I guess I first started thinking about tank less water heaters
during my travels. I noticed in the U.K., Europe, Pacific Rim countries and many other
parts of the world, that everyone uses tank less water heaters. Common sense told me there
had to be a reason.
Fuel costs have historically been higher in the rest of the
world, resulting in more efficient water heating equipment. I learned that
tank less water
heaters are 25-30% more efficient than tank types which have to burn 25-30% longer just to
keep the water in the tank hot. Also, because they have single or multiple flues running
up the middle of the tank, when the burner is off cool air can travel through and draw
significant heat back out of the stored water which is very wasteful and inefficient. My
tank less water heater has no tank to keep hot or to lose heat through, and the burner only
comes on when hot water is needed. This is how I save 30% and contribute 30% less flue gas
emissions to the environment.
I next found out that even though a tank less water heater costs
more than the tank type water heater, they last 3 to 4 times longer. In North America we
are used to throwing away the whole water heater every 5 to 7 years when it leaks.
Tank less heaters are designed to be repaired - you never throw them out. This, to my mind,
is investment and conservation smart.
I guess the clincher was the time we were traveling with the
Murrays and one night we all had to share a small cottage - five adults and four kids. We
had driven all day, we were hot and dusty and decided we could clean up and go out for
supper. We had nine leisurely showers one after the other and never ran out of hot water -
and yes, you guessed it, there was a Bosch tank less water heater mounted right on the wall
of the kitchen unit. We just couldn't believe it!
I bought my Bosch heater when my tank heater failed, and its
small size (31"H x 18"W x 9"D) and the fact that it uses no floor space was
really helpful when we remodeled our kitchen. My friend Ron, who's a plumber, said it was
just as easy to install as a tank type.
If you asked me if there were any negative factors, I would
really have to say no, but there are two things you should be aware of. First, because the
heaters are flow activated and operate on a pressure differential, it's very important to
have a minimum of 30 psi water supply pressure. The other point is that while you can run
a shower continuously and never run out of hot water, you can't run more than one shower
or major appliance at the same time. However, this doesn't worry us as most homes, even
with 2 or 3 bathrooms, rarely run baths or showers at the same time because of temperature
fluctuations and the fact that with heavy demand, a tank type heater soon runs out of hot
water and you have to wait for it to heat up again. Tank less water heaters never keep you
waiting!
Are we happy with our Bosch unit? We save up to 30% on our gas
bill, conserve energy, save space, protect the environment, never run out of hot water and
we have a smart, long term investment that is going to save us money for as long as we
burn gas - you bet we are!