there is an assortment of excellent tankless water heaters on the market. In addition, there are even tankless water heaters that use propane gas, and these can be an excellent choice for the energy efficient home.

You can’t just walk into your local home center and pick the cheapest water heater from the display. There are a number of crucial considerations to balance when making a buying decision for this essential piece of home equipment.

With the cost of natural gas and electricity on the rise, picking an energy efficient hot water heater is probably at the top of you list. The Energy Guide label on the side of the tank will help you determine the overall efficiency of the unit and give you some clues for picking the best unit for your home.

Determining The Capacity Required

The Energy Guide label on a hot water heater will tell you the First-Hour Rating (FHR) for the unit. This figure is more important than the tank capacity for determining whether a particular hot water heater will meet your needs.

FHR is a measure of how much hot water the heater will deliver during a busy hour. Before you head to the home center, estimate your household’s peak hour hot water demand and look for a unit with an FHR in that range.

Water Heater Advice! To decrease the stress on your water heater and to bring down your utility bills, set your thermostat at or around 120 degrees. Any more than that and you put extra pressure on the heater and take the chance of burns caused by scalding water.

Gas water heaters will have a higher FHR compared to an electric heater with the same sized tank.

How Efficient Is It?

The Energy Factor (EF) rating on the label will tell you have efficient the hot water heater is at transferring heat from the energy source to the water.

The higher the EF number the more efficient the hot water heater.

What Is Its Lifespan?

A final thing to consider is the expected time to replacement for the hot water heater. To make an informed decision you will need to calculate the overall cost of purchasing and operating a hot water heater that meets your usage needs.

Make sure you factor in the cost of labor. There is a wide range of solutions to choose from. Some that are cheaper to operate may be expensive to install and remove. This might negate and cost savings.

Consult with your contractor or home center representative to help you determine the perfect hot water heater for your home.

Water Heater Advice! An additional task you should do to lengthen the life of your water heater is to drain the tank of sediment regularly. Even so called self cleaning water heaters can develop a buildup of sediment on the bottom of the tank.

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