Is Tankless Water Heater worth it?

As their name suggests, the tankless or on-demand water heaters do not possess any tank. They are designed to provide instant and continuous hot water stream whenever the need arises.

They comprise a heating unit that heats the water when it passes through it. They are powered by electricity or gas. They prevent the standby energy losses associated with storage tank water heaters.

Are you losing your sleep over the idea of replacing your tank water heater with a tankless one?

Read on to know about various advantages and disadvantages of tankless water heaters for making an informed opinion about tankless geyser

What are the benefits of installing tankless water heaters?

Here are some benefits of installing the tankless water heater:

  • Instant hot water
  • Compact size
  • Lasts long
  • Simple to drain
  • Safe to use

Advantages of tankless water heaters

Compact Size

The tankless water heaters are compact in size than storage tank ones. They are easy to mount on the wall and measure the size of your suitcase. 

Being simplistic in design, they provide the flexibility of managing the spaces in your house efficiently.

Instantaneous Hot Water

The moment you turn on the tap of hot water supply, you get the hot water flowing out almost instantly. 

It saves your time by doing away with the need of waiting for long periods as in storage tanks variants.

Eliminates standby losses

The tankless water heater supplies hot water on demand and prevents standby energy losses commonly found with repeated re-heating of water in tank water heaters.

Larger Life-expectancy

The average life span of a tank water heater is roughly around 8-10 years. On the other hand, the tankless variants come with a life expectancy of around 20 years. 

With their larger life-expectancy, the tankless water heaters save you the inconvenience of replacing your water heater after every 10 years.

Safer water heater

The tankless water heater features a safe design with sealed air-supply and exhaust vents. Thus, they prevent any leakage of carbon monoxide. 

They also prevent huge water spills in case of leaks and are easy to maneuver. 

Easy to Drain

If you would like to drain your tank water heater, it takes you a long time to do that. However, a tankless water heater can be drained in a few seconds by simply unplugging it.  

Higher efficiency 

The tankless water heaters are more efficient than tank variants. As they offer lower month-to-month costs, it results in substantial savings on an annual basis as compared to their tank counterparts.

Provides a continuous hot stream of water

The tankless water heaters do not store hot water but heat water on demand. It does not keep reserve water storage and heat water as it passes through its heating element.

Thus, they provide continuous hot streams of water and you don’t run out of hot water as long as the main water supply is maintained.

Suitable for homes with minimal hot water requirements

The tankless water heater is ideally suited for smaller families that have minimal hot water requirements. They provide instant hot water on demand and prevent standby energy loss.

Disadvantages of tankless water heaters

Higher Initial Cost

Although the tankless water heater provides substantial savings over a longer lifespan, initially it does cost higher than the tank water heater.

They also have higher installation costs and labor fees. 

Moreover, tankless water heaters may require rerouting a gas line or addition of new venting that further shoots up the initial costs of the installation. 

Not efficient for multiple users 

The tankless water heaters provide optimal hot water supply for a single user at a time. However, when multiple users access hot water supply simultaneously, it does not work efficiently. 

Thus, when two members are taking showers at the same time or one is taking shower while other is washing dishes, the tankless water heater fails to cope up with their demands efficiently. 

Inconsistent hot water heating 

When accessed through multiple outlets simultaneously, the tankless water heater produces inconsistent hot water heating that results in inconsistent hot water temperatures.

Sensitive to slow flow

The tankless water heaters are sensitive to the opening and closing of the faucet.

Due to the clogging of pipes or faucet resulting from scale buildups, the water stream flow reduces down drastically and it leads the tankless heating units to shut down automatically.

Requires additional equipment

The tankless water heater requires additional equipment like a water softener for proper and efficient functioning. 

It not only adds up to your initial costs but also occupies more space beside the wall mounted heater.

Takes time for making savings

The tankless water heaters take many years for providing substantial savings in comparison to tank water heaters. Also, the higher initial costs are covered after many years.

Requires additional maintenance 

The tankless water heaters may require additional annual maintenance. 

The homeowners need to flush out their system for clearing any mineral or scale buildups in the heater or water lines. They also need to run a water softener. 

All these activities add up to the maintenance costs and eat up the savings offered by lower energy requirements.

Conclusion

Water heating is the primary reason that shoots up the costs of electricity bills or energy expenses. 

Even though they have higher installation costs, the tankless water heaters may prove to be an energy savings option with their monthly savings over a longer life span and minor costs on regular maintenance.

However, if you require regular maintenance that entails periodically draining and flushing of the installed system, you may have to wait for years for making any worthwhile savings.

You should carefully study the pros and cons of tankless water heater before buying geyser for your home. 

Aniket More
 

Click Here to Leave a Comment Below 0 comments

Leave a Reply: