That finding from Consumer Reports surprises me. My on-demand water heater paid for itself in a little over two years. Even if it breaks down earlier than its expected 20-year lifespan -- it is still a good idea compared to the standard ones with their 8-year lifespans.
But my propane savings of 45% is higher than many households would achieve. The higher the number of people in your home (and presumably the more people are using up the hot water), the less the on-demand heater will save you because you aren't keeping water hot 24/7 for only an occasional use. Gay On Nov 17, 2008, at 9:13 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Can't answer the question asked, BUT ~ > > Dad the plumbing & heating guy has long said that they aren't what > they're cracked up to be. Having designed systems for schools & > banks & assisted w/ some design at Cold Spring Harbor labs, he's > *real big* on efficiency. > > But that's just Dad, so in shopping I checked Consumers Reports. > They listed a few drawbacks to on demand water heaters but the one > that changed my mind is that the savings in energy will never come > close to the extra cost of the system, the system will bite the > bullet first. > > Consumer Reports had lots more on water heaters. We decided to buy > one with a 12 year warranty ~ better insulated and heftier heating > coils. Next year . . . . > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County > area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > [email protected] > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org ---------------------------------------------------- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-279-6618 (cell) 1 Maple Avenue Lansing, NY 14882 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sustainable Tompkins Program Coordinator www.sustainabletompkins.org Southern Tier Energy$mart Communities Regional Coordinator Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County 615 Willow Ave., Ithaca, NY 14850 [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
