Gas Fired Hot Water Heating Question

[Robert11]

Hi,

Have a gas fired vertical tank hot water heater for the house. Relatively new unit.

Question: if wife takes one of her infinitely long showers, are these units (typically) supposed to have the heating ability to keep the flowing water at the set point temperature as the hot water flows out, and the new cold water flows in ?

Or, must one typically just stop using water to give the tank a chance "to catch up" ?

Thanks, Bob

[The Freon Cowboy]

generally . no , they dont have the btu's necessary to keep up, a long shower or several huge laundry loads , could deplete it , and catch up time would be neccessary .

Tankless water heaters on the other hand , can keep up with demand as they are designed for this , pros, you dont have 40 -50 gallons of water being kept hot all the time, you always have alll the hot water you need , you will realize enrgy savings !!

cons , about twice the cost of normal tank water heaters they need to be mounted on an outside wall . for purpose of venting

"Robert11" wrote:

Relatively bnew unit.85Question: if wife takes one of her infinitely long showers, are these units 8(typically) supposed to have the heating ability to keep the flowing water 4at the set point temperature as the hot water flows out, and the new cold

[hallerb]

so you have a regular gas hot water tank, how many BTUs is it. they vary from under 30 thousand to over 75 thousand BTUs. larger 75 gallon tank with 75K BTU costs a bit more but is money well spent

while some crow about tankless they often introduce more troubles than they solve. slow arrival of hot water upon turn on, unit must detect water being used, turn on burner and get hot before you get any hot water, no hot water in low flow like valve open just a little to wash hands, cool hot water in areas where incoming water is cold in winter, no hot water at all during power failures, need upgraded gas lines and possibly flue for proper operation, and standby losses of regular tank are really lost during heating season they help heat your home, although during AC use they can add to the heat load some. plus the energy you save will never exceed the higher initial cost of the tankless, espically considering they need regular service.

normal tanks are very reliable and tend to not have technical troubles till they leak.

so whats up with your install

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Depends on the flow rate of the shower head. You can reach a point where it will not keep up. Depends also on the water incoming temperature also. If you have a Weltrol tank with water at 68 degrees, it will heat faster than water from the ground at 50 or winter city water at 45. The good side is that once she finds the maximum time she'll tend to take shorter showers and save on both the water and gas bills.

[Stormin Mormon]

The traditional, ever present WH with a tank need time to "catch up". The new "tankless" will provide continuous hot water.

[S. Barker]

I think that should be re-worded. It should read "The new 'tankless' will provide continuous WARM water.

s

[George]

Sounds like you have never used one.

[Stormin Mormon]

Oops ! I'm sorry.