Tankless Water Heater
Specials

Finding you have no hot water in your home is never a pleasant discovery. While there is some troubleshooting you can handle safely, you could be inviting danger if you try to fix a malfunctioning heater. Here's how to react when you find yourself without hot water.

The simple checks

It's possible you'll be able to run the most basic checks on your hot water supply. The procedure will depend on whether you have a gas or electric water heater in your Georgia home.

Electric heaters. If you have an electric heater, start by making sure the electrical breaker is in the on position. Sometimes, family members can turn the breaker off. If everything is in order, check the thermostat to make sure the temperature is above 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Be very careful performing this check as you have to remove the side inspection panel of the heater and high voltage electrical wiring is present in this area.

Gas heaters. With a gas-powered water heater, you can also check whether the thermostat is set at the proper temperature. After that, check to see if the pilot light is lite. All newer water heaters actually come with an automatic lighting system built in making the job of lighting a pilot that much easier. Just simply follow the instructions on the face of the heater, but be careful to follow all instructions fully.

Be Careful with water leaks. Make sure you have not drips or water leaks. A recent story from Augusta highlights the need to address problems with heaters responsibly. A broken pipe can lead to mold, which could lead to thousands of dollars' worth of damage.

Fix it yourself

Whether your home's water heater is electric or gas, Georgia residents can often fix the problem on their own when they find they have no hot water.

If you can't easily find the problem, call Reliable Heating & Air and a licensed plumber can be at your home or office right away.

Tankless heaters and other modern solutions

A look at water heaters will reveal impressive new options on the scene. Tankless heaters, the most recent innovation, deliver an unlimited supply of hot water to homes. You don't have to wait for tanks to fill up when several family members want to enjoy hot showers or baths in a short time period.

Fiberglass tanks, another modern option, are guaranteed in the original purchaser's home for as long as you live in that location. Georgia Power customers may even qualify for rebates when converting to efficient fiberglass-tank systems.

The bottom line is there's no reason to live without hot water for long. Reliable Heating & Air can be at your home within hours, and install a new heater the same day in most cases. Professional help is only a phone call away.

In the past few years, tankless water heaters have drawn a lot of attention from consumers looking for a better way to heat water in their home. The tankless offers many attractive features that make them a great, energy efficient source of almost limitless hot water without paying to keep 40 or 50 gallons of water hot all day when you are away from home.

How Tankless Water Heaters Work

The way a tankless works is by reducing the amount of water flowing through the heater so it stays in the heater long enough to be heated to the correct temperature. One of the problems with conventional tankless water heaters are when numerous people are using water, the flow can be very low and they can struggle to keep up with demand. In many homes a circulator is required to give instant hot water in all fixtures so you don't have to waste water waiting for adequate hot water to bath or wash. A circulator can't be used on a regular tankless water heater, so there is sometimes a waiting period for hot water. A traditional tank water heater does not reduce flow, but when hot water runs out, you have to wait for the water to be heated until you can use it again. To fill a normal sized garden tub, you have to have at least 100 gallons of hot water on reserve and the tank type water heater can be expensive to keep this much water on demand.

Modern Tankless Water Heaters

There is a now a water heater available that combines the best of both worlds and gives you unlimited hot water without any of the pitfalls of both the tank type and conventional tankless types. It is the Nation's #1 Selling Tankless Water Heater by Rinnai and it is simply one of the most efficient and comfortable heaters on the market. Rinnai combines both a small reservoir tank of hot, ready to use water in a stainless steel heat exchanger and an instant tankless water heater that can produce up to 19.5 gallons per minute of hot water. This is 8 to 10 gallons more per minute than most tankless and the water heater will never reduce pressure or volume. It also will eliminate the "cold water sandwich" that comes from hot water being followed by cold water followed by hot water when a conventional tankless shuts off and on due to usage. The tankless water heater uses water from its small reservoir to stop this inconvenience and when coupled with a circulator pump, can provide instant hot water to any fixture in the home.

