What should be in mind before going to buy a water heater ?

When selecting a new water heater for your home, select a waterheating system that will not solely supply enough hot water howeveradditionally that will do so energy efficiently, saving you money. Thisconsists of considering the different types of water heaters available andidentifying the right size and fuel source for your home. Check out the EnergySaver 101: Water Heating infographic to understand more about the differenttypes of water heaters and how to select the right model for your home.

Types of Water Heaters

Conventional storage water heaters offer a ready reservoir(storage tank) of hot water

    Tankless or demand-type water heaters heat waterdirectly without the use of a storage tank

    Heat pump water heaters move heat from one place toanother instead of generating heat directly for providing hot water

    Solar water heaters use the sun's heat to providehot water

   Tankless coil and indirect water heaters use a home's space heatingsystem to heat water

 

Selection Criteria

 

When choosing the best type and model of water heater for yourhome, consider the following:

 

 Fueltype:

availabilityand cost. The fuel type or energy source you use for water heating will notonly affect the water heater's annual operation fees however additionally itssize and energy efficiency. 

 

ConsiderCapacity:

 

Tank water heaters typically maintain 40, 50, or fifty fivegallons or more. The size you buy depends on the quantity of human beingsliving in your home and your height water usage. A household of four, forinstance, might take several showers, run the dishwasher, and wash a load ortwo of laundry in an average day, totaling a hundred gallons of warm water ormore. But that doesn’t imply that household needs a 100-gallon storage tank.

 

For storage tank water heaters, it is essential to think aboutthe first-hour rating, which is the number of gallons a water heater can supplyin an hour beginning with a full tank. You’ll find the FHR on the EnergyGuidelabel. To calculate what FHR will work for your home, use the calculator on theEnergy Saver website.

 

As the result of lately updated efficiency standards, waterheaters beneath fifty five gallons now have a four percent boost in efficiency,while water heaters fifty five gallons or extra have efficiency gains of 25 to50 percent depending on the technology used—heat pump or condensing. (See waterheater types below.)

 

And don’t anticipate a new water heater will fit where your oldone was. Because of increased insulation and different efficiency improvements,some newer models may also be wider and/or taller than your old water heater.

 

Tanklesswater heaters, of course, don’t maintain plenty water, so the number to lookfor is the gallons-per-minute ranking (GPM). That’s the wide variety that tellsyou how a lot hot water the heater can deliver over a set duration of time. Thehigher the GPM, the more hot water the unit can deliver. If you have a largehousehold and multiple bathrooms, you’ll need a tankless water heater with ahigher GPM. A typical shower, for example, makes use of up to 2.5 GPM. 

Costs:

Beforeyou buy a water heater, it is also a right idea to estimate its annual workingcosts and compare those fees with other less or more energy-efficient models.Visit the pages on one-of-a-kind kinds of water heaters (linked above) forgreater on estimating costs. 

Energyefficiency:

Tomaximize your energy and fee savings, you want to understand how energyefficient a water heater is before you buy it. Visit the pages on differentkinds of water heaters (linked above) for greater on estimating energyefficiency. 

 

Fuel Types, Availability and Costs for Water Heating

When selecting a new water heater, it's essential to reflect onconsideration onwhat fuel type or energy source you will use, such as its availability andcost. The fuel used by a water heating system will now not solely have aneffect on annual operation costs however also the water heater's size andenergy efficiency. 

ExploringWater Heater Options by way of Fuel Type

 

Fuel type and its availability in your location might alsonarrow your water heater choices. The following is a list of water heaterchoices by fuel or energy source:

 

 Electricity

 Widelyavailable in the United States to fuel conventional storage, tankless ordemand-type, and warmness pump water heaters. It additionally can be used withcombination water and space heating systems, which consist of tankless coil andindirect water heaters.

Fueloil

 Available in some areas of the United States to gasolinetraditional storage water heaters, and oblique combination water and househeating systems.

 

Geothermal energy

Availablethroughout the United States to those who will have or already have ageothermal heat pump system set up in their properties for space heating andcooling. See Heat Pump Water Heaters for more information. 

Naturalgas
 Availablein many areas of the United States to fuel conventional storage and demand(tankless or instantaneous) water heaters, as properly as mixture water andspace heating systems, which encompass tankless coil and indirect water heaters.

Propane
 Availablein many areas of the United States to fuel traditional storage and demand(tankless or instantaneous) water heaters, as properly as indirect combinationwater and space heating systems.

 

Solar energy
 Availableall through the United States -- most abundantly in the Southwest -- for solarwater heaters.