One of the most often used appliances in any of the homes in Rhode Island is the hot water heater, but because the water heating system is often stored away from other appliances it is usually forgotten, at least until it fails. You can often find the hot water tank installed in the garage, basement, attic or an attached storage closet on the home which was common for many gas water heating systems. People would locate them in places that were easy to ventilate and easy to attach to the home’s water pipes.
Water heaters come in two types. One uses electric heating elements immersed in the water for heating while the other burns natural gas or propane to heat the water tank itself and transfer that heat to the water inside. Both types of tanks have been in use for many decades and manufacturers have pretty much peaked the efficiency of the system. However, installing your tank in the wrong location could cost you some of that efficiency. For example, installing your hot water heater in RI, in a poorly insulated attic will cost you extra as the tank loses heat during cold weather.
One alternative to a tank based Hot Water Heater in RI, is the inline or “tankless” heating unit. The inline systems work by flash heating the water in a coil or heat exchange. In most cases this heat exchange is copper because copper has a high thermal conductivity, meaning it transfers heat quickly without too much loss. Plus, copper is easy to manufacture, readily available and easily recycled.
The inline water heater or continuous flow water heater has the advantage of quick and steady hot water at the cost of extra installation expenses. Although prices are dropping, the inline water heater is still a little pricier than the tank based models. The savings involved will vary by your household usage of hot water. An average home that doesn’t use heated water all day could stand to save substantially since water isn’t being heated that isn’t being used. However, a high volume water demand may require you install an extra inline water heater to meet that demand. If you are thinking of changing your system, an experienced contractor like restivo’s heating and air conditioning can provide more information.
