Discover the features offered with many of the best gas water heaters if you’re seeking to replace or upgrade your current gas water heater.
It used to be simpler to purchase a new water heater. You used to have few choices, with the only ones on the market being traditional tank-style heaters. Today’s technological advancements have produced a variety of water heater kinds as well as electronic features and components that can make choosing one to buy more difficult.
It’s critical that a hot water heater last for many years because they can be a sizable expenditure. Continue reading to find out what to look for in a new water heater, to see some of the top-rated items in a variety of categories, and to learn how to choose the best gas water heater for your house.
Our Top Picks
- 40 gallon tank
- 40,000 BTU
- GCR-40 standard vent
- 6 year limited tank warranty
- Original Design: Tankless hot water heater's Circ-Logic technology offers recirculation patterns that match your habits; For the latest in non-condensing technology that speeds up service and installation, check out our new RE160iN model
- Never Run Out of Hot Water with this Compact Tankless Gas Water Heater: Non-condensing tankless hot water heater from Rinnai is only the size of a small suitcase and fits in a wide variety of spaces, but provides up to 7.5 GPM (5 fixtures at once)
- Smart, Durable Design: Includes 12-, 5-, and 1-year residential guarantee and 5-, 5-, and 1-year commercial factory warranty for heat exchanger, labor, and parts, respectively; See Controlr module for WiFi control (not included)
- Professional Installation Recommended: Visit the Find a Rinnai PRO page on our website to locate a qualified technician in your area to install your tankless water heater; We do not recommend installing a water heater without a technician
- Find Your Rinnai: See our product guides, manuals, energy guide, warranty information, videos, and tables to find the right tankless water heater for your home; Check our Ground Water Temperature Map to see if this heater is optimal for your region
- Hot water without the wait - or the waste
- Low operating cost - High energy efficiency and water savings setting
- Space Savings - Compact, space-saving design. Perfect for a tank replacement.
- Water & Gas Leak Detection will shut down unit and provide an error code
- Auto-Learn Programming - tracks water usage over a period of time and auto-programs to meet hot water needs at peak times
Review
Rinnai High Efficiency 6.5-GPM Tankless Water Heater – BEST OVERALL
- Original Design: Tankless hot water heater only heats when necessary to conserve energy; For the latest in non-condensing technology and a cleaner layout that speeds up service and installation, check out our new RE160iP model
- Never Run Out of Hot Water with this Compact Propane Water Heater: Non-condensing tankless hot water heater from Rinnai is only the size of a small suitcase and fits in a wide variety of spaces, but provides up to 6.5 GPM (5 fixtures at once)
- Smart, Durable Design: Enhanced scale detection helps prevent serious, long-term damage to unit; Includes 15-, 5-, and 1-year residential guarantee for heat exchanger, labor, and parts, respectively; See Controlr module for WiFi control (not included)
- Professional Installation Recommended: Visit the Find a Rinnai PRO page on our website to locate a qualified technician in your area to install your tankless water heater; We do not recommend installing a water heater without a technician
- Find Your Rinnai: See our product guides, manuals, energy guide, warranty information, videos, and tables to find the right tankless water heater for your home; Check our Ground Water Temperature Map to see if this heater is optimal for your region
The price of the unit is one of the major drawbacks of many tankless hot water heaters, but Rinnai’s tankless unit is a strong hot water heater at a reasonable price. With an EF rating of 0.82, this tankless unit still manages to create a 6.5 GPM flow rate, providing a four-person household with constant hot water. It will still cost more to install than a standard storage-tank heater, but because of its small size, you have more choices for where to put it and it won’t take up valuable floor space.
A.O. Smith Signature 40-Gallon Water Heater – RUNNER-UP
- 40 gallon tank
- 40,000 BTU
- GCR-40 standard vent
- 6 year limited tank warranty
The 40-gallon hot water heater from A.O. Smith has features found in more costly models, but at a much lower cost. With a 40,000-BTU burner, it can provide up to 67 gallons of hot water in the first hour, meeting the needs of a three- to four-person family and preventing the inconvenience of running out of hot water during peak usage. Additionally, it has push-button ignition, an electronic gas valve for exact temperature control, an LED display for diagnostic reporting, and safety features to prevent unintentional fires from vapor ignition.
