Are Tankless Water Heaters Worth The Money?

When it comes time to upgrade your propane water heater, you could be thinking about replacing your current storage-type model with a tankless version. The question is, should you? Here are some points to ponder when choosing between tankless and conventional water heater options.

Tankless water heater benefits

Why pay to heat water you won’t use right away – or pay to heat the same water twice?

That’s the question your tankless water asks and answers as it heats the water you need – and only the water you need – on demand.

4 Ways Tankless Water Heaters Make Sense

By operating this way rather than storing water for later use, a tankless system enjoys some important advantages over conventional water heaters, including:

• Unlimited hot water – With a right-sized tankless water heater, the hot water will flow continuously for as long as it is fed by your main water line.
• Better efficiency / lower bills – By working on demand, not using a pilot light, and never having to reheat water that has been sitting in a storage tank losing heat in a cold basement, a tankless water heater could cut your monthly bills by as much as 40 percent compared to a storage-type unit.
• More placement options – A tankless water heater is compact – about the size of a suitcase – and can be wall mounted. That makes it a candidate for placement just about anywhere in the house, including closets and crawl spaces.
• Longer equipment life – Steel storage tanks don’t like water, which is why most water heater tanks don’t last much more than a decade or so. With a tankless system, there is no need to store corrosive water; as a result, tankless water heaters can last up to twice as long as a conventional water heater.

Why choose a conventional water heater?

As you can see, the advantages of a tankless water heater are clear. Why then would you consider choosing a conventional storage-type water heater?

Mostly, it comes down to the upfront purchase price: a tankless water heater can cost twice as much as a storage water heater to buy, and will cost additional money to install. Although that money will be recovered in the long run via energy savings and equipment longevity, not everyone is willing or able to make that initial investment.

With that in mind, here are some rules of thumb for choosing between a storage or tankless water heater:

• For singles or couples – If you don’t use large amounts of water and are replacing a storage water heater, investing in a conventional water could be a better choice.
• For new construction, or for larger families and efficiency-conscious / space-challenged homeowners, tankless heaters are almost always the best choice. Just make sure to get a professional to help you size and install your tankless heater for years of trouble-free service.

Is a tankless water heater right for you? Let’s talk about it. Contact Williamson Gas today to talk with our water heater experts, or to get a FREE, no-obligation estimate on a high-efficiency water heater for your Samson County, NC home.