water heater recommendation

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LMHmedchem

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Hello,

My water heater is now 10 years old and it is time to replace it before it floods out the basement.

I have been thinking of a tank-less like a Rinnai, but I am not sure how many gallons per minute I need. These are also expensive, so I would also like to know if there are other brands of good quality that might cost less.

If I go with a traditional water heater with a tank, can someone recommend a quality brand that is a good value?

LMHmedchem
 
Can you go with a gas tankless? I would not consider an electric tankless. How hard is your water? If you have really hard water your tankless would require an annual descaling, but it isn't terribly hard to do from what I've heard from friends that have them. New tank type water heaters have gotten bigger to satisfy additional insulation requirements by the federal government. This can cause issues when they are located in a small utility closet. The tankless water heaters are supposed to have a longer life than tanks so it may be a wash on cost. As to gallons per minute, how many people shower at the same time in your house? If only one, a standard home unit should provide plenty of uninterrupted hot water. You may not want to run a load of hot laundry wash and the dishwasher just before you hop into the shower though. Low flow shower heads don't use that many gpm.
 
I replaced my ancient gas water heater last week with a A.O. Smith 40 gallon traditional tank that cost about $450 at Home Depot. Plumber install was $600. I didn’t feel like spending the money for a tankless. The new tanks appear to be made better than older ones.
 
Unless it doesn’t matter, you should calculate how long it will take to break even on a tankless heater. I love helping the planet, but if if it cost three times (for example) what I’d pay using a regular water heater, I’ll skip it.
 
I gotta say the tanked(specifically GE & Rheem) have failed before their warranties, majority of the time were bad thermocouples. The older ‘match lit’ water heaters outlasted them, some going close to 20 yrs without replacement. I always recommend to customers to hang on to them unless the tank starts leaking water. They aren’t made like they use to, unfortunately. Depending on the tank, they aren’t as easy for a DIY person to replace the thermocouples.
 
$600.00 to just replace a water heater! Not the first time I've heard this story.
No clue why people ever use HD to install anything!
They just sub it out to the lowest bidder and now your having to pay two people, HD and the sub.
 
The Ecosmart 11 water heater has the most advanced technology to meet your demand It s a tankless water heater saves up to 50 percent costs.
You can check this out.
 
I replaced a 40 gallon with a 50 gallon that I bought off the shelf at slows (Lowes). I just bought whatever was a decent price and installed it myself (gas). There's nothing to it and it has worked great for years. The step up to a 50 gallon was awesome. We never run out of hot water.
 
If you replace the anode every 5 years, the heater will last indefinitely. They cost +/- $100.00. It is a sacrificial metal rod that carodes rather than the heater wall itself.
 
I would go with a standard 40 or 60 gallons hot water tank, they usually last 15 years. if you install one of those tankless heater you should know that they can only deliver so much water at any one time . so if it is a sunday afternoon and you want to take a shower, your wife wants to do a hot water wash and run the dishwasher all at the same time , each of you will get 1/2 a gallon per minute . that is how the electric ones work , Control that automatically reduces flow to deliver water at the set point if demand exceeds capacity. gas ones are different they can delivery up to 4-5 gallons per minute .
BE FORE YOU BUY LOOK AT THE CAPACITY IN GALLONS PER MINUTE.
 
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