No one wants to have to live without hot water, especially in the winter. And no one wants to have to deal with the headaches and potential damage a broken or malfunctioning hot water heater can cause (especially very messy water damage) Therefore, if your hot water heater is a bit troublesome, or simply rather old (fifteen years or more) now, before the cold really sets in, is a great time to consider investing in a new one.
More and more homeowners are hearing about the advantages – and the savings – that can be gained is they switch their old hot water heaters for a newer tankless model. If they decide that this is the way they wish to go though they will be faced with another big choice; should they choose an electric model or a gas powered one?
There is no easy answer to the electric vs gas tankless water heater question because which is more suitable for a certain home depends on a number of different factors and a decision between the two should always be based on the homeowners individual circumstances rather than going by what may have worked for someone else. Some of the important factors to be considered include the following:
â—Basic initial cost of the heater
â—Average hot water usage in the home.
â—Installation costs
â—Long term running cost – which is cheaper in your area, electricity or gas? What are you already using most of in your home to heat and cook?
â—Personal preference between using gas and using electric.
Basic Initial Cost
On average an electric tankless hot water heater is less expensive to purchase than a gas powered one – roughly about 30% less (minus installation costs of course)
Average Hot Water Usage
Two homes that are in the same neighborhood and are roughly the same size may have totally different hot water usage needs. When calculating about how much hot water you your home uses then you need to factor in things like the number of people in the home as well as the number of bathrooms, laundry rooms etc. After all, a couple living alone are going to use far less hot water than the family of four next door, even if their homes are laid out exactly the same on the inside.
Installation Costs
Installing a gas powered tankless hot water heater is simply more complicated than installing an electric one so you can may pay more for it to be installed.
Long Term Running Costs
Although they are certainly more fuel efficient than “tanked” hot water heaters, a gas fueled tankless hot water heater is more expensive to run in the long term than its electric cousin. In addition to the basic fuel cost, an electric tankless hot water does not have the complicated venting system that a gas powered one does so is less likely to give you maintenance headaches (although that is not always the case)
Performance
Many people feel that there is little to choose between gas and electric tankless water heaters in terms of performance, but the one thing that you may want to consider is that in the case of a power cut an electric model will stop working, whereas a gas powered version will likely keep going.
Personal Preference
Some people like gas stoves, some people prefer electric stoves. People are not even always sure why, but most of us do have a preference and the same holds true for water heaters. If you already have a traditional gas powered water heater sticking with gas may make sense and installation will almost certainly go more smoothly than if you suddenly decide to make the transition to electric.
On the other hand, some people feel that electric is the “greener” choice and in an effort to live in a more eco-friendly manner do not want to rely on fossil fuels any more than they really have to, making a gas powered tankless hot water heater an option they would not consider.
If you have any questions about our range of services, please do not hesitate to contact us on 816-436-1000 or email us: service@arcticairkc.com. One of our friendly and knowledgeable staff members will be happy to assist you in any way they can and answer all your queries.