With the increasing rise in popularity with tankless water heaters, most homeowners are now asking the question, “Which fuel source is better?” Well, though it would be simple if it were all black and white, the real answer is that there is no single right answer. What’s best for your home won’t necessarily be the best option for your neighbor’s home, or your parent’s home.
When it comes to buying a tankless water heater, you’ve got three basic options: electric, natural gas, or propane. For the purpose of this guide, natural gas and propane will be combined into a single “gas” type, leaving us with Electric vs. Gas.
Two tankless water heaters, side-to-side. Wanna buy one for yourself? Click on the image above!
Now, before we start, there are serious implications you must consider. For instance, it is important you consider the availability of each fuel source, the cost of installation of a particularly fueled tankless water heater, your personal water use habits (lifestyle) and needs, and the location of installation. Thinking about the before-mentioned criteria is important and will help you get on the right path to locating your fuel source for your new tankless water heater.
Now, we can progress to the more technical aspects. Let’s start with a generalized retail cost. Electric water heaters tend to cost significantly less than gas heaters; on average, an electric tankless water heater will cost anywhere from $500-700, while its gas counterpart can cost $1,000+.
If we move to efficiency and operating cost next, we’ll see that gas tankless water heaters pack a more powerful punch than their tanked counterparts (i.e. gas tank-style water heaters). As such, efficiency for these systems peaks at around 80-85%. However, if you’re looking for ultimate efficiency, electric systems are the way to go, peaking at an incredible 98% average. Electric tankless heaters are typically cheaper to purchase, more efficient when running, and have a cheaper overall installation cost. In addition, experts agree that electricity prices will remain relatively stable in the coming years while gas prices will fluctuate and possibly rise. Even so, keep in mind that gas is generally a cheaper alternative to electricity. To make the best decision for your home, you must factor in the fuel prices in your region and your hot water needs.
Now let’s move on to maintenance. In the grand scheme of things, electric systems require very little maintenance. Other than occasionally cleaning out the inlet screen, electric heaters don’t need to be maintained. Gas heaters, on the other hand, need to be inspected annually to ensure safe fuel combustion and top performance. Electric systems can also be troubleshoot-ed and repaired fairly easily in the event of a malfunction. Gas heaters tend to be trickier, running more complex heat exchangers and always imposing the danger of a gas leak.
Finally, we’ll end with installation. Gas tankless systems require complex arrangements of vents, especially when installed in a confined area. Typically, existing gas lines and vent ducts cannot be used. Price-wise, this makes for a very expensive installation. Electric tankless systems are typically only found in “point-of-use” systems, which are meant to power one or two hot water outlets MAX. Because of this, they are smaller (about a third of the size of a “whole-home” gas tankless system) and can fit into places like cabinets and closets near the outlets. This reduces the lag time (the time it takes for the hot water to reach your faucet) you would normally experience with the bigger systems. Unfortunately, electric tankless systems cannot usually power every single hot water outlet in your home. While a gas tankless system can usually sustain all the outlets with just one system, you would need 2-3 of the smaller, electrical systems to cover all your home’s outlets. This can make for a more expensive retail cost overall.
If you’re going tankless, the ideal place to start your search would be plumbersstock.com. We’ll end with a brief summary: Electric tankless systems are generally cheaper to buy, more efficient, require little maintenance, are easy to repair, and inexpensive to install. However, electric tankless systems are rarely made to cover more than 2 hot water outlets at a time, so depending on how many outlets your home has, you could be looking at buying up to 3 of these smaller units, the cost of which could get very pricey. Gas tankless systems, meaning natural gas or propane systems, are generally the more affordable fuel types and can power your entire home with the larger “whole-home” units. However, installation is expensive, maintenance requires an annual check-up by a professional, repairs are complex and should be handled by a professional, and they are ever so slightly less efficient than electric systems. What will you choose?
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