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Thread Number: 80550
/ Tag: Other Home Products or Autos
AO Smith Electric Water Heater (leaked) |
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| Post# 1045179 9/17/2019 at 12:21 (1,682 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
Yesterday.... I walked into my laundry room to go out to the garage, and I stopped because I noticed a strange smell..Not a bad smell but just unusual. It was STEAM. I flipped on the light and saw water leaking onto the floor. I panicked because I know these things can leak and there's NO drain. It just sits on the floor. We turned the water off, shut the unit down at breaker, turned on the hot water at sinks and connected hose to the heater to drain it. Luckily I think we caught it in time. I've been WAITING for this to happen. My friend who I used to work at Verizon with years ago went home to her water heater leaking all over her floor. She worked all night cleaning and trying to get rid of water.
We were trying to guess which appliance would go next and we both guessed the hot water heater. (a hot water heater is an appliance, isn't it?) But get this! Moved into this house BRAND NEW Sept 15, 2015. Hot water heater leaks Sept 16, 2019. 15 years and 1 day. I thought that was weird. At least it waited a day after the anniversary. In the meantime, I'm so confused how plumbing works. You can use cold water at the sinks, but if you try to use the washing machine or showers, the water heater wants to fill with cold water EVEN though the water is turned off at the heater. Oh well, it will be fixed soon. | ||
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| Post# 1045180 , Reply# 1 9/17/2019 at 12:23 (1,682 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Whoops | ||
Post# 1045223 , Reply# 4 9/17/2019 at 20:34 (1,682 days old) by combo52  (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
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Replacement For A Standard Electric Water Heater | ||
| Post# 1045240 , Reply# 5 9/18/2019 at 01:17 (1,681 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Hey thanks
I should clarify that typo. Water heater lasted 15 years and 1 day. Moved into this house Sept 15, 2004. Water heater dies Sept 16, 2009 (LOL) I would LOVE a heat pump water heater but they are way too expensive for me. I'm trying to decide between Rheem or AO Smith for a new one. Unfortunately, they both have some SCARY reviews for the two models that will fit the area. I will look into that alarm. I keep thinking about what could have happened had I not noticed it when I did. Water was going everywhere fast, I was throwing towels down. Got my rainbow vacuum out sucking up water as we were trying to get the hose connected to drain it. No water damage thank God. I wish mine drained outside somewhere or there was a drain in the floor of the laundry room, but there's not. You would think that would be CODE in a room with a hot water heater (tank) but whatever. I'm pretty sure I'm going to get the AO Smith as they were quite as scary as some of the Rheem reviews. They are in stock. Installing tomorrow. The water here is actually not very cold because it's been so HOT and DRY for weeks.
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Post# 1045247 , Reply# 7 9/18/2019 at 05:19 (1,681 days old) by chetlaham (United States) |
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Washer and Shower filling water heater | ||
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Post# 1045248 , Reply# 8 9/18/2019 at 05:24 (1,681 days old) by chetlaham (United States) |
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| Post# 1045252 , Reply# 9 9/18/2019 at 06:28 (1,681 days old) by arbilab (Ft Worth TX (Ridglea)) | ||
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Post# 1045265 , Reply# 10 9/18/2019 at 07:53 (1,681 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN) |
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 Yeah, my gas one lasted almost exactly 10 years. Tony woke me up saying something was going on with the WH, making a weird noise and water coming out. I said, " why don't you turn the water off????" instead of taking the time to awaken me first. It's been 3 years now...I would like to put in one of those electronic anode rods in. The water softener causes the water to be more corrosive. | ||
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Post# 1045272 , Reply# 11 9/18/2019 at 09:42 (1,681 days old) by kb0nes (Burnsville, MN) |
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I'd second the heat pump water heater. Pay for themselves in energy saved and you get a free dehumidifier/AC to boot. I've considered adding one in addition to my gas water heater just to run in the Summer to cool and dry the basement.
