Basics and Advantages of Tankless Water Heaters

Over the years, various improvements to many of the most common plumbing fixtures in a given home have greatly benefitted the plumbing industry as a whole. One great example here is the tankless water heater, which is growing in popularity in recent years and beginning to replace traditional models.

At Whipple Plumbing, our technicians are licensed and fully trained to install and repair tankless water heaters. Let’s look at the basics of how these work, the types, and how they can benefit your home in multiple ways.

Basics

Understanding how a tankless water heater works is very easy. Water in this unit sits cold or at room temperature, but when a hot water tap is turned on in the home, the tankless heater draws some of this water through a pipe into a new area. Once it’s there, a gas burner or electric heating element starts heating it quickly.

If you know how a normal water heater works, you’ll understand how much energy this saves. Most typical heaters have to store water that’s constantly hot in preparation for it being needed – with a tankless heater, though, energy for heating is only used when the water is actually needed. Most tankless heaters can deliver water at two to five gallons per minute, equal or greater rates than a traditional heater.

Types                                                                                  

There are two general types of tankless water heaters:

• Small units: Installed only near the point of use, these are single sources of water meant for individual devices.
• Large units: These units service an entire house with multiple points of use.

Tankless Heater Benefits

There are several distinct benefits to a tankless water heater:

• Size: They take up less space than a conventional water heater.
• Water: Tankless heaters only use water when it’s needed, meaning there’s no need to run water for a few seconds to get it hot, and water is saved.
• Energy: Energy lost while hot water cools is no longer a concern.
• Unlimited supply of hot water.
• Durability: Tankless water heaters generally last up to 20 years, compared to a 10 to 15-year range for traditional heaters.

Want to learn more about tankless water heaters, or interested in any of our water heater services? Speak to the pros at Whipple Plumbing today.