Water Heaters

dennis02

just wondering if u can fit a 80 gal. in available space maybe thats why there are two 40 gal. instead of 1 80

Nick Dearing

Water Heaters

Some I know owns a large home (3500) sq. ft. with an attached "mother-in-law" suite (1900) sq. ft. They are currently on 2-40 gal electric water heaters. Both water heaters are old and on their "last leg". My question is. Would I be better off to replace with 2-40 gal. or 1-80 gal.? The 2 parts of the home are piped so that the apartment can use the main home's water heater or vice-versa. I know that by having 2 water heaters, if one goes bad, you can switch to the other until you get a new one. But, wouldn't it be cheaper to operate one 80 gal. tank. Keep in mind, there are only 2 people in the main part and 1 in the apartment. Thanks!

Nron_13

compare the costs

the cost to replace 2 40 comared to 1 80 gal is a large step up here , maybe yoou should ask about useing a 60gal instead and add solar to the home to add the energy savings

Larry Weingarten

First thought...

...is to plumb two forty gallon heaters in series with isolation/bypass valves on each. Adjust them as needed. If there is a large tub, that can affect things. Smaller tanks are usually more efficient than bigger ones because of less surface area to loose heat from. You loose that benefit by having multiple tanks, but still have lower first cost and more ability to give hot water, even when a tank has failed. (Do some research on sacrificial anodes!) I'd think a separate heater in the "granny" unit would make energy sense by reducing pipe length.

Yours, Larry

Michal

Larry your right

piping in series is a good way to go.
You can also look into very efficient models like the AO Smith cyclone model which is the size of a 60 gallon but has a huge recovery factor of 102 gallons/hr at 100 degrees rise, but this is a gas fired unit.

Electric, consider the AO Smith Promax series or the conservationist, 50 gallon electric has a 62 gph recovery first hour. Besides 2 of these Promax in a 40 gallon size will have a combined recovery of 104 gph, more then the (1) 80 gallon which is only 81 gph first hour rating. Thing comes down to how much you want to spend

also consider service wiring, doing (1) 80 gallon tank you will have to run new wires, you must check the kw usage if there thje same you might be able to use same wires, anything over should be sized up by a licensed electrician, So now you have cost of installation, new service, and material. very pricey. Keep the two tanks, just pick the right tanks. and you should be fine

Mark Eatherton1

No one's asked this question...

so I will. What's the largest single dump load and what kind of load diversity do you have.

In other words, do they expect to be able to top off their Olympic swimming pool sized jacuzzi AND take a hot shower immediately after, or can they wait say 20 minutes or so??

If one fourty will satisfy their dump load capacities, and you have time for recovery, you may only need one tank.

As for piping, I always pipie mine parallel reverse return with full isolation so that if one does fail, you can replace it without having to interrupt the DHW system operation.

Sure, it costs a little more, but it's worth it.

ME

To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"