Be sure to install shut off valves on both the cold and hot lines to the appliance for convenience, I like being able to fully isolate my water heater from plumbing system. Also possibly worthy while doing plumbing work is adding a pressure buffer tank sometimes called a Water Heater Saver. These help by buffering the water pressure in the system and are especially handy if you have high line pressure or a meter with a regulator or back flow preventing check valve. If you'd never seen any leakage from the overpressure valve they aren't so necessary but they do smooth out delivery temperature fluctuations when a toilet is flushed etc. | ||
| Post# 1045367 , Reply# 12 9/19/2019 at 00:07 (1,680 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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The new standard water heater installed today. The installation went good and I keep going in to check for leaks every hour because I'm so paranoid. So far I don't see a drop of water. There is now a shut-off valve (I guess that's what it's called) supposedly it stops the flow of all water to the heater, where before, we could only use sinks. Showers or washer would bring water back into the water heater.
The water heater was so clogged with crud, that it wouldn't even let all the water drain out of it and what little did drain out was NASTY! At this point I don't even know if the water heater was at the end of life or it just needed a leak fixed. I know you're supposed to drain them once per year. I talked to a friend tonight who said that he knows 2 people who drained theirs for maintenance and they stopped working. I immediately thought that it was probably because they didn't cut the power and waited for it to fill before restoring power. But he said they did that. What would cause a water heater to stop working simply by cutting the power and draining, then filling up, restoring power? But about heat pump water heaters. They sound awesome. Wish I could afford one. Normally it might be doable but at this moment in time it wasn't. You said heat pump water heaters are actually air conditioners too?????? | ||
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Post# 1045386 , Reply# 14 9/19/2019 at 04:41 (1,680 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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 Mark, All air conditioners are heat pumps. They operate by moving (pumping) heat from one location (inside the house) to another (outside the house). A "heat pump" (for heating, either air inside a house or water inside a tank) moves (pumps) heat from outside the target area (the house, or the water tank) to inside the target area. The "heat" pumping is simply in the opposite direction of "cool" pumping. Thus, all heat pumps (for heating) are also air conditioners. Same for refrigerators and freezers. They're heat pumps that pump heat from inside the food storage compartment to outside of it. A heat pump water heater will essentially cool the space (room) in which it's installed by moving heat from that space into the water tank. | ||
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Post# 1045396 , Reply# 15 9/19/2019 at 07:33 (1,680 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN) |
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Post# 1045407 , Reply# 16 9/19/2019 at 09:03 (1,680 days old) by kb0nes (Burnsville, MN) |
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I never "drain" my water heater but I do flush it at least yearly. I turn mine to pilot only then do a couple loads of laundry to use up the hot water. Then I attach a short garden hose to the drain valve and affix the other end of the hose to the laundry tub. Open the drain valve full wide open and allow the water to purge the debris from the tank with the cold supply still on.
By not physically draining the tank you don't have to deal with purging all the air from the empty tank after. Also Keeping the supply on insures much faster and more complete flushing. Gravity alone doesn't move the water fast enough to really move any tank bottom debris around. | ||
| Post# 1045425 , Reply# 17 9/19/2019 at 13:05 (1,680 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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I was watching
youtube videos on how to flush.....It was crazy how many people said theirs would NOT drain/flush due to the sediment getting caught in the drain valve. A few reported that once they drained/flushed theirs when they closed their drain valve back up, it dripped.
It sounds like it would be easiest to flush it and not drain it. One guy said he recommends this be done QUARTERLY! Someone in the comments sections said that no one on this planet is flushing their hot water heater quarterly and that that's overkill. My problem is the only drain I have in the laundry room is the washing machine....Otherwise the hose would have to connect to heater and go outside. I doubt I could connect the hose to the heater and bring it to the kitchen sink because then, the hose would be going upward to the sink. | ||
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Post# 1045428 , Reply# 18 9/19/2019 at 13:42 (1,680 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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I flush my tankless with vinegar occasionally (not as often as I should). Can't very well do that with a tank. My dad and I changed the tank heater once at my other house, and once at granny's, and RJ and I did one at one of his rentals. Years of sediment accumulation makes them slow to drain and bottom-heavy to move. | ||
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Post# 1045430 , Reply# 19 9/19/2019 at 14:52 (1,680 days old) by kb0nes (Burnsville, MN) |
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Mark, you could run the hose to the outdoors or upstairs, if you are flushing under full pressure the added altitude is no matter. It is nice to observe the flow though to see if it is running clear. I sometimes stick the end of the hose into a quart Mason jar in the sink to better show the debris that discharge. Be sure to secure the hose end as it will whip around.
