Tankless vs. traditional water heater?
I have a small (10’x25′) building on my lot that I am remodeling into a guest house. The majority of use likely will occur late spring/summer/early fall with limited or no use in the winter (I live in Springfield, IL). My question concerns what type of water heater should I install. The plumber who is working with me suggests a 30-40 gallon electric but I like the idea of an electric tankless, especially since the guest house will have only a full bath with no kitchen or laundry facilities. It seems tankless systems work great when there is only a single load placed on the system at a time–in this case showers. Also, it would save energy costs to not keep a tank of water constantly heated. Does anyone have suggestions/opinions on this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Chris
Replies
Glad to have another one around from central Illinois. There's at least one other person here who's from Springfield. I'm from Carlinville - About an hour south of you on route 4.
Tankless water heaters have been discussed to death here. Try the advanced search option, (Left frame, all the way to the top) and you should hit enough posts to cure insomnia for a week.
I have the body of a God. Buddha.
Thanks for the advice--I'm new to this board and didn't try the search before posting. I'll check it out!
It is probably a good use for a tankless but it will be the most expensive way to go. You may consider a small electric and then turn it off or down when you have no guests. The initial costs of the tankless units are pretty substantial especially for an infrequently used guest house.
Thanks for the input. Tankless are pricey and your suggestion of turning the heater down or off makes more sense. Thanks again.