In Hot Water...

More plumbing this week. Most significantly, a new hot water heater.

We had been toying with going tankless---one of the new-fangled "just in time" style water heaters that do not maintain an ongoing supply of heated water; instead heating it very quickly on-demand. But the reviews are mixed. Some deliver significant savings by not keeping 50 or more gallons of water hot all day long (even though you probably only need a lot on hand for morning routines). Others, however, use so much gas to heat up the water when requested that the savings are not as high as one would expect---or worse, they cannot keep up with the household's need.

In reading up, it all seems to come down to FHR rates (First Hour Refresh), which is basically a total of how much hot water the device can pump out in that morning hour when demand is at its highest. Using round numbers to estimate (20 gallons for a 10 minute shower, 5 gallons to shave, 1 gallon to wash up, etc.) it seemed like 50 gallons would do us fine, but with guests or expanded family a 75 gallon tank would fit better.

But a better option was found---a highly efficient 25 gallon tank with a high FHR that would function as the middle point between a tankless heater and the big honkin' 75er we would otherwise buy. Oddly, its about the same size as the 50 gallon tank we had---assumedly that's all a lot of insulation around the smaller tank. So, with 25 gallons, we use a lot less energy to keep warm water on hand throughout the day---but the tank heats up so fast we have something like a 125 FHR. Plenty of hot water for when we have guests or expanded family.

Only problem is that new tank smell... The water smells pretty plastic-y at the moment. Hopefully it will fade fast.