Hello-
We live in a single story home with no natural gas service. We need to move a 50-gallon electric water heater to make room for a bathtub. Our options are to move it to the attic, to the crawlspace, or to a bedroom closet- all with inherent drawbacks. We could also replace it with a tankless heater, but I've heard disappointing reviews and they are expensive. We could lose the heater and use only the second water heater located 50' away in the garage (services the kitchen, laundry and guest bath). I am concerned about heat loss and lag time for hot water to travel to the bathrooms. Saving energy and money is important to us. Any suggestions?
Detroit | Rebirth in Detroit
Original Air Date: June 01, 2017
Season 38, Episode 26
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Original Air Date: June 01, 2017
Season 15, Episode 26
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Using the one water heater, insulation the tank and pipes would probably use less energy than running two water heaters. You will have some water wasted and a delay in hot water getting to the bath room however I think it would balance out. You could have a recirculating pump installed that you run for a couple of minutes before turning on the hot water, that would save on water usage but cost more on electricity.
Jack
I know it is common in some places, but I have never been a fan of the attic water heater. There is a lot more potential for damage in the event of an accident. Even if you have a pan, that isn't going to do much if the whole thing goes. That type of accident could get expensive fast.
I never liked water heaters in crawlspaces, closets, attics, because they are not accessible with ease. I do not like tank-less W-H because they are expensive and all the math they give about saving energy...well... it is not a big difference. I suggest the same thing JLMCDaniel suggested about insulation and the pump to circulate the water.
Thanks so much for the input. A single heater it is,
Kate