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Winterize Your Hot Water Heater & More

With old man winter just around the corner, it’s important to take some precautions before the temperature significantly drops.

As ground temperatures get colder, older tank-style water heaters are challenged to raise incoming water temperatures to sufficiently satisfy demands for hot morning showers. In colder climates, the disparity between the incoming and desired water temperature—say from 45F degrees to 110F degrees—can cause significant stress on water heaters and will increase the likelihood of water heater failure. This is especially true for older, tank-style heaters with sediment build-up, which forces your heater work even harder to achieve the same level of heating (sediment lowers heat transfer efficiency).

Considering a Tankless Water Heater? Why Wait?

So before the colder weather sets in, it’s a perfect time to consider replacing an old tank-style water heater. Although most tank water heaters last 10-12 years, it's best to start shopping now for a new one if yours is more than 7 years old. Here’s an infographic designed to guide you through a water heater replacement and keeping those showers hot!

If you already use a tankless heater (and we’re happy you are), preparing ahead is still smart and may save you from damage not covered under warranty. This is important, especially if you are going to be away from your home for an extended period of time. Below are some tips to transition your tankless water heater for the colder season:

1. To reduce the likelihood of freezing in unoccupied spaces, completely drain the water from the plumbing system (shut off the water and open the taps). Noritz America offers specific technical advice for winterizing your Noritz tankless water heater. You can also check your manufacturer’s manual for step-by-step instructions.
• If you have a recirculation pump, increase its use, especially during the colder, evening hours. This keeps your tankless heater and water pipes in motion, lessening the likelihood of freeze issues.

Beyond the Water Heater: Block, Turn it down, and Bundle Up

The winter season also brings a great opportunity to think — or re-think — strategically about your energy consumption during the winter. TheDailyGreen.com offers a few tips to help reduce your bill during the colder months:

1. Block the Drafts: A draft snake, which can be bought or easily made from a rolled bath towel, is a great way to prevent drafts underneath doors.
2. Run Fans in Reverse: Many fans come with a handy switch that reverses the direction of the blades. Counterclockwise rotation produces cooling breezes while switching to clockwise makes it warmer. (We’re not kidding! Who knew?)
3. Install Storm Doors and Windows: By sealing drafts and reducing airflow, storm doors can increase energy efficacy while also offering greater flexibility for letting light and ventilation enter your home.
4. Turn down the Heat: Turning down the heat when you leave the building can help you save between 1 and 3% of your heating bill for every degree you lower the thermostat during the heating season.
5. Put on a Sweater: It may be common sense, but according to TheDailyGreen.com, a light long-sleeved sweater is worth about 2 degrees in added warmth while a heavy sweater can add about 4 degrees. So put away your shorts and grab your woolies!

Your home is perhaps your largest investment, and you want to make sure you protect that investment with the choices you make. If you’re deciding between a tank or tankless water heating system for your hot water needs, there are several factors that you need to be aware of.

How durable is each type of system?
What is the typical life cycle?
How long are the warranties on each water heater type?
What can happen at the end of a product life cycle that may damage your home?

Find the answers in our simple infographic.

Tankless technology saves energy by heating water on-demand, when you need it. However, is there such a thing as “instant” hot water? Let’s explore.

It’s a cold winter morning. Half asleep, you stumble to the bathroom and turn on the water for the shower. And you wait. And wait. And it’s still cold. And so are you. Have you experienced that? If you blamed the plumbing in your old house, you’re not quite right. Even the newest of homes, regardless of water heating technology, can encounter this issue.

So is there such a thing as an instant hot water heater?

The answer is yes, but it also depends on your definition of “instant”. Instant hot water may be confused with having hot water on demand, which is technically different.

Defining On Demand

On demand hot water means just that: the water is heated whenever there’s a demand for it. A tankless water heater starts the heating process just after you turn on the faucet.

Not only is Tankless technology more energy efficient than tank technology, it also never runs out! Tankless is more efficient because it only uses gas when you actually need hot water, instead of continuously heating water 24/7, when you’re at work or asleep.

Instant Expectations

As mentioned above, tankless water heaters start heating water shortly after you turn on the faucet. Although the process starts the instant after you turn on the faucet, take note that there is no heater in existence, tankless or otherwise, that guarantees the first drop out of the faucet is steaming hot. That’s the reality. Also, the closer the hot water source is to the fixture, the faster the hot water will reach you.

Recirculation systems widely available on the market can also reduce your wait time. Traditional recirculation systems as well as point-of-use systems can be a good option in new construction or retrofit applications. Contact your local PROcard member to discuss what might work best for your situation.

