The biggest promise that is given of
tankless water heaters when making the change from a storage water heater is
that they will save on energy consumption as they provide hot water only when
used, removing the stand by energy consumption that the old storage type water
heaters have. So if hot water is only needed for 10 minutes during the day,
you'll pay only for that time, not for 24 h constant water heating.
The biggest critic against this promise
has been the total amount of the initial cost of a tankless water heater. Even
if it's obvious that tankless water heaters will make savings in the yearly
energy consumption, it has been calculated that the units price and the cost of
the installation causes the yearly energy savings to break even with the
initial investment only after several years making the purchasing of tankless water heater questionable. In such articles/ studies where
this matter has been discussed, the cost of a tankless water heater with the
installation has been estimated to be in average $2,000 - $3,000, while the storage water
heater has been estimated to be around $1,000 with the installation.
Tankless water heaters are not a new
invention. Rather, they've been around for decades but not just in so large
scales in the US than in the rest of the world. However, during the recent years the technological
developments, governmental aids, and huge increases on the demand of more
energy efficient products have brought new units that offer high efficiency
rates with an affordable price tag to the North American markets as well. These days, a
tankless water heater, whether a gas or electric, can be bought below $450 (e.g. Marey products).
Also, the installation of the units in many cases can be done by the user
itself, which would reduce the total cost, but even with a professional
installation the total price in average should stay below $1,000, which is one third of the given estimation. This means that
these articles/ studies that raises the initial cost of the tankless water
heaters to be the main issue, or the biggest argument not to make the change
for a more energy efficient product, has become void as the prices are almost equal with the storage type water heater. So the idea of "high
cost new technology" has come to its end in the water heating markets, as
the costs of the old and new technology are now very comparable, allowing the energy savings to be immediate.
Water heating counts 30% of the homes
energy consumption in United States, so we are talking of a large portion of
household’s energy costs. Storage type water heating is an old technology that
has struck its roots to the North American water heating markets years ago, and
thus there are many authors still holding on to the old consuming values.
However, as consumers get more aware of new energy efficient ways to reduce the
energy consumption and become greener, the trend of the change on-demand water
heaters increases substantially. Like in any industry, eventually the
old technology makes way for the new one, and the water heating industry is no
exception.
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| Comparison of Energy Consumption by Time: Tankless vs. tank water heater, 10 min use of hot water |
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