The Ins and Outs of Hot Water

If you have ever found yourself in a position where you had to take a cold shower, then you have a pretty good understanding of how valuable hot water heaters can be. Before the invention of hot water heaters, enjoying something as simple as a hot bath was an arduous task.

These days, we are fortunate enough to have hot water on demand. From cooking, to cleaning and showering, we rely on hot water heaters for a bevy of needs. Hot water heaters deliver heated water all throughout the house at a range of desired temperatures. Most units have a gauge that can be set anywhere from 120 to 180 degrees. However, a setting somewhere near 150 degrees is more than comfortable for the average family. In fact, families with small children will have added value in the ability to monitor the temperature of their hot water heaters. As an added bonus, a lower setting helps to conserve energy and money.

Most hot water heaters are simple to install and maintain. Aside from being quite heavy, a tanks installation can be an easy process completed with the attaching of a few pipes. The most common problem with units are the lost production of hot water. Most often, this is easy enough to fix as chances are that the pilot light or heating source needs to be reignited or replaced. Professionals are readily available in the event that you feel too intimidated by working on or installing your unit.

One thing to think about in selecting hot water heaters for your house is size. Larger homes, with more individuals, may require a larger tank. Hot water heaters range anywhere from 20 to 120 gallon units. The most common sizes used tend to be 80 gallons. Larger units cost more to run, but smaller tanks run out of hot water much quicker. Factor in the size of your house, occupant quantity, number of bathrooms and laundry usage before deciding on what size of unit you need.

Another choice to make in deciding on a unit is gas or electric. Gas heaters run off of a pilot which ignites and maintains flames in the bottom of the unit. Electric heaters warm through either one or two elements. Many families prefer electric hot water heaters to gas but it must be kept in mind that electric models take much longer to heat and therefore should be purchased in larger tanks. A tank with two elements at lower wattage will heat much faster than a single element tank. Further analysis of electric and gas features can give you a better idea of just how fast a unit heats up. The speed of heating is categorized by how much water a tank can heat to 90 degrees in an hour. A higher BTU indicates faster heating ability in gas units whereas the number and wattage of elements indicates heating ability in electric tanks.

People have been enjoying the benefits of hot water heaters for more than 100 years. If you have ever cooked, cleaned or bathed then odds are you too have hot water heaters to thank.


Hot Water Heaters