Water Heater Sizing: Does Your Home Need More Than One?

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If you have a long wait between turning on your faucet or showerhead and getting hot water, you may think that there’s nothing you can do about it. It just takes as long as it takes, right?

The truth is, there is a solution that many homeowners aren’t aware of – installing multiple tankless water heaters near the points of demand is the solution.

What is a Point of Demand?

Any point where you need hot water to come out is called a point of demand. This includes your kitchen sink, washing machine, showers, and bathroom sinks.

How Does a Tankless Water Heater Work?

First, let’s think about a traditional water heater. With this type of water heater, water fills up a large tank. The water is heated up, then kept at the same hot temperature while it waits to be used. When you turn on a hot water tap, the water flows from the tank to your point of demand.

This system has pros and cons:

  • Pro: Stores a lot of hot water
  • Con: Uses energy to keep the water hot all the time
  • Con: Can be susceptible to rusting out and flooding your home

A tankless water heater is a much smaller unit that’s installed on a wall along the path of the pipe. When you turn on the hot water tap, water flows through the pipes and also through the tankless heater. Inside the tankless heater, the water is warmed up before it finishes its journey to your faucet.

Because tankless heaters are not as large as traditional models, it’s possible to place one near each main point of demand in your home. This allows hot water to get to your tap faster, reducing the wasted water that runs down your drain while you wait for it to heat up.

Additional Pros and Cons:

  • Pro: Requires less energy because they are not keeping water hot at all times
  • Pro: Avoids the “rusted out” problem of traditional models
  • Con: Higher initial investment

Need more information about how multiple water heaters can help in your Portland-area home? Contact Roth Home today.

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Industry Affiliations
100 Best Companies Oregon
Happiness Award
Best Company Woman Badge
Best CEO Badge
Best Company Outlook
Bradford White - Water Heaters
GENERAC
Daikin - Air Intelligence
BBB Rating A+
Angie - Super Service Award 2023
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