Considering a new tankless water heater?
The first question on your mind is probably the price, which for a tankless water heater installation can vary based on these 4 factors:
We’ll cover these factors in more detail...
Want a quote to install a tankless water heater? Give us a call, and we can quickly send over one of our certified plumbers to give you an estimate for your home.
There are 2 types of tankless water heaters:
It’s usually less expensive to install one whole-home water heater instead of multiple point-of-use water heaters because it requires less labor and fewer parts.
So what’s the difference between these two types of tankless water heaters? Well, just like their name suggests, whole-home water heaters are meant to provide hot water to ALL of the appliances in your home.
On the other hand, point-of-use water heaters are usually meant to service one appliance or room (like a clothes washer or a bathroom). They’re typically installed near the appliance itself.
The “capacity” of a tankless water heater is measured by its flow rate, which is how many gallons of hot water the unit can produce in 1 minute.
Generally, the higher the flow rate, the more expensive the water heater.
However, don’t think a bigger flow rate is automatically the best option for your home—you just need a water heater that can meet your home’s hot water demands.
So, how do you know what flow rate you need? Follow these 2 steps:
The temperature rise is how many degrees your water heater has to heat your home’s incoming cold water to match your desired hot water output. This is important to know because typically, the higher your home’s temperature rise, the more it lowers your water heater’s flow rate.
Think of it this way: the colder your home’s incoming water, the more work you’re asking from your water heater. And the harder the water heater has to work to heat up your home’s water, the slower it provides hot water (i.e. a lower flow rate). So, when shopping for a tankless water heater, make sure the unit specifies that it’s capable of your home’s particular temperature rise.
You can find your home’s incoming cold water temperature by looking at this U.S. map of average groundwater temperatures by region.
Let’s look at an example: If the incoming cold water is around 75° F, and your tankless heater is set up to heat water to 120°, the temperature rise would be 45° (120 - 75 = 45).
In Tampa, 75° F is a fairly typical temperature for incoming cold water, so you should look for a water heater that’s capable of a 45° F maximum temperature rise.
Screenshot taken from Google Shopping on 1/16/2018
Now that you know the temperature rise, you’ll need to determine how many hot water appliances you might need to run at the same time. Then, add up the flow rates of just those hot water appliances.
Below is a list of common appliances/fixtures with their average flow rates:
So, let’s say your Florida household often has 2 showers plus the kitchen sink running at the same time. When you add up the flow rate of those appliances, you get a minimum flow rate of 6.5 to 7.5. That said, you should look for a water heater with a flow rate of 7.5 GPM given a maximum temperature rise of 45° F (or whatever your home’s temperature rise might be).
Gas tankless water heaters usually cost more upfront but offer lower monthly energy bills (gas is cheaper than electricity). So, if you already have gas lines installed in your home, we suggest going with a gas tankless unit.
Don’t have gas lines installed at your home? Then you have 2 options:
When you hire a contractor, you definitely get what you pay for. Lower-quality contractors typically charge less, but they may not offer quality service.
If you hire a not-so-great contractor, you risk having your tankless water heater installed incorrectly, which could cost you money in the long run on repairs.
We recommend that you get written estimates from multiple contractors so the contractor is bound to the price they quote you, and be sure to check their online customer reviews to see how they handle customer service.
Just give us a call or schedule an appointment with us online.
We’ll help you determine what tankless water heater to get for your home, and then we’ll quote you a fair installation price based on these factors.