Homeowners, Be Eco-Friendly-Go Tankless

Is there anything more annoying? You're ready to shower or bathe and all you get is lukewarm water. Even worse, you've got guests, and the water won't get hot, how embarassing! Running out of hot water has been an age-old problem since the invention of water heaters. However, with today's technology the lack of hot water in the home is promised to be solved. Enter tankless water heaters. Tankless water heaters have been around since the 80's but have just become popular of recent. Tankless water heaters will deliver hot water, no matter when you want it, no matter how long you want it-in theory; they're designed to deliver like a pro. You see, tankless water heaters operate without storing water. Rather, they dispense water as it is demanded. By way of a combination of tubes and heating elements, a tankless water heater makes hot water only as you use it.

The advantages of switching to a tankless water heater are substantial. Besides the 'endless' hot water supply, a tankless water heater uses less energy, because its primary operating function is off-being on standby, that is, until the tap is turned on. Too, a tankless water heater does not store and heat hot water as conventional heaters do, so this another savings point. Consumers who use a tankless hot water heater can expect to save up to 30% on heating bills annually. Also, with the demand on energy, there's concern for greenhouse gas emissions. To the exclusion of solar energy, every appliance that can be converted from constant on to intermittent use, is a score for the environment. Multiply the use of tankless water heaters times the number of tank water heaters in use, then take a look at the demand on our environment and fossil fuel resources, and it makes a lot of sense to make the tankless conversion. As with other home improvements the up-front costs can be above average, but it's over the long haul where you'll enjoy your savings.

A tankless water heater works like this, when water is turned on anywhere in the house, cold water is pushed into the unit. The heating element is then activated. The heating element is not a holding area, but a series of tubes that the cold water travels through. Upon exiting the heating element(s) that water is delivered hot into the supply pipes and taken where needed in the home. Tankless water heaters deliver between 2-5 gallons per minute. Should there be need for a higher demand system, there are whole house tankless water heaters, and a good alternative could be a dedicated tankless water heater, perhaps to the laundry room, jacuzzi, etc. With a unit such as a tankless water heater where the actual operating function is greatly reduced, so repairs and upkeep are held to a minimum, too. Until solar energy generation is made more practical for widespread use, tankless water heaters can be one way to greatly reduce the burden on our environment.