How to Buy a Hot Water Tank Heater in North & West Vancouver, Burnaby, Port Coquitlam, Surrey or Delta

How to Buy a Hot Water Tank Heater in North & West Vancouver

, Burnaby, Port Coquitlam, Surrey or Delta

For more info, click here: www.youradvantage.ca

by Fred van Hunenstijn, CEO, Advantage Plumbing Drainage & Heating

Your hot water tank, or water heater, is an important part of your home but it can be costly and inconvenient if you need to replace it too often. On the other hand, a properly selected and installed tank can provide many years of comforting service.

Gas Water Heaters

If your home is equipped with a gas hot water tank, or water heater, you will want to replace it with either the same type or a tankless heater (discussed in a separate article). Several factors affect the performance of a gas fired heater including design, rated input (how much fire is available to heat the water) and of course, size. Current gas codes in British Columbia require all water heaters to be "flame proof". Although they use a flame to heat the water, the flame must be contained inside the unit in a manner which will prevent ignition of combustible gases from cleaning products etc. outside the tank. This safety feature has led to a modest increase in cost of most standard water heaters. Lager units, 60 US gallons or more do not have this requirement so the cost difference between a "Standard "40 US gal and a 60 US gal has been reduced.

Better hot water tanks are designed so the incoming cold water immediately reaches the aquastat (the sensor that controls the gas valve to start a heat cycle) so there is a head start in generating the hot water. Also in better tanks, the incoming cold water is directed to the bottom of the tank in a swirling fashion to reduce or eliminate sediment deposits on the bottom. Although the water in Coquitlam, New Westminster,Burnaby, Vancouver, North Vancouver, Maple ridge, Surrey and Delta is high quality, there is still a significant amount of sediment in it. This sediment builds up on the bottom of the tank and insulates the water from the heat source which can quickly and dramatically reduce efficiency wasting both energy and your money.

How large your hot water tank should be determined mainly by the number of persons in the home. The most common size is 40 US gal (33.3 imperial gal.). However, a new tank will usually outperform an older tank due to increased efficiency so if you have been short of hot water, this alone may make up the difference. In addition, the input rating, that is how many BTU/hr the flame can produce also needs to be considered. Again, better tanks will have a higher BTU rating, which means they can produce more hot water in a given time.

Another way to increase the amount of hot water available is to install a thermostatic mixing valve on your water heater. As the name implies, this valve regulates the temperature of the water delivered to your fixtures by mixing in some cold water. This allows the tank to be set to a higher temperature which could otherwise not be done safely without the danger of scalding a serious concern with children and elderly persons.

Warranties are another important consideration in selecting a new hot water tank. Warranties range from 5 years at the economy level to 12 years for better tanks. Be aware however, most manufactures offer only a 1 year warranty on parts, not including labour, although the tank may be warrantied for say, 8 years against leakage. A few companies such as Advantage, offer lifetime, full warranties including parts and labour on selected models.

Electric Water Heaters

If your home currently has an electric tank, you will most likely need to replace it with another electric tank. As with gas fired tanks, several sizes are available with 40 US gal being the most common. Some companies such as Advantage, will supply a 50 US gal tank as standard whenever space permits to compensate for the slower recovery of electric versus gas. In some cases, depending on the home wiring, higher wattage elements may also be installed for increased performance.

The thermostatic mixing valve is also a good option with electric tanks for an increased hot water supply.

Finally, for an unlimited supply of hot water, you may want to consider a tankless water heater, which is the topic of a separate article.

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