The Tank Hot Water Heater Is Being Replaced By

Copyright (c) 2011 Gerry Stringer

The old stand-by hot water heater, the tank, has put in decades of service to American homes and served the public well. Heck, it was only in the middle of the last century that running water became the norm all across the country, much less hot and cold running water, and it was the tank water heater that spread the modern convenience to even meager households.

Invented in 1889 by a Norwegian immigrant, Edwin Ruud, the tank storage hot water heater, where water is heated by electricity, natural gas or oil, has had a great run, but it's about to come to an end. The newest technology in water heaters is a tankless system and most plumbers, home builders and designers are predicting that tankless hot water heaters will become the standard in new homes by the end of this decade and everywhere in the decade to follow.

Simple reasons for the switch: a tankless hot water system heats water on demand for an endless supply of hot water, overcoming any issues of storage and using far less energy. Though initially more expensive to purchase and install, experts agree they pay for themselves in time because they last twice as long and use only a fraction of the energy used by tank water heaters.

Today almost exclusively referred to tankless systems, the overall term is "instantaneous water heaters." These systems are also called "inline water heaters," as they heat water as needed as it passes through the heating element, and other terms for the genre include "continuous flow," "flash" "on-demand, "demand," and "instant-on" hot water heaters.

Tankless hot water heating systems offers many advantages, including:

· They take up much less space than tank hot water heaters, and can be installed on a wall or even outside of a home.

· Because tankless systems are modules, meaning you can add on heating elements as needed, you can link as many as 24 units to produce as much as 317 gallons of hot water per minute - enough for over 126 showers at once.

· High efficiency. A typical tank water heater offers just 60% efficiency, whereas a tankless systems delivers 83% to 94% efficiency levels.

· Durability. Since there is no tank that ages over time, tankless hot water systems last as much as twice as long as traditional tanks, and when a maintenance issue does occur it can be isolated to the problem area. No need to replace the entire system. Besides, the majority of manufacturers of tankless offer great warranties to protect your investment well into the future.

· Lower water heating bills. Since the water is heated on demand, you use only the energy you need. The typical tank water heater is always on (with a pilot light) and must continually use energy to maintain the desired water temperature.

· Fresh water. Since tankless hot water heaters heat fresh water on an as-needed basis, the water is always fresh from the source. Water in a tank hot water heater is subject to picking up corrosion as the tank ages.

· Rebates. The federal tax credit of up to $1500 for installing a tankless hot water system expired at the end of 2010, however many local utility companies, states, and cities offer rebate and incentive programs for these energy-saving devices that can immediately save homeowners hundreds of dollars.

Like everything else in home improvement, it pays to practice diligence in selecting a tankless hot water system. These systems will generally last more than 20 years, and have easily replacable parts that can extend that life considerably. Compare that to the typical tank hot water which is expected to last some 10 to 15 years and then require full replacement, not to mention lower efficiencies as time goes by. But installation of a tankless system can be costly and needs to be executed by an experienced contractor or plumber to make sure the warranty is valid for the machine's whole life.

With standard homes increasingly being built with multiple bathrooms, state of the art laundry rooms and extended kitchens, hot water has become an essential amenity today. Tankless systems go a long way in meeting modern demands and within a very few years will be the standard operating system in any efficient home.

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