Tankless Water Heater
Showering Presidential – Hot Water Like a Boss
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A lot of people ask if they should get a tankless water heater. The common thinking is that tankless water heaters are going to save them a ton of money, or they're going to get instant hot water.
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​Just because you put in a tankless water heater on the other side of your house doesn't mean that it’s going to be faster. You're still going to take the same amount of time to get water from wherever that water heater is located to whatever fixture you turn on.
Now, it will save you some gas. But if you have to retrofit a house from a tank type water heater to a tankless, there's a lot of retrofitting. You have to move water lines, increase the gas pipe sizing normally.
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Initially it's 2 to 3 times the cost of a traditional water heater. But instead of using $300 worth of gas every year, you're gonna use $150 ish. If you're putting in a tankless water heater to save money, you're not really going to save any money. With proper maintenance, they'll last longer. And the one big thing is you never run out of hot water.
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Now if you have a 50-gallon water heater, and you have a family of 5 (like the family below), you're running out of hot water all the time. Then maybe think about going with tankless. If you do, you're never going to have that problem of a cold shower again. Your hot water is going to last forever. You could turn it on, leave your house for a vacation, go on vacation for a week. You come back, your water is still going to be running hot.
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In that situation, it will be cheaper to operate. It's more expensive to install, but over 10 or 15 years, you may break even.
I only recommend putting in an electric tankless water heater in the right situation. If it's for a little 1 bedroom, 1 bath, and, just feeding 1 sink, maybe.
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They require 60 or more amps. Most houses are run with a 200 amp service. Some electric tankless water heaters require much more than that. Some of them require 360 amperage for a full house electric water heater. That's just not feasible. Keeping in mind that hard water will kill an electric water heater in an instant. I don't install electric tankless water heaters unless it’s a perfect situation.
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The one benefit, the one true benefit, I would say, the difference between a tankless and a tank type is endless supply of hot water. If you run out of hot water and you don't want to add a second heater, put in a booster. Tankless is a very good option. So if you want to shower presidential style and never run out of hot water, get a tankless.