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What you should know when shopping for a water heater

Below is helpful information, a service of Plumbing 911, when you are in need of comparing which water heater is best for your home and family needs.

Water heater installer: First thing you need to know about water heaters is that as harmless as they may look, they can be very dangerous and even potentially fatal. A typical example of an incorrectly installed water heater is the gas water heater that leaks gas.

Whoever touches your current water heater or installs a water heater for you should be a professional plumber, licensed, bonded and insured. Plumbing 911 will give you peace of mind you deserve for your family and your home. All our technicians have the expertise to properly install any water heater up to code and regulations. Also, Plumbing 911 is a professional company fully licensed, bonded and insured.

There are many different brands of water heaters such as Rheem, Bradford White, A.O. Smith, Kenmore, Whirlpool, GE, Rinnai
There are many different types of water heaters such as gas, propane, electric, oil, solar, tankless, powervent, heat pump, etc.
There are different sizes of water heaters such as 40-gallon, 50-gallon, 80-gallon, etc.

First, determine the fuel source type your current water heater uses such as gas, propane, electric, etc. Comparing fuel costs of electric vs. gas may warrant you consider changing your fuel source. However, if you currently have a gas water heater, don’t go out and purchase an electric water heater until you have consulted with a professional plumber. To change the fuel source, may mean that you will need to change venting, plumbing and other major factors just in order to install a different fuel source tank.

Second, determine which size tank your home and family needs. Pending the size of your home and usage needs, you will be able to determine what size tank you need. To do this, estimate how much hot water your family uses during its busiest hour. We call this the "First Hour Rating."

Use this chart to determine your "First Hour Rating:”

Your house has:
How many bathrooms?	1 to 1.5	2 to 2.5	3 to 3.5
How many bedrooms?	1- 2 - 3	2 - 3 - 4 - 5	3 - 4 - 5
You need a First Hour Rating of:	43 - 60 - 60	60 - 70 - 72 - 90	72 - 82 - 90

Now that you now the size of your “First Hour Rating,” locate the “ First Hour Rating" figure on the EnergyGuide. The EnergyGuide will be a large yellow sticker that, by law, has to appear on water heaters and other appliances.

In this case it compares the average yearly operating costs of different water heaters, using the same criteria for all models tested. It lets you see which one would probably cost you less to run. It also will show you the tank’s energy efficiency in producing hot water in an hour.
Don’t just rely on the physical size of the storage tank – gas water heaters work quicker than electric, so they produce more hot water in an hour. However, a gas water heater that holds 40-gallons may turn out just as much hot water water in an hour as does a 65-gallon can.
Note: The big number – $156 - in the center of the EnergyGuide is the estimated cost of energy needed to operate this water heater for one year.

Government Tax Credits – Energy Star Appliances. Click on this website to learn how you may qualify for a tax credit on your new water heater http://www.energystar.gov/.