For over 5 decades, Noritz has specialized in manufacturing and improving on demand tankless technology. For more information on how to get on demand, continuous hot water, drop us a line on our contact us page or explore our inventory of tankless residential models.

Hot water is vital part of North American life and there are choices to be made about how your water is heated in your home.

When it’s time to replace your hot water heater, how do you know a tankless water heater solution is right for you or your customer? Have a look at our infographic and you’ll know right away if it’s a great fit.

Each year, American homeowners pay $400 to $600, on average, to heat water for their washing, bathing and cleaning. That comes to 64 gallons every day, 365 days a year, or more than 23,000 gallons annually.

Water Heater Installation:  Leave It To The Pros 

When a home water heater needs to be replaced, some people panic, some do extensive research and some try to get their hands dirty as soon as possible to make the problem just go away.

Photo credit: Ryan Willson

Anyone but a seasoned plumbing pro will soon find themselves in a major, costly pickle if he or she attempts to replace a tank water heater with a tankless model all by themselves.
Unlike swapping a three-way light switch for an exact duplicate, switching from a conventional tank-style heater to a high-efficiency tankless model requires significant understanding of the sizing, gas inputs and venting requirements of today’s on-demand heaters.

Even if you have a little plumbing experience, every installation application is different. There are critical, seemingly minor details involved, some of which can be life-threatening, both during and after the installation process.

Unless you bat 1000 every time you work with plumbing, electricity and welding, water heater installation is a project best left to the pros. Web site diyornot.com suggests that installing a tankless water heater yourself will cut only about 30 percent from the installed cost. But even if the percentage were higher, why risk jeopardizing your family or even harming the unit itself?

New Jersey plumbing contractor A.J. Perri gives some supporting evidence on why a tankless water heater installation is not something you can do on the fly. What follows is an adaptation of his list of considerations for someone installing a tankless system:

- How easily can your current tank-style heater be replaced by a tankless water heater?

- How easily can your current tank-style heater be replaced by a tankless water heater?

- How big a tankless unit does your household need, considering its layout and your family’s usage patterns?

- What pipes, valves, pumps, fittings and tools are needed (and how to properly use or install them), since the heater does not come with these other supplies.

- How to turn off the water to the current tank heater and how to properly drain it.

- How to turn off the gas to the water heater and safely disconnect the gas line from the heater.

- How to remove the current tank and who to contact to dispose of it properly.

- How to install the right type of vent for a particular tankless unit. (Different models require different venting materials.)

- How to connect your new water heater to your home’s electric service (unless there is already a correctly sized power source where you’re installing the new system).

- How to determine whether to upsize the gas lines to accommodate the tankless unit’s more powerful gas burner.

- How to install new water lines and a pressure relief valve discharge line.

- How to complete all of the above in accordance with local building codes — and only after obtaining the proper permits.

- Whether your homeowner’s insurance covers any blunders and the unfortunate consequences that inevitably ensue.

In short, installing a tankless water heater can be a complicated, even dangerous job for the unskilled and the uninitiated. Some situations can throw curve balls, and professional installers make our lives easier, safer and healthier by avoiding or eliminating these complications. Our families are better for it, and we’ll have our hot water again that much more quickly.

For information on tankless water heaters and to find your nearest installer, please visit https://www.noritz.com/home-owners/find-an-installer/.

Sources:

https://www.diyornot.com/

A.J. Perri Inc.

https://www.ajperri.com/media/entry/tankless-water-heater-not-a-diy

The Basics

Understanding how water is heated in the home is the first step to deciding between a tank and tankless water heater. Want the basics? Have a look at our infographic below.

To our professional ProCard members, please share and help your customers understand the differences in the process.

To our homeowners, watch this space for a series of infographics that will help you make your decision and answer this question…

Time to Replace your Water Heater. NOW WHAT?

You may be UNpleasantly surprised

Chances are you don’t turn your alarm off in the morning and instantly think of your hot water heater. But, as you turn on the shower, do you ever wonder about the water that you’re jumping into? If your tank water heater is more than eight years old, it’s likely that rust and sediment buildup (yes, you just cringed, didn’t you?) have both decreased the unit’s hot-water capacity and energy efficiency.

As you recover from cringe #1, sediment and rust buildup (often accompanied by with a rotten-egg smell – EW!) can present some difficult issues for homeowners who have an aging tank-style water heater.

According to naturalhandyman.com, sediment builds up gradually and can consist of sand, grit or rust regardless of the hardness or aggressiveness of the water.

