Benefits of Hybrid Water Heating
How else can the world of water heating confuse you? We have conventional water heaters, tankless water heaters, and now – hybrid water heaters. What’s the difference?
Well, to sum it up, conventional water heaters have a large storage tank of water that often heats up 24 hours a day, wasting energy and money. Tankless systems eliminate those standby energy losses and can fit almost anywhere in your home. Today, we’re going to provide you with some in-depth information about hybrid water heaters so you can make the decision that best fits you and your family’s needs.
What is a Hybrid Water Heater?
Much like it sounds, a hybrid water heater combines features from a traditional and tankless water heater. Such as:
- Having a combination of tank water flow and tankless efficiency
- Having a built-in small storage water tank as part of the heat exchanger (only about 2 to 20 gallons)
- Allowing for dual activation, meaning it has flow sensing and thermostat control. Flow sensing is similar to tankless, while thermostat control is like the conventional unit.
Benefits of Hybrid Water Heating
- Continuous hot water: Though it sounds a lot like a tankless water heater benefit you may have read about, it’s a little bit different in that it solves one of the problems tankles systems have. In some tankless units, you may experience a “cold water sandwich” where cold water enters the stream. Many manufacturers have fixed this, but a hybrid is guaranteed to eliminate this problem. But, with that continuous hot water you also receive hot water in even, tiny loads.
- Highly efficient condensing technology: Condensing technology means that all of the water is used and reused so none is wasted. This, of course, then brings up the efficiency of these hybrid heaters to over 90%. Hybrid water heaters have electronic ignition over a standing pilot light which also helps with high efficiency.
- Installation: Most of the hybrid water heater models will match the conventional water heater connections allowing for an easy installation.
- Size: Much like a tankless, hybrid heaters take up far less space in your home giving you the freedom to decorate as you wish without a large water tank in the way!
- Environmentally friendly: As the technology improves, so do their carbon footprints. Newer models often burn cleaner than any other appliances and help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
For more information on hybrid water heating, or to schedule an consultation, call McHales today!