Back in the day, we use to heat water in a pot on a stove, sometimes on an open fire, and then pour that water in a tub for bathing and other stuff.
It wasn’t just inefficient but also time-consuming.
Things evolved considerably ever since and now we have heaters to do the job.
Having a heater has become a necessity in today’s life, speaking of heaters, they are mainly two kinds, one is a Gas heater another being the Electric one.
In the United States of America close to 60% of households opt for a gas-powered water heater, while the remaining 40% go for an electric one.
In the following article, we shall talk about gas and electric heaters, their working, their differences and how they compare.
So stay tuned.
Gas Heaters
A typical gas heater uses heat generated from burning fuel, this fuel is typically a fossil one, most commonly being the natural gas.
When it comes to efficiency gas water heaters are not exactly energy efficient, however, they do have a faster recovery rate (it’s the amount of time needed by the tank to reheat the water).
Keep warm this winter with a gas heater - powered by natural gas!
Performance
A typical gas heater can heat up to 50 gallons of water in just under an hour, and its recovery rate is the added benefit.
If you have a bigger family then you should opt for a gas heater, given the demand for the hot water, it’s only logical after all.
Another advantage of a traditional gas-fired heater is that an unexpected event like power outage has zero effect on them.
Efficiency
As I said earlier these traditional heater lacks efficiency, and the cause behind that is the heat loss due to the exhaust gases, and the walls of the storage tanks.
Although you have access to hot water 24/7, this, however, is both advantageous and disadvantageous.
The fact that you have unhindered access to hot water is the obvious advantage, and this very thing also means that energy/heat is continuously used (or lost depending upon your perspective).
With the introduction of the state of the art condensing units, these heaters are getting efficient, to further increase the efficiency two inches of foam is used as insulation around the storage tank.
Types
The most commonly used water heater in America is the one with the storage tank, this tank can typically store around 50-100 gallons of hot water at any given time.
But the downside is that these heaters have increased recovery time.
Electric Heater
An Electric heater makes use of electric resistance coils, even though these heaters have great efficiency, the cost of electricity nullifies that advantage in the end due to its running cost.
Our electric heater is an energy-efficient solution to cold weather.
Performance
A usual electric heater can heat up to 14 gallons of water in an hour.
For an electric heater, the recovery time is much higher compared to a gas one, and then there’s the issue of power outage which cripples the working of such heaters.
For a smaller family, the electric-powered heater might just be enough.
Efficiency
Despite being highly efficient than their gas counterpart, unfortunately, the entire efficiency amounts to nothing in the end.
Since the savings from the energy consumption get alleviated by the electricity cost, given how gas is cheaper than electricity.
Having said that, the electric heat pump units are LOT more efficient than any other alternative of today’s time, but the downside is that they are not easy to acquire, and even if you do acquire them the installation cost will surely burn a hole in your pocket.
Types
Apart from the existing preferences, there’s a relatively new one, which is the heat pumping device. What it does is that it uses the heat from the nearby air to heat the water, but they are still backed by the resistance coils.
This unit is by far the most efficient water heater, which is if you overlook the expensive aspect of it.
Conclusion
The initial prize for both traditional gas-powered and electric water heater is pretty much the same, however, in the long run, the electricity cost will be much higher than the gas bill.
There may be other installation costs like a power outlet of 220 V (if you don’t have one already).
Now if you took really good care of your unit and used decent quality of water, then the electric heater which you have will experience a longer lifespan than a gas one.
Speaking of gas heaters, many American households already have a gas pipeline, which reduces the installation cost considerably.
Gas prize alone is enough to dissuade people from buying an electric heater, but if you don’t have a gas pipeline already than switching from electric to gas heater might not be ideal for your budget.
On average gas heaters tend to have a slightly shorter lifespan than electric heaters, but like I said “slightly”.
Regardless, you should take advantage of this modern nicety to make your daily life comfortable.