Tankless Water Heaters

In case you missed the article, don't subscribe to The Oregonian or live outside of Oregon, Bridget Otto had an interesting article in Homes and Gardens Thursday. In Tankless water heaters: wave of the future or drop in the bucket?, Otto tells us about tankless water heaters, that there may be considerable savings over conventional water heating and space savings. There may also, be some tax savings.

Tankless -- or on-demand -- water heaters heat water as it passes through, as opposed to traditional water heaters, which keep gallons of water heated and stored, leading to what is called standby loss.

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The best application for a tankless is an area that is a long way from the water heater, say from a tank in the basement to an upstairs bathroom. Any time water travels through a long stretch of pipe, much of it ends up just sitting in the pipe, where the heat is wasted. A tankless heater located near the water outlet eliminates this waste. There also are small units designed for point of use, such as a hot-water tap at a sink.

We added a tankless water heater in the kitchen for instant hot water for tea or instant cereal. The savings to your yearly hot water bill may amount to about 10%, but that could be offset by new wiring needed. There also may be some energy credits available. Retrofitting could be expensive, but it certainly could be more efficient to use tankless water heaters in new construction. If you are planning on adding a bathroom or building new, it's worth checking into.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery