The Truth About Water Heaters

Some of our prospective new home buyers in Cheyenne ask us why we provide tankless water heaters as a standard feature in every home we build.  That’s a good question.

We make sure every new home we build has a tankless water heater because technology has made them far superior to a traditional tank heater.  We build new homes with exceptional quality so it just makes sense that they are outfitted with the highest quality equipment.

Let’s clear up some misconceptions about the tankless water heater.

Misconception #1:  Tankless-Water-Heat means Instant-Water-Heat

This misconception has been brought up quite a few times by Cheyenne home buyers. And there’s a shred of truth to it when you understand that there are two different kinds of tankless water heaters you might see in your home:  Point-of-Use water heaters and Whole-Home water heaters.  The misconception is borne out of trying to apply the truths of one style to the other style.

• A Point-of-Use water heater is a very small unit that super-heats water for a small application for a short amount of time.  These provide instant hot water for tea or coffee, usually installed under the main kitchen sink.
• A Whole-Home water heater is installed in a typical manner in a utility closet or garage.  The system begins to heat water as the demand increases.  The process takes a short amount of time (sometimes seconds) to provide hot water but once the water is heated, the unit will provide hot water until you no longer put demand on the system.

Misconception #2:  Only A Traditional Tank Water Heater Can Provide The High Volume of Hot Water A Family Will Demand

This is flat-out incorrect.

A Cheyenne resident who’s in the market for a new house asked me about this last week.  I explained that a tank water heater provides only a certain amount of readily available hot water.  After your 50 gallons is used, the tank now has to refill and reheat a new 50 gallons of water.  Think about the heartache this causes when trying to fill a standard 130 gallon soaker tub.

A tankless water, when sized correctly to the home and its demands, will never run out of hot water.

Misconception #3:  Tankless Water Heaters Cannot Provide Endless Hot Water

Again, like the last misconception, this is flat-out incorrect.

A tankless water heater super heats the water as it passes through it’s heat exchanger.  As long as you crave hot water, the tankless unit will provide it.  It really is that simple.

Misconception #4:  Tankless Water Heaters Are Not Cost Effective

While the upfront expense of a tankless water heater is can be high, especially when converting from a standard tank configuration, the savings over the life of the unit far exceeds that of a tank water heater.  Tankless water heaters are far more efficient and require less year to year maintenance.  A tankless water heater will also save significantly on utility costs.  With no tank to keep warm, a tankless is only pulling power when you turn the hot water on.  Add on the fact that, on average, tankless water heaters last up 10 years longer and the benefit becomes immediately apparent.

There are many tankless water companies out there.  From Navien and Rinnai to Noritz and Bosch, the options are endless.  Each brand brings their own features and innovations that make them stand out from the rest.  Each has their own pros and cons, but that is a discussion for a different blog.  If you would like more information, a great website is simplytankless.com. They talk about most of the brands and the features each possess.