Other than the initial purchase costs, you might not have considered the running costs and other expenses associated with the water heater installation type that you’re contemplating investing in. Aside from the purchase cost, there are other crucial factors to consider before buying a hot water heater in Bloomington, IL. What size water heater are you looking for? What are the most readily available types of hot water heaters that you could buy? How should the energy consumption of water heaters affect your decision?
We’ll be covering everything you need about electric vs gas water heaters, including their cost, size, and overall efficiency.
Understanding Water Heater Energy Usage
Most of the time, we turn on the water faucet without paying much attention to the temperature or the cost of running hot water. We take a functioning hot water heater in most of our homes as a given.
You might miss out on energy savings by not using your hot water heater installation effectively. After all, water heater energy consumption makes up almost 20-percent of the average home’s utility bill. There are many ways to save energy and money using hot water heaters. However, it takes a little research. Knowing how to select an energy-efficient hot water heater right at the start will go a long way towards improving your home’s hot water usage over time.
Choosing the Right Hot Water Heater
A conventional, single-family tank water heater can hold 20 to 80 gallons of hot water. The hot water from the tank is released to the home when the faucet turns on. To ensure that the tank remains full, the hot water is replaced by cold water at the bottom. Then, over time, a heat source brings the water up to temperature for future use.
Choosing the right conventional water heater installation for your home requires finding out which fuel source supplies the existing heater. If a new home, does the property have a gas supply line, electric supply line or both?
You can base your initial decisions for a new hot water heater on the available fuel source. While some homes can be fitted with natural gas supply lines, one in four U.S. homes only have electric fuel sources. Natural gas can be difficult to access for rural residents. If you don’t have the ability to install a gas line on your Bloomington, IL, property, you will need to consider alternative fuel sources.
How Do You Tell if Your Water Heater Has a Gas or Electric Heating Element?
You can tell if your water heater has an electric or gas heater by removing the access panel. A gas water heater is identifiable by a blue flame or visible pilot light. A gas water heater will also have gas supply pipes attached to it, while an electric heater will be connected to a power cord. Your existing water heater installation will typically be powered by one of these two methods, however, solar, and other heater types do exist.
Choosing the Right-size Heater for You
For example, a family of four might take multiple showers, run the dishwasher, and wash several loads of laundry in one day. This might result in 100 gallons of water consumption, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that your new water heater installation must have a 100-gallon tank. However, if you have not properly sized your hot-water heater for your household, you may find residents having to take cold showers, or needing to limit the number of appliances in operation. Chat with a professional to discuss your hot water requirements and you’ll receive recommendations that are right for you. Energy.gov also offers a formula to calculate the size required.
Consumer Reports recommends that you consider the FHR (first-hour rating) of a tank water heater when sizing water heaters. This information shows how much hot water can be delivered within the first hour. Depending on which model you have, this information will show how long it takes for the water heater installation to reach its full potential. You might choose a unit that has a higher FHR if you have a high shower energy usage, for example.
Choosing Water Heaters That Are Energy-efficient
Energy.gov recommends that you use the yellow energy guide label to compare water heater energy usage. This will help you identify water heaters that are energy-efficient. Energy.gov recommends looking at models that have FHRs within 1 to 2 gallons of your peak-hour demand. Peak hour demand refers to how much hot water your household uses during peak hours.
Modern federal efficiency standards have resulted in a significant increase in hot water energy savings if you install any modern water heater installation. According to the consumer group, heaters with less than 55 gallons will see a 4% efficiency increase due to the new standards. According to the heater’s technology, water heaters with 55 gallons or more might reduce your utility bills by between 25% and 50%.
Cost and Efficiency of Electric vs Gas Hot Water Heaters
The choice between either type of water heater installation is largely based on understanding the operating costs of electric and gas water heaters. Michael Bluejay, a.k.a. Mr. Electricity has made a career of understanding and analyzing energy use. This includes comparing hot water heater energy savings as well as the differences between electric and gas water heaters.
While gas is a less expensive fuel, if your home doesn’t have natural gas, there’s a catch. Installing a gas supply adds expense, plus it can be dangerous to do so. Additionally, it would take longer to see any potential energy savings.
Electric heaters tend to be less expensive to purchase and install. They can also be considered safer, as they don’t contain any combustible by-products. Electric water heaters are also more efficient at heating gas, despite the higher energy cost because gas water heaters lose some of their heat through venting. For more information about water heater installation, call the pros at Covenant Plumbing in Bloomington, IL.
