Residential Water Heaters – Making The Right Choices

Are you installing new water heaters or replacing the faulty water heaters in your home? Today there are multiple options for the homeowners when it comes to residential water heaters. Before you select your water heaters, you need to know your options, their advantages and disadvantages. Three main factors have to be taken into account when it comes to the selection of the right type of water heater for your home.

1. Initial cost of the water heater
2. Recurring costs / Energy or electricity bills
3. Maintenance

You will have to assess each type of water heater carefully and select the most cost effective water heater. When you are making your decision, it is important that you do not decide just based on the initial cost. Two most common and popular types of water heaters include tankless water heater and hybrid heat pump water heaters.

What are the factors that one needs to take into account while deciding between tankless water heater and hybrid heat pump water heaters? The key factor to be taken into account here is your water consumption. Discuss your requirements with your local plumbing company and get their suggestions on selecting the most energy efficient option. When compared to the regular storage type water heaters, tankless water heaters can save you up to 30% on your energy bills. Hybrid heat pump water heaters can save as high as 60% of your energy bills.

Looking at the initial costs, storage type water heaters are less expensive when compared to tankless water heaters. Hybrid heat pump water heaters are pricier when compared to tankless water heaters. However, going for energy efficient options will pay up for the water heaters over the years through the cumulative energy savings that you enjoy month after month. However, you should not lose sight of another important factor that is the maximum life expectancy of each type of water heater. For example, tankless water heaters are said to last for ten to fifteen years. The question is will the energy savings compensate for the additional expenses that you are likely to incur while buying your tankless water heater. This is where your regular water consumption rate will play an important role. It is always best to get professional help while deciding what type of water heaters to choose for your home. Your plumbing company will also be able to give their input on the general maintenance challenges that very likely with each type of water heater.

You will find different types of even within the tankless options such as gas-fired and electrical water heaters. When you set out to explore different models of water heaters you are likely to be confused. The bottom line however is that you should choose the most energy efficient water heater with low maintenance hassles.

Try to obtain quotes for different types of water heaters for your residential requirements. When you are comparing the quotes make sure that the quote also includes the installation charges for each type of water heater.

Learn more about water heater repair and replacement in Charlotte, NC at Pathmaker Plumbing.

Not All Plumbers Are Created Equal

We spend countless hours in our lives planning family vacations, the birth of our children, parties, shopping lists, you name it! We usually know down to the smallest side dish what is going to be on our table for Christmas dinner.

How much time have you spent planning what you're going to do when your sewer backs up? When the water heater leaks?  When your boiler heat goes out?  

The definition of an emergency is: A serious, unexpected, and often dangerous situation requiring immediate action.  By definition, it is difficult to plan for an emergency.

  

The first thing to cross my mind when I have an emergency repair at my home is generally: "How much is this going to cost me?"  I can't be alone here. 

I think what happens when we combine a lack of forethought with an emergency situation is that we throw out everything that is hard-wired into us as planners and we resort to the important, but often risky, response of: "I have to find the cheapest way possible to fix this right now!"

When you're dealing with a plumbing emergency, you can't afford a cheap fix.  A cheap fix today often results in an expensive repair tomorrow.  Most people can't afford to go with the cheapest plumber.  

So, if not price, what should you look for in a plumber to take care of your emergency?  Here's a few rules of thumb to help determine your best option:

• Pay attention to who you talk with when you call to schedule a plumber to come to your home.  Are you talking with an answering machine or does the person on the other end of the line care about you and genuinely want to help fix your problem?  You can tell a lot about a company by how they answer the phone.  
• Be wary of over-the-phone pricing.  I learned this one the hard way. The price you get over the phone is generally a base price and it can increase significantly once someone gets to your house and really sees what's giong on. Plumbing problems simply cannot be diagnosed over the phone - especially if you aren't talking with an actual plumber when you call.
• Try to find a plumber with 24 hour emergency service.  If the problem arises again, it is good to know that you will be able to get someone out to look at it again.  No one wants to wait the weekend without hot water or heat.
• Check online reviews.  You're probably not the first person in town to need a plumber. Rely on Angie's List and other websites that have a bank of real reviews written by people in your community. 
• Ask if the technician coming to your home is drug-tested and background-checked.  Your home and your family are your priority. A company that invests significant dollars making sure that employees are trustworthy and safe in your home tells you that your home and family are a priority to them, too.  

I wouldn't wait until the last minute to pick a vacation destination and then say: I don't care where it is or what it looks like, as long as it is the cheapest.  I'm pretty sure I would never buy a car sight-unseen by getting a price over the phone. And no one would call the detention center to find a last-minute babysitter.  

There are honest, reputable, trained, trustworthy plumbing companies out there.  Are they the cheapest?  Probably not.  Knowing what is important to you before you invite someone into your home is essential, especially in an emergency.  If you know what you want in a plumber before you pick up the phone, you don't have to worry about being bound by the cheapest option.  

"Where quality is the thing sought after, the thing of supreme quality is cheap, whatever the price one has to pay for it." 

William James, American Philosopher (1842-1910)

Learn more about plumbing services at Pathmaker Plumbing.