Doing the chore quarterly wouldn't be a bad idea but seems pretty excessive to me. All depends on the mineral content of the water though. On my last water heater I replaced the drain valve with a quarter turn ball valve as these flow faster and don't foul with debris. Should a standard valve leak then more flushing should be done to clear the seat. | ||
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Post# 1045432 , Reply# 20 9/19/2019 at 15:34 (1,680 days old) by MattL (Flushing, MI) |
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My problem is the only drain I have in the laundry room is t
Well that means you have a drain! Use the stand tube your machine drains into..... | ||
| Post# 1045457 , Reply# 21 9/19/2019 at 22:04 (1,680 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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So just so I'm clear
the instructions for draining an electric hot water heater WITHOUT turning the water off is this:
1. Connect garden hose to heater 2. Bring hose to a drain. Elevation doesn't matter since the water that leaves the hot water heater will be returning so there is pressure. 3. Turn valve where the hose connects to the heater while someone else is standing at the sink or drain holding the hose. 4. Do this for how long? I'm guess a couple of minutes? 5. turn valve off at water heater 6. Disconnect hose that's it, right? I'm thinking if you do this once or twice per year that the sediment won't get bad enough to clog up anything. I have zero knowledge in plumbing or electrical and I'm not handy at all. Although once I did replace a toilet fill valve but I went slow and steady. This seems MUCH easier than turning everything off, draining it. If this is all there is to it, why do some do it the hard way? I'm envious of those with heat pump water heaters or even tankless. | ||
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Post# 1045459 , Reply# 22 9/19/2019 at 22:32 (1,680 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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A tank heater can't be drained to empty without shutting off the input. You're referencing what Phil describes in Reply #16? He's connecting a hose to the drain port while the input is still fully on, and opening the drain, which has the mains supply pressure flush debris out through the drain port. The tank gets flushed but never drains as such. The trick is whether there's so much debris accumulated that it obstructs flow through the drain ... may have to poke it with a stick. | ||
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Post# 1045476 , Reply# 23 9/20/2019 at 06:30 (1,679 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN) |
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| Post# 1045511 , Reply# 24 9/20/2019 at 20:05 (1,679 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Post# 1045513 , Reply# 25 9/20/2019 at 20:32 (1,679 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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Mark, swapping in a tankless for an existing tank unit is not just a simple swap-in. Gas tankless can have much as a 200,000 BTU gas burner, requires a larger gas line. Electric tankless large enough to handle all the needs of house takes a 120 amp or larger circuit ... compared to a typical tank unit that takes a 30 amp circuit. | ||
| Post# 1045557 , Reply# 27 9/21/2019 at 14:40 (1,678 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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the old water heater
is still in our garage. I need to call and schedule the city to come pick it up. There is a point to this: The water heater is HEAVY!! It literally feels like it's filled with water, and there may still be some in there because I don't think it drained all the way. But you don't hear a sloshing sound in it. I'm wondering if the weight is because it's probably filled with sediment inside. I can only imagine what it must look like inside.
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Post# 1045565 , Reply# 28 9/21/2019 at 16:25 (1,678 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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| Post# 1045569 , Reply# 29 9/21/2019 at 17:02 (1,678 days old) by perc-o-prince (Southboro, Mass) | ||
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Non-electric WH question So ours is hooked up to our central heating system (oil furnace) as a separate "zone." Is there something we should be doing, maintenance-wise? It's been in service +/- 10 years. Thanks, Chuck | ||
| Post# 1045575 , Reply# 30 9/21/2019 at 18:21 (1,678 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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researching tankless
You're right. It's not as simple as switching one for the other. It looks like they require a certain voltage on a double pole breaker. By double pole, I'm sure that means a breaker that has 2 breakers on one long pole in the breaker box. But on that double pole breaker, there is voltage. One says 50 and the other says 30. That would NOT work (at least for the ones I've looked at) so I'm sure that would have to be done by an electrician. But the breaker box is in the garage just beside the laundry room. Not far. I'm not sure if that even matters. I think it would be better the closer it is. But I'm not sure of the climate map showing the best model for your climate. Sometimes the water here in the winter will be so cold it's ridiculous. I have no clue what type would be good for 2 people. We never take showers at the same time. We never do laundry/dishwasher, run sinks while taking showers. I guess now is the time to start saving for one because I can't see this BOTTOM of the barrel Lowes 40 gallon tall A/O smith lasting that long.