Rinnai High Efficiency 7.5 GPM Tankless Water Heater – BEST TANKLESS
- Original Design: Tankless hot water heater's Circ-Logic technology offers recirculation patterns that match your habits; For the latest in non-condensing technology that speeds up service and installation, check out our new RE160iN model
- Never Run Out of Hot Water with this Compact Tankless Gas Water Heater: Non-condensing tankless hot water heater from Rinnai is only the size of a small suitcase and fits in a wide variety of spaces, but provides up to 7.5 GPM (5 fixtures at once)
- Smart, Durable Design: Includes 12-, 5-, and 1-year residential guarantee and 5-, 5-, and 1-year commercial factory warranty for heat exchanger, labor, and parts, respectively; See Controlr module for WiFi control (not included)
- Professional Installation Recommended: Visit the Find a Rinnai PRO page on our website to locate a qualified technician in your area to install your tankless water heater; We do not recommend installing a water heater without a technician
- Find Your Rinnai: See our product guides, manuals, energy guide, warranty information, videos, and tables to find the right tankless water heater for your home; Check our Ground Water Temperature Map to see if this heater is optimal for your region
A portable water heater might be your best option if you want a space-saving, energy-efficient water heater. The tankless water system from Rinnai has a high EF rating of 0.82 but is still strong enough to produce a 7.5 GPM flow rate, which is sufficient to meet the hot water needs of a family of four or more people. It takes up less floor room than a typical storage tank heater because it is only 23 inches high and 14 inches wide, allowing installation in awkward spaces like an attic, basement, or crawl space.
In order to keep up with maintenance and extend the life of the device, it also has an integrated scale detection function that keeps an eye out for mineral deposits and corrosion buildup. While still more costly than models with storage tanks, this tankless heater is also more affordable than many other tankless systems.
Rheem Prestige 9.9 GPM High Efficiency Combi Boiler – BEST COMBINATION
- Hot water without the wait - or the waste
- Low operating cost - High energy efficiency and water savings setting
- Space Savings - Compact, space-saving design. Perfect for a tank replacement.
- Water & Gas Leak Detection will shut down unit and provide an error code
- Auto-Learn Programming - tracks water usage over a period of time and auto-programs to meet hot water needs at peak times
Consider a combination hot water heater if you’re sick of spending money to run your hot water heater and central heating furnace. With an AFUE rating of 95% and an output capability of 9.9 GPM, this Rheem combi boiler can efficiently meet the hot water needs of a house with up to two and a half bathrooms. The exhaust vents are compatible with PVC, which further lowers installation costs. It also has a room air intake vent, which eliminates the need to add an intake vent to the outside.
What to Consider When Choosing the Best Gas Water Heater
When choosing the ideal hot water heater for your home, there are still a number of other factors to take into account, even though understanding that you need a gas-powered hot water heater helps to narrow your search. Gas water heaters come in a wide range of varieties, each with unique installation and maintenance needs, energy-efficiency ratings, storage capacities, and safety concerns. When searching for the ideal hot water heater for the unique requirements of your house, keep the following factors in mind.
Type
Storage tank, tankless, and combination water heaters are the three main categories of domestic gas water heaters.
The most popular kind are water warmers with storage tanks. They are made up of an insulated cylinder with a flame burner that warms the water inside and a thermostat that controls the water’s temperature. All of your home’s faucets and utilities receive hot water from the heated water that is kept in the tank. The main drawback of these systems is that after using the hot water in the tank to its full capacity, as after a lengthy shower, you must wait for the tank to be refilled and heated. This could take an hour.
Tankless water heaters use a small boiler to heat water only as it is required, rather than keeping a large reservoir of hot water on hand. They are significantly more energy-efficient than operating a hot water faucet or shower valve because they are comparable. These heaters are also referred to as on-demand warmers. The likelihood of running out of hot water is lower than with a storage tank heater because they don’t depend on preheating and storing a large reservoir of water. However, if a tankless hot water heater lacks the necessary output capability, it might be unable to meet an excessive demand for hot water. Tankless systems also have the drawback of being more costly to buy and install.
Combi boilers, also referred to as combination water heaters, are single, extremely energy-efficient appliances that combine a central heating furnace and a hot water heater. Instead of using energy to power two distinct appliances, they use it to heat a single unit that provides both the home’s heating and hot water. The main drawback of these units is their high cost of installation and acquisition, making them only useful for homes heated by an existing boiler rather than a furnace. Although they are rarely found in American homes, they are common in the UK, where they make up more than half of the boilers installed in freshly built homes. They are most frequently used in modest residential buildings in the United States.
Size and Capacity
Tankless and combination hot water heaters can store up to 100 gallons of water, but the most typical amounts are between 40 and 50 gallons. When calculating your household’s hot water requirements, the general rule of thumb is to add 10 liters for each resident. For a four-person household, a 40- to 50-gallon tank should be adequate.
The flow rate in gallons per minute determines a tankless water heater’s capability (GPM). The flow rate required by each of your hot water fixtures, such as your kitchen and bathroom sinks, shower, and toilet, as well as the number of occupants in your home, will decide the required flow rate for a tankless water heater in your home. For optimum operation, each fixture needs a specific flow rate, and with more people in the house, it’s more likely that multiple fixtures will be in use at once. A tankless water heater should typically have a flow rate of between 3 and 5 GPM for homes with fewer than four occupants and between 6 and 10 GPM for households with more adults.
Depending on the scale of the boiler you plan to replace, combination boilers come in a variety of sizes and capacities. As a result, it’s best to seek the advice of a qualified installer when figuring out the dimensions and capability of your combi boiler.
