Choosing a tankless water heater can seem like a daunting task for anyone who is unfamiliar with the current technologies available. Consumers must make various decisions such as: choosing between electric and gas units, deciding on a brand, and choosing which model will is best for their home or business.
To start, choosing between a gas or electric tankless water heater will depend on a number of factors. First and foremost this depends on whether you have the utility available in your home. If you have both gas and electric available to you then you will will need to compare the two power sources. The main benefit of gas tankless water heater is that it will often be able to provide you with a higher flow rate than an electric powered unit. However, in many cases electric tankless water heaters usually make the most sense because they are cheaper to purchase, can last about twice as long as gas unit, don’t require any venting, and are more efficient than a gas unit.
Once you have decided on an energy source for your tankless water heater your next step is to determine which brand you would prefer to purchase. There are numerous brands available and more are becoming available all the time!
Some important things to consider when choosing a brand include:
- How reputable the company is
- The warranty
- The units features
After you have decided on a brand the next step is to determine which model will work best for your home or business. Different models of tankless water heaters have different flow rates and temperature rise so the first thing to do is to measure your incoming water temperature. You can do this by simply turning on a cold water faucet and waiting until the water goes cold and take the temperature of the water. Most people shower at between 100 and 105 degrees. The difference between your incoming water temperature and 105 is the temperature rise that you will need.
To determine the flow rate that you will require, decide what you would like to have running at one time. For example, if at times you could have two showers going at once, turn on both showers and time how long each one takes to fill a 1 gallon container. Sixty seconds, divided by the number of seconds it took to fill the container will give you the flow rate of that application in gallons per minute. If you had more than one application going, simply add the flow rates together to determine the maximum flow rate required.
Each tankless water heater model will have information on what temperature rise it can provide at different flow rates. This should allow you to easily determine which model is most suitable for your application.
Choosing a tankless water heater can be overwhelming, but if you break it down into smaller steps it can greatly simplify the task. Choose the power source that will be best for you, then the brand, and finally the model.
And remember your local Rooter-Man is only a phone call away! We can analyze your homes needs an provide you with a free estimate for your water heater installation. Give us a call today at 1-866-577-1221.
