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6yearrez
Citizen
Username: 6yearrez
Post Number: 177
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, July 20, 2006 - 6:56 pm: | 
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We have to replace our gas water heater and have the option of either getting a gas water heater and moving it to an outside wall, using a direct vent, or a power vent, or, we can change to an electric one. We have a couple of options on the gas model, and may go with a slightly more expensive "high recovery" model. We are looking at 50 gal. capacity and trying to figure out which of the three to install (high recovery gas, regular gas like we have now, or electric).
The cost of installing either of the gas models is significantly higher than installing an electric one into the same spot where our old one stands, as the move to direct vent requires more labor, moving to outside wall, etc. If we go with gas model, do we want the slightly more expensive high recovery model (we have three daughters who will become teenagers in the lifetime of the water heater).
While we could save money by replacing the present gas water heater with electric, the cost of running an electric model is higher than running a gas model, but by how much?
PSE&G gave me a cost of running a 50 gal. gas water heater at about $215-235 annually. They said they could not give me an estimate of annual cost to run a 50 gal. electric and told me to calculate it myself. (Find the kilowatt hours pulled per year on the electric model, and multiply that by cost per kwh that they charge- I think that's what they said, but I don't have these numbers.)
(Why could they give me cost for gas model but not for electric model? I don't understand this.)
Any advice/comments, please. Thank you. |
Pdg
Citizen
Username: Pdg
Post Number: 1037
Registered: 5-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, July 20, 2006 - 9:30 pm: |
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I highly recommend you consider a tankless water heater. We recently (about a year and a half ago) replaced our water heater with an inside mounted Rinnai for natural gas (they also make one for propane). It's great never running out of hot water and it was too late for us, but now the government will give something like a $300 tax relief for people who install highly rated tankless water heaters like Rinnai. http://www.foreverhotwater.com/
FYI, I used Suburban Energy to purchase/install my Rinnai - they were the best quote from the 3 or so "authorized" installers. I now use them for all my HVAC needs as well. |
6yearrez
Citizen
Username: 6yearrez
Post Number: 178
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, July 20, 2006 - 10:12 pm: |
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Thanks- it's worth looking into- how is it vented? (I will look in archives for prior postings regarding Rinnai). |
Pdg
Citizen
Username: Pdg
Post Number: 1044
Registered: 5-2004
| | Posted on Friday, July 21, 2006 - 2:24 pm: |
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It's vented directly to the outside - no internal air is used in the exchange. Another plus, is one less appliance venting out your chimney (and possibly helping to corrode it if it isn't lined.)
The authorized installers you call for a price quote will tell you the most logical placement for the unit - there are requirements about the vent and measurements from the nearest window the ground level, etc.
I recommend having them run a new gas line from your main - the only difficulty I had with ours was solved after we discovered the line that went to our water tank was filled with lots of gritty crap (dirty gas?). Suburban ran a new, yellow flexible type pipe for no charge.
It's amazing the amount of space that having this wall-mounted freed-up. |
Pdg
Citizen
Username: Pdg
Post Number: 1045
Registered: 5-2004
| | Posted on Friday, July 21, 2006 - 2:26 pm: |
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It's vented directly to the outside - no internal air is used in the exchange. Another plus, is one less appliance venting out your chimney (and possibly helping to corrode it if it isn't lined.)
The authorized installers you call for a price quote will tell you the most logical placement for the unit - there are requirements about the vent and measurements from the nearest window the ground level, etc.
I recommend having them run a new gas line from your main - the only difficulty I had with ours was solved after we discovered the old gas line that originally went to our water tank was filled with lots of gritty crap (dirty gas?). Suburban ran a new, yellow flexible type pipe for no charge.
It's amazing the amount of space that having this wall-mounted freed-up. |
Dennis J O'Neill
Citizen
Username: Plungy
Post Number: 58
Registered: 6-2005
| | Posted on Friday, July 21, 2006 - 6:34 pm: |
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FYI if you replace a conventional gas water heater with a conventional electric you will need to increase storage capacity to compensate for the loss of recovery. i.e. 80 gal. electric = 50 gal. gas fired. |
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