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Old 12-11-2011, 07:16 PM
 
3 posts, read 5,479 times
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The time has come for my husband and I to replace our hot water heater. My question is is a tankless hot water heater the better option when compared to the traditional tank system and what are the differences? We are a family of 5, and currently have a barely functioning 40 gal gas water heater. Any opinions or experiences with making the switch?
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Old 12-12-2011, 06:14 AM
 
Location: Baltimore
1,757 posts, read 5,137,534 times
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It should decrease your gas or electric bill from not having to constantly keep water hot but they are more expensive so you'd have to wait a bit before the savings are realized.
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Old 12-12-2011, 06:52 AM
 
Location: The Triad
34,088 posts, read 82,953,336 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Schweetpea View Post
...is a tankless hot water heater the better option when compared to the traditional tank system
Rarely. As in almost never and especially not on a retrofit basis.

The main choke point is justifying the big upfront cash outlay.
The second is the rarely available volume of gas needed and venting issues.

The third consideration is losing the reliability of always having hot water to use
from the uber simple regular water heater; this is especially the case when the power goes out (and it will).
This means don't get one of those "high efficiency", condensing, or power vent WH's either.

As to the volume needs for a family of 5...
This might justify a larger tank (50gal), some piping changes, a supplemental heater...
or just a common sense user schedule that allows the WH to "catch it's breath" between showers, laundry, etc.

hth

Last edited by MrRational; 12-12-2011 at 07:05 AM..
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