Why pay to heat water that you aren’t going to use – or pay to heat water twice?
That’s the question designers at a company called Stiebel-Eltron asked themselves way back in the 1920s – and their answer gave birth to the first electric tankless water heater.
Skip ahead almost a century and today’s high-tech propane tankless water heaters bear little physical resemblance to their ancestors, but the basic approach they take is the same: heat the water you need – and only the water you need – on demand.
By operating this way, a tankless system enjoys some key advantages over a traditional water tank-based water heater, including:

• Unlimited hot water – With a right-sized tankless water heater, you will never run out of hot water – even if you have several hot water appliances running at once.
• Lower bills – By working only when needed, not using a pilot light, and never having to reheat water that has been sitting in a storage tank in your cold basement, a tankless water heater could cut your monthly bills by as much as 40 percent compared to a conventional electric-powered unit.
• More placement flexibility – Tankless systems can be wall mounted and are about the size of a suitcase, which means you can put them just about anywhere – including closets and crawl spaces.
• Longer equipment life – Because there is no need to store corrosive water, a tankless water heater can last up to twice as long as a conventional water heater.
• More value for your home – A tankless water heater will improve your Home Energy Rating System (HERS) and LEED scores, which means your home will be worth more if you plan to sell it.

So…Tank or No Tank?

As you can see, the advantages of a tankless water heater are clear. So, what are the disadvantages?
Mostly, it comes down to the upfront purchase price, which can be twice as high as a conventional storage water heater. Of course, in the long run, the energy savings and equipment longevity make costs a wash at best (pardon the pun), but not everyone is willing or able to make that initial investment.
With that in mind, here are some rules of thumb for choosing between conventional and tankless water heaters:

• For singles or couples – If you don’t use large amounts of water and are replacing a standard gas tank heater, a new tank has a lower up-front cost and could be a better choice.
• For new construction, or for larger families and efficiency-conscious / space-challenged homeowners, tankless heaters are 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.

A tankless water heater can be a great option – as long as it’s the right choice for your North Carolina home, and as long as it is sized and installed by professionals – like the ones you will always find at LG Jordan Oil.
Contact us today to talk with our water heater experts, or to get a FREE, no obligation estimate on a high-efficiency water heater for your home.