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Post# 1045578 , Reply# 31 9/21/2019 at 18:52 (1,678 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.) |
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After reading this thread I too looked up tankless electric water heaters, I wasn’t even aware that they existed, I thought they were only available for gas. I found the same info as Mark relates in reply #30.
I do think that we could switch to one of the mid to high output models with no problem. But the installation would absolutely require an electrician and the running of at least one more electric line to where the water heater is located, in a closet under the stairs. And also the addition of at least one more circuit breaker, so this would be a big and fairly expensive job. That being said, we last replaced our water heater 9 years ago, it is one of the Low Boy 40 gal. models by Rheem, and works fine. The previous WH was over 20 years old, and when it failed it wasn’t all at once, it just stopped producing enough hot water. So, if and when this one begins to crap out I will certainly look into replacing it with a tankless electric WH, the long term savings in electricity would soon offset the extra expense. BTW, the safety release valve drains into our backyard, I’ve never heard if a safety release valve opening and flooding the interior of the dwelling. We even had a safety release valve for the WH in the home my family lived in when I was a teen, and it was built in 1961. Once, when I and my siblings were coming home from school, Mom was at work, there was water shooting out from the front of the house, from the overheated electric WH. So this safety feature has been around for over 50 years. Eddie This post was last edited 09/21/2019 at 19:29 | ||
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Post# 1045603 , Reply# 33 9/22/2019 at 01:58 (1,677 days old) by MattL (Flushing, MI) |
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Tankless are OK for some folks, I'd opt out. Looked into them a while back but I like my water HOT, tankless max out at about 120 from what I read. I keep my tank at the highest temp, about 150+ and like it that way. Dishes flash dry, laundry on hot is hot. | ||
| Post# 1045606 , Reply# 34 9/22/2019 at 04:33 (1,677 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Well
I'm not 100% sure but I think I remember upping my old water heater temp to 135 from 120 or 125. Whatever it was on at the factory I bumped it up like 10 degrees. With this new one, we just left it a default....and I can tell the water isn't quite as hot....but it's PLENTY hot enough. Hot enough so my hands can't stand it on full hot, I have to mix hot/cold. Plus, the washer has a built in heater as does dishwasher....so I feel like as long as it's hot enough the way it is I'm just going to leave it........BUT, as I type this I think I just remembered WHY I turned it up a long time ago. It was because of a post on this forum about bacteria growing it water tanks that are not set at a hot enough temp.
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Post# 1045619 , Reply# 35 9/22/2019 at 07:32 (1,677 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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Residential-oriented tankless typically allows maximum setpoint of 140°F. Commercial-oriented units may go higher. A separate subpanel is required here for all electric water heaters, not sure when that went into effect. The last tank replacement at work had a subpanel added. My electric tankless is on a 120 amp circuit. Two 60-amp breakers in the main subpanel, 1-3 and 5-7 (9-11 is the range). The dedicated subpanel inches away divides the two 60-amp circuits into four circuits feeding into the unit, each with two 40-amp breakers. It has four 7,200-watt elements. | ||
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Post# 1045623 , Reply# 36 9/22/2019 at 09:01 (1,677 days old) by petek (Ontari ari ari O ) |
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I went through the same thing about 6 months ago. Got up one morning and had no hot water.. went down to the basement to check and found a few inches of water just about to cross the threshold of the furnace/work room into the carpeted rek room.. water gushing out the gas water heater.. Same deal, no floor drain and there's a boiler in there as well. I can't figure that one out. I've never lived in a house without a basement floor drain . Got that all sopped up with the wet/dry vac. Because of regulations now in force here in Ontario they couldn't install a new gas heater because the old one shared the flue with the boiler. And because the gas meter was outside right about where a new flue would go through the wall it was too close (more regulations) to the meters regulator.. has to be at least 6 ft away. So I installed a Rheem electric.
