English Deutsch Français Italiano Español Português 繁體中文 Bahasa Indonesia Tiếng Việt ภาษาไทย
All categories

Im about to install a water heater in my new home, i have an electric supply and a natural gas pipes in my town. Which one will i choose, im confused in terms of electric bills and safety concerning the gas one. Which 1 will u prefer for me and please tell me why?!!

2007-02-07 04:06:07 · 12 answers · asked by ysm_scorps 1 in Home & Garden Other - Home & Garden

12 answers

a shower takes approx. 15 minutes, and in 15 mins you approx. consume 250 liters of water at 40 degrees celcius. this is nearly equal to 8750 kcal of heat energy. you can supply this energy with 1,18 cubic meters of natural gas, and 10,28 kWh electric energy. i dont know the unit prices of natural gas and electricity, but you can calculate the cost of a shower with natural gas and electricity like this:

1,18 x cost of a cubic meter of natural gas
10,28 x cost of 1 kWh of electricty.

in most countries natural gas is cheaper than electricty.

both system have advantages and disadvantages. if you install a natural gas water heater, you'll need a stack, but the device itself is smaller than an electrical water heater. the electrical one cant ready hot water as fast as the other one because it needs a volume for water storage. the stored water in a tank at a certain temperature (30-40 degrees celcius) is a perfect medium for bacteria production. a gas heater heats the fresh water coming from the pipe line. so if you have a space with good vantilation to install a gas heater, prefer gas...

2007-02-10 14:46:19 · answer #1 · answered by dincer 1 · 0 0

That depends on what characteristics you like. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

Gas heats the water quicker.

You can calculate which will be cheaper by entering some information into the following website:

http://www.eere.energy.gov/femp/procurement/eep_waterheaters_calc.cfm

According to some numbers I entered into the calculator for normal averages, gas is typically cheaper.

Gas can heat your water even if the power goes out. So no cold showers if the power is out.

If it were me, I'd go with a tankless gas water heater. The tankless gas water heater uses less energy than a standard gas water heater and it takes up less room than either a standard gas or electric water heater. It basically heats the water as you need it. So you also most likely won't have to worry about the water going cold if you use too much hot water in the shower.

One thing you will want to have done if you put in a gas water heater is to have two vent pipes put in the utility room where the water heater is. They did this in my house when they built it. They put one up high and one down low in case any natural gas leaks that it can escape out of the house. Also, you will want to have the gas pipes grounded in case lightning ever hits your house. That's another thing they did to my house when they built it. I think it's more to prevent you from getting electrocuted than to keep the house from blowing up.

2007-02-07 04:47:34 · answer #2 · answered by devilishblueyes 7 · 0 0

An excellent question. You bring up the 2 good points, and common concerns.

You can have electric problems right in the house and not know it until it's too late. Gas is very safe, although it seems scary, it probably less apt to cause a fire than electric. When we hear about gas problems they are so dramatic, but if one stops to think about it, they are extremely rare. Gas is more efficient, and dries faster. I've had both, much prefer the gas.

Don't worry though, which ever one you choose, both are safe and do a fine job.

2007-02-07 04:24:52 · answer #3 · answered by Joy K 4 · 0 0

If you have a lot of people in your family and use a lot of water, then a gas tank. Don't use electricity to keep water hot in a tank. If you don't use a lot of water, then consider a tankless water heater. It only uses gas, or electricity when water is being used and therefore saves you money because you are not keeping water hot in the tank 24/7. It also saves space.
A gas tankless will heat the water faster than electric and is bigger and costs more to install. Its recommended if you have higher water demands. Also electric tankless ones require lots of power. 220 vots and 54 amps for a small whole house unit.
http://www.hot-water.info has more details on this matter.

2007-02-07 16:22:20 · answer #4 · answered by SmartGuy 3 · 0 0

I would definitely use the gas heater, not only is it FAR cheaper to operate, but the recycle time from cool to thermostat hot is a LOT faster! Also, the gas heater, installed and maintained properly, is just as safe as the electric.

2007-02-07 23:00:05 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

Mine is gas. I've had no problems with gas leaks in 10 years. I did have to replace it last year (it was 17 years old), but the cost was under $200.00. I prefer gas, and another bonus ---- if the electric goes out you can still have hot water!

2007-02-08 17:56:18 · answer #6 · answered by noonecanne 7 · 0 0

I prefer gas. They seem to heat the water faster after the tank is drained and (at least where I live) are a little more economical to operate. However, with a gas, you are going to have to vent to the outside somewhere, which will be more $$.

2007-02-07 04:10:46 · answer #7 · answered by TB28 2 · 0 0

I've had both and I like gas because it heats water faster than electric. Like the others said you will need to vent it and you'll have to be careful using flammable stuff around it because it is gas and has a flame. Like if you want to refinish furniture near it etc.

2007-02-07 04:26:05 · answer #8 · answered by porkchop 5 · 0 0

Gas will heat more water faster and cheaper than electric. As long as it is correctly installed it will just as safe as electric also.

2007-02-07 05:02:38 · answer #9 · answered by bugs280 5 · 0 0

Gas, It's cheaper.

2007-02-07 04:14:23 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

fedest.com, questions and answers