Hot Water Heater Repair & Replacement

Information about Hot Water Heaters

Here are a few ways to tell when it is time to repair your hot water heater:

1. Age. It is wise to look at how long your hot water heater has been working. The life expectancy of a gas hot water heater is approximately 8 – 12 years, while the life expectancy of an electric model is 10 – 15 years. Lastly, tankless water heaters have a life expectancy of about 20 years.

2. Flooded area around the water heater. At the end of the water heaters life you will find a growing puddle of water around it. This is a pretty clear sign that it is time to replace it.

3. Water is not as hot or you run out of hot water quickly. You will notice that your hot water is not lasting as long as it used to when the hot water heater was functioning correctly.

The first thing we will discuss is how much hot water you use on a daily basis, especially during those peak hours. Next we will look at what type of hot water heater fits your needs. Most often it is best to stick with what you have installed already.

Although we are very quick at installing new hot water heaters it is wise not to wait until the last minute to replace it, unless you don’t mind cold water of course.

If you have small children in your home it is no mystery that they like to play with levers, buttons and turn everything on and off. One way that children are burned each year is by water that is too hot. If they reach up and turn the hot water on while taking a bath or playing in the bathtub they could be seriously burned – it only takes a few seconds.

Adjusting Hot Water Heater Temperatures for Children in Your Home

It is suggested that you turn the temperature on your hot water heater down to 120 degrees to lessen your chances of burns. It takes only a few seconds for a child to get a third degree burn when the temperature is set any higher than that. To learn how to adjust your hot water heater consult your owner’s manual or ask us for help the next time we are out at your house.

Hybrid Electric Water Heaters

Recently we heard about these new Voltex® Hybrid Electric Water Heaters by our friends over at A.O. Smith and we decided to give you the skinny on it.  In short, it’s extremely environmentally and economically friendly, efficient, and easy to use.

So what is it and how does it work? The Voltex is a residential hot water heater that is twice as efficient as a standard electric water heater and heats your water at half the cost. It works by absorbing heat from the air around it then depositing it into its tank, which means you get more hot water and cooler, de-humidified air all at once. At a whopping 80 gallons, the size of the tank allows more hot water to be heated all at once and lasts for much longer than a conventional tank.

What makes the Voltex truly wonderful, though, are its special features. Depending on your hot water needs you can set the heater in several different modes, efficiency, hybrid, or electric.  Hybrid mode essentially regulates itself around your hot water usage to give you the most hot water while still being the most environmentally friendly as possible. And as an added bonus, vacation mode is perfect for—what else?—when you’re going on a long vacation and want to reduce cost while also protecting against frozen pipes.

Give us a call to find out more information about how to install your own Voltex and check out this website for further details. Voltex® Hybrid Electric.