I was pissed off at myself because I had bought a cheap battery water alarm but had never taken it out of its package.. I have now.. and I bought about 6 more off Amazon and have them placed in all bathrooms and under sinks. Lo and behold I get up this morning and hear the dreaded sound of the one in the basement going off a few feet from the water heater.. but for some reason it's not wet down there... so not sure why it went off.. I honestly felt sick to my stomach when I heard it. I really don't want to go through that nightmare. btw mine was set at 140 out of the box.. I dropped it to 122 and that seems to work fine for the dishwasher. Laundry is pretty much always done with warm or cold washes. | ||
| Post# 1045626 , Reply# 37 9/22/2019 at 09:50 (1,677 days old) by IowaBear (Cedar Rapids, IA) | ||
Electric WH | ||
| Post# 1045642 , Reply# 38 9/22/2019 at 14:58 (1,677 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Codes
Yes! There are codes for EVERYTHING but not a floor drain where a water heater tank holding gallons of water that are known to leak at end of life or even for other reasons is located.
This cheap water heater we bought......the drain valve is PLASTIC. How's that for quality? But I can understand because of its price point. On a YouTube video I read a comment and I busted out laughing. Someone said: It's not a "hot water heater", it's a "water heater" If the water was already hot, it wouldn't need heating! Anyway.....Here's the one we bought CLICK HERE TO GO TO mark_wpduet's LINK | ||
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Post# 1045655 , Reply# 39 9/22/2019 at 16:45 (1,677 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.) |
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Codes
When we had our WH replaced in 2010 it was mandatory that we had a drain and drain pan installed under the WH, and also even though its electric and a low boy, less likely to tip over in a quake, we also had to have it strapped to the wall, according to code in our local. This increased the installation charge considerably, but was good insurance against future damage from any leakage.
Eddie | ||
| Post# 1045663 , Reply# 40 9/22/2019 at 18:06 (1,677 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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One thing I forgot to mention
when we bought this at Lowes, we had to pay a $70 fee to the city and fill out a form because we were installing it ourselves. Supposedly, whether it's installed professionally or on your own, someone is supposed to come out and check to make sure it was installed correctly.....but they NEVER or RARELY do. They just want the money.
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Post# 1045808 , Reply# 41 9/23/2019 at 21:09 (1,676 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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| Post# 1045914 , Reply# 42 9/25/2019 at 05:14 (1,674 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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the more I learn
the more I'm not sure electric tankless would be a good idea for areas too far north where the water gets COLD in the wintertime. Like, say you've had weeks where it's been super cold and the water temp is like 38 to 40 F or something like that.... I wonder how an electric tankless would handle that? I'm sure it can get cold in Texas as well.
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Post# 1045917 , Reply# 43 9/25/2019 at 05:55 (1,674 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
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Tankless Water Heaters Etc. The chief advantage of tankless WHs is space saving and the ability of unlimited supply of hot water, There are also many disadvantages as well.
TWHs can not supply a steady supply of water over 120F when several faucets are being used at the same time in a house when incoming water temperature is very cold [ under 45F ]
ETWHs are especially bad at this, in addition ETWHs put very high demands on electrical supply systems are are prone to all kinds of wiring and circuit breaker failures, there are no other appliances in modern homes that use anywhere near the amount of power these WHs consume, even electric furnaces are not that bad and there are darn few electric furnaces in use now that heat pumps are so popular even up North.
TWHs often actually raise energy usage when people find out their time in the shower has no limit, this is again true in homes where there are a number of people living there and with a tank type WH you had to look out for one another.
Heat loss from electric and Heat-Pump WHs is very small because of very good insulation and the lack of a flue running up the center of the tank that is always loosing heat up the flue.
John L.
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Post# 1045940 , Reply# 45 9/25/2019 at 13:24 (1,674 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.) |
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After reading more about the power requirements for an ETWH it's clear to me that this isn’t a viable alternative for our home.
We’ll stick with the tried and true conventional EWH. Due to space limitations we have to go with the Low Boy models, and thats OK too. Having lived in an all electric home for 25 years we are very good at using our electricity in a conservative manner, and are able to keep our power costs from getting too high. Eddie | ||
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Post# 1045950 , Reply# 46 9/25/2019 at 15:48 (1,674 days old) by chetlaham (United States) |
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A tank-less water heater typically requires that the home have a 150-200amp service (at least) and its a REALLY good idea you contact the power company about it as they typically size their equipment to the actual anticipated load (not conservative NEC load calcs) which do not take an extra 25kw-40kw of load into account. Meaning you could actually burn up their service drop or pole transformer in the middle of winter.