Tankless Means More Energy Efficiency

The tankless water heater is much more efficient than most water heaters, providing 98% thermal efficiency, which means 98 cents of every dollar spent on gas actually goes into heating water with only 2 cents of waste. There is also a model that does not require a new "over sized" gas line to be installed allowing installation in many more homes than a conventional type. The Rinnai Tankless can also be mounted interior to a home allowing installs without moving all the piping to the outside wall. In some cases, the Eternal can be 100' inside a home and all models use regular PVC to vent gas by-products to the outside. All conventional tankless water heaters need cleaning every year to maintain their warranty while the Eternal needs no routine service. This represents a substantial savings over the life of the product. It comes with a 15 year heat exchanger warranty and a 5 year parts and labor warranty. Reliable Heating & Air is an authorized dealer for Rinnai and has their techs have been trained to install and service these new tankless water heaters.

Looking for ways to save on water-heating costs pays off. In most households, consumers pay more to heat water than any other energy-requiring appliance or action in the home, except for heating and cooling. If you're looking for ways to save energy and make your home greener, a tankless water heater is the way to go. See below for Tankless Water Heater Pros and Cons

TANKLESS WATER HEATER PROS:

Go Green

Tankless water heaters are energy savers. Manufacturers' innovative technologies led to the creation of a water heater that doesn't have to keep a large standing body of water heated at all times. Instead, tankless models heat on demand, which is why you'll sometimes hear them referred to as "on-demand water heaters." As a result, these systems use much less energy overall, bypassing standby losses that standard water heaters incur due to heat loss through the tank walls. Using a tankless system is an innovative way to go green and shave valuable energy dollars off your utility bills each month.

Save Energy

The amount of money you'll save by switching to a tankless water heater depends on factors like how much water your household uses, how old and inefficient your existing water heater is and so forth.

Save Space

Water heaters are generally tucked away, out of sight and out of mind. Due to the large tank, however, they require quite a bit of space. Imagine the space a system requires to keep 80 gallons of water heated and at-the-ready. In contrast, tankless heaters require very little space to install them.

In fact, you can install a point-of-use model underneath a bathroom sink - that's one example of just how small some of the models can be. Alternatively, it's also possible to install a tankless system in a closet or on a basement wall. Consumers have lots of options for installing these space-saving models.

Wait, There's More!

While the energy- and space-related benefits of a green water-heating system are significant, there are other kinds of perks, as well:

• Tankless models provide an endless supply of hot water. They never run out of hot water, unlike a storage-tank model, which is limited to the quantity of heated water that fits into the tank.
• They last longer, as their life span is typically five or even 10 years longer than conventional storage tank systems.
• If you choose an electric-powered model, this type reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
• Tankless models come with no risk of flooding. Because they aren't designed to have a large holding tank, there's no chance of a rusted tank bursting, flooding your home and causing water damage.

TANKLESS WATER HEATER CONS:

Higher Initial Costs

• The cost involved with purchasing and installing tankless water heaters is often more expensive compared to traditional tanks, but the good news for homeowners is they'll often recoup these initial costs through higher efficiency rates of the tankless. Luckily, Reliable's new Comfort as a Service program includes new Rinnai Tankless Water Heaters for $0 money down, and low payments of only $59.99/month. No other Plumbing company in Atlanta can offer this and it's only available through Reliable's Comfort as a Service program.

DEBATING WHETHER TO GO GAS OR ELECTRIC FOR YOUR TANKLESS WATER HEATER? THAT DECISION IS MORE COMPLICATED THAN "IF YOUR HOME DOESN'T HAVE A GAS HOOKUP, CHOOSE ELECTRIC."

You'll need to think about a number of factors, including:

• Utilities available at your home. If you don't have a gas hookup, you'll likely need to go with an electrical unit. The additional cost to install a gas line and exhaust vent for a gas unit is typically very expensive. However, if you're considering an electric tankless water heater, you'll need to make sure your home's electric panel can handle the added load. If it can't, you'll need to upgrade your panel.
• Your family's size and water usage. Generally, gas tankless water heaters can heat your water faster than electric ones. If you're a single-person household, an electric unit will probably work just fine for you. But if you have a large family, you'll likely need the faster heating capability of a gas unit.
• Groundwater temperature. Warmer climates like Atlanta have a higher groundwater temperature than colder climates. This means your water heater won't have to work as hard to heat your home's water, so an electrical model will likely work fine for most Atlanta homes. However, larger homes may want to consider the heating capacity of a gas unit, since temperatures can get low in the winter.
• Operating costs. Typically, electric tankless water heaters cost more to operate than gas units. That's because electricity rates are more expensive that gas rates.