Direct-Fired vs. Indirect-Fired
Storage tank water warmers have two different heating methods: direct fire and indirect fire. The water in the tank is heated immediately by a burner on a direct-fired heater. Because they have an incorporated open-flame burner, combustion gases must be released to the outside through ventilation ducts. The most popular type is a direct-fired heater, which can be installed in any home and is usually more affordable and energy-efficient.
Boilers used by indirect-fired heaters are independent of the storage reservoir. The heat from a different furnace, usually the boiler used for the home’s central heating, is transferred using heat transfer coils to the water in the storage tank. They might be less energy-efficient depending on how close the boiler is to the water reservoir. However, because they don’t have a burner that could develop mechanical problems or gas and ventilation lines that need to be maintained on a regular basis, they require less upkeep. Because they use the heat produced by a boiler or furnace that is already in use to passively heat your house, they may also be more energy-efficient than direct-fired heaters. Since no combustion is occurring at the tank, indirect-fired heaters can only be installed in houses that already have compatible boilers. They also don’t need any ventilation.
Energy Efficiency
The quantity of energy actually used to heat the water is referred to as a water heater’s energy efficiency. This is a crucial factor to take into consideration because water heaters are typically the third-highest energy-consuming appliance in a house and can contribute as much as 25% of your monthly utility bill. An Energy Factory (EF) efficiency number, which identifies the proportion of heat energy used to heat the water, is included with every new water heater. An EF rating of 0.7 indicates that it converts 70% of the energy used into heat. The EF factor is stated as a ratio rather than a percentage. Combination hot water heaters use the Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) number, which is the boiler rating standard and represents energy efficiency as a percentage.
Despite the fact that gas water heaters are less efficient than electric water heaters, gas is typically much less expensive than electricity, which will probably result in lower running costs overall. Tankless water heaters are considerably more efficient than storage tank competitors, regardless of the fuel source, and can reduce your monthly energy costs by up to 40%.
Safety
Although hot water heaters are usually safe to use, there are a few crucial safety issues to take into account. Toxic and flammable combustion gases must be allowed to escape directly from direct-fired hot water heaters into the outside air. You don’t want the water in your tank to get too hot or too chilly, so it’s crucial that the temperature is properly regulated. People who come in contact with hot water at temps above 140 degrees Fahrenheit risk getting scalding burns. Lower than 120 degrees Fahrenheit water temperatures can encourage bacterial growth and raise the risk of getting Legionnaires’ disease.
When a water tank’s water temperature rises above 212 degrees, the water can change into steam, which will raise the pressure inside the tank and possibly result in an explosion. Water heaters have temperature and pressure relief (T&P) valves that immediately release the internal pressure of the tank when a high enough pressure is reached in order to stop this from happening. If you are worried about the temperature or pressure levels in your water heater, don’t ever try to physically release the T&P valve on your own. Instead, call a licensed plumber.
Installation
Hot water heater installation can be a costly, time-consuming job that necessitates a broad knowledge and skill set. As a result, a professional plumber should complete the job instead of attempting it as a DIY project.
It is especially not recommended to install a tankless water heater on your own because new gas and water supply connections frequently need to be installed. A combo water heater’s installation is another extremely challenging task that is best left to experts. Installing a tank water heater typically costs between $1,000 and $3,500; installing a tankless water heater typically costs between $1,000 and $3,500; and installing a combination hot water heater can cost anywhere between $3,500 and $8,000 depending on where you reside.
Maintenance
In contrast to installation, a hot water heater is easily managed by the average do-it-yourselfer. Regardless of the sort of hot water heater you have, the primary maintenance concern is the removal of mineral and sediment buildup. Mineral buildup in your storage tank will eventually cause corrosion, which can reduce the lifetime and energy efficiency of your heater.
Every two years, storage tank warmers should flush their tanks. To accomplish this, turn off the gas and water supplies to the tank, connect a hose to the drain valve at the bottom, run the pipe outside, and then open the drain valve on the tank until everything is flushed.
Since mineral formations tend to build up more quickly, tankless water heaters require more frequent flushing, typically once or twice a year. The majority of tankless heaters have purge valves that are accessible under the tank’s cover and that can be flushed out like a storage tank heater by attaching a hose to them. All you have to do is turn off the gas and water supplies, connect your hose, run it outside, and release the purge valves. It is also advised to use vinegar to clean the heat exchanger’s coils of collected mineral deposits.
FAQs
You may have a lot of inquiries if you’re thinking about getting a new water heater because there is a lot of information to take in. The following responses to some of the most typical queries might be useful.
Q. What are the disadvantages of tankless water heaters?
The primary drawback of tankless water heaters is their high cost because they are usually more expensive to buy and install.
Q. Will a gas water heater keep the water warm in the entire house?
The water in your entire home should be readily able to stay warm if you bought a gas water heater with enough capacity to meet your needs for hot water.
Q. Can I replace my own water heater?
It’s typically advised to employ a professional to install your new hot water heater unless you’re an experienced plumber.
Q. How long do gas water heaters last?
Gas water warmers have a lifespan of eight to twenty years.
Last update on 2023-03-26 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