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| Post# 1045957 , Reply# 47 9/25/2019 at 17:24 (1,674 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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I've learned so much
the past couple of weeks about water heaters that I really NEVER KNEW. The sacrificial anode rod that's in most water heaters and needs to be changed over time! Even watching youtube videos of people changing them.....It looks tricky depending on the water heater and sometimes it looks EASY. Also, the type of metal in the anode rod can be totally different from area to area, depending on water. No wonder there's sediment in water heaters because that rod disintegrates. So not only do you need to flush the water heater, the anode rod needs to be changed too. Every place I've ever lived has been all electric, and I've never known anyone to do any of this with their hot water heaters.
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Post# 1045959 , Reply# 48 9/25/2019 at 17:30 (1,674 days old) by MattL (Flushing, MI) |
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Gas is the best option for me. I have a 40 gallon higher efficiency tank, set as hot as it will go, and my summer gas bill is ~$20 - including a gas cooktop and dryer. I think it would be hard to beat with any other type. | ||
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Post# 1045989 , Reply# 50 9/26/2019 at 02:05 (1,673 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN) |
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Well I had planned to go tankless a few years ago until I found this page. www.waterheaterrescue.com/Longevi... I'll stick with a tank. | ||
| Post# 1045996 , Reply# 51 9/26/2019 at 05:12 (1,673 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Same
I think the best option would be heat pump water heaters. But they are EXPENSIVE, but supposedly pay for themselves and then some over time. I was reading some reviews on them. One person said, heats water, low energy, self-cleaning, what more do you want? I thought, self-cleaning? How?
My cheap heater I just bought is doing really well. I hardly ever hear it heating water UNLESS one of us has showered. I take long showers and I haven't ran out at all. Something I just noticed in the description of mine is that it has "copper" heating elements vs stainless steel (LOL). I'm not surprised. I may get brave and drain mine after six months like the manual says to do, or at least connect the hose and just let water run through it. | ||
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Post# 1045998 , Reply# 52 9/26/2019 at 05:48 (1,673 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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I've not had any issues getting sufficient heated water out of it or any electrical supply failures for the duration of 15+ years with the tankless. There is no natural gas service in the little neighborhood outside town where my house is located. Propane would be the alternative. Both bathrooms have whirlpool tubs (not Jacuzzi brand) and a standard 40 or 50 gal tank heater couldn't handle filling them so perhaps the builder went with tankless on that point instead of two tank water heaters or one super-sized ... my understanding is that he also had the tankless unit already on-hand, having placed them in one or two other builds. Tankless, either gas or electric, surely is not for every situation, and retrofitting either type to an existing tank installation often involves "problems." | ||
| Post# 1046069 , Reply# 53 9/26/2019 at 19:31 (1,673 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY) | ||
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Just watched a video
If I spent $1500 dollars on a heat pump hybrid electric water heater (not counting potential discounts from Lowes or Home Depot and the possible rebate from the power company), by year 5, total spent on hybrid water heater would be around $2200 (that's including energy to use it over those 5 years, but possibly less than that with rebates or discounts)
This $389 water heater that I have. By year 5, this heater will have cost $2650. But you still have to drain/flush, change anode in ALL OF THEM (from what I understand). Plus, you never know if there may be other costs such as hiring a plumber, etc., will add to those costs. I do wonder though....It sounds like a great thing in the summer, but when it's operating in the winter it will be "cooling" the air around it, not heating it. Not sure how that factors in if it's really cold outside. I'm definitely going to start saving for one. Also interesting that the Hybrid electric heater plugs into a regular outlet (LOL) | ||
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Post# 1046090 , Reply# 54 9/27/2019 at 07:44 (1,672 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN) |
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I remember back in the 80's the TVA (who produces our electricity) had a HP water heater on display at one of the energy shows at Regency Square Mall in Florence, AL. My dad picked up some brochures on them but ultimately we just switched over to gas since the city was giving away AO Smith gas water heaters for FREE to switch. That water heater lasted almost 30 years! | ||
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