Self-help website waterheatertimer.org notes that this sediment and rust slows heat transfer and allows the tank bottom to overheat. This weakens the steel, damages the glass lining, alters the efficiency of the unit and ultimately can cause the unit to fail prematurely.

And that smell we mentioned? Experts such as Magnolia Plumbing, Heating and Cooling in the D.C area adds the classic rotten-egg smell to the list of
problems, serving as evidence of hydrogen sulfide gas (cringe #2).

The unfortunate reality for most hot water heaters is that they sit forgotten in a dark corner of a garage, attic or basement. Their problems begin
silently and unnoticed, only to worsen over time until the tank dies. If you are lucky enough, your tank heater will pass away without incident, instead of
spilling its rusty contents (30-80-gallons) all over the surrounding floor.

Jump over to this link on our site https://www.noritz.com/home-owners/tankless-advantage/ for further information on the
advantages of tankless water heaters.

One of the most common annoyances of any home is running out of hot water partway through a shower. Luckily, advances in Noritz tankless water heating technology allows for a continuous stream of hot water.

It's happened to all of us. Whether it's because of an inefficient water heater or your family takes extra-long showers, at some point you've run out of hot water halfway through your shower! As the water begins to cool, do you rush to rinse off and finish, or suck it up and finish with a blistering cold shower?

You may not have to do either one when you upgrade your old traditional water heater to a new tankless water heating system.

The reason you’re likely running out of hot water is because traditional water heaters don't actually heat the water when you need it. Instead, they heat the water slowly and store the hot water in a bulky tank. No matter how big your tank may be, it can still run out – and when it does, it can take quite some time before more water can heat up.

Today, advances in tankless water heater technology have made them increasingly more popular due to their efficiency and convenience.

A tankless water heater actually heats water on-demand as you use it. When you turn on the hot water in your house, the tankless water heater kicks in and circulates water through the heat exchanger to bring it up to the desired temperature in just seconds. When the hot water tap is turned off, so does the unit.

On-demand hot water is just one reason why most modern homes are going tankless. Other advantages to switching to tankless include:

• Highly Energy Efficient: Traditional heaters have to work 24/7 to keep the tank of water hot even if you only use it a few times during the day.
• Longer Lasting: Noritz tankless water heaters have a typical life span of 20 years, which can be twice as long as a traditional tank style unit.
• Space Saving: Noritz tankless units are significantly smaller than traditional heaters and can be mounted on a wall or installed outdoors or indoors.

Whether you decide to go with a natural gas or propane unit, you can be sure you’ll be enjoying continuous hot water and other advantages.

Tankless water heaters offer added luxury, less energy usage and big savings. Now Noritz, the leading tankless water heater company, is also making finding an installer a snap with their Installer Locator.

More homeowners are turning to top quality tankless water heaters made by Noritz. The idea of having virtually unlimited hot water, is just too good. Tankless water heaters don't rely on pre-heating a reservoir of water, instead heating it on demand as it moves through the heater toward you. So with Noritz you'll never run out of hot water halfway through your shower again – but did you know Noritz also helps you find a water heater installer?

For many homeowners, this is the biggest hesitation before making the jump to a tankless water heater. Many DIYers feel comfortable handling traditional water heater installation themselves, and it's easy to find handymen who can install a tank-style water heater. But Noritz makes it easy to find qualified installers who specialize in tankless ones – no matter where you live. As a free service to all customers, Noritz will help you locate a qualified professional in your area – someone who has been trained and certified by Noritz and will do the job right.

A Noritz tankless water heater is essentially a small, highly efficient unit that circulates water through a heater as it is drawn toward the faucet. That means that proper water heater installation involves two main things:

• Routing the water. Your cold water supply will need to be routed into the tankless heater, which in itself essentially is a series of water pipes inside a heater. The unit's output will also need to be routed back into the hot water pipe that leads on to the rest of the house.
• Heat. A tankless heater uses burners powered by either natural gas or propane gas to heat the water. Thus, the gas line will need to be safely and properly installed into the unit.

Unlike a traditional water heater, a Noritz can be installed in the basement or located elsewhere in the house. It's wall mounted and can even be placed on the outside of the home.

Noritz tankless heaters are becoming more popular because they are more energy efficient, save you more money, and add a new standard of luxury to your home. By connecting you with trained water heater installation professionals, Noritz has effectively taken out the last barrier for the average homeowner.

Are you considering going tankless?

Many homes have hard water flowing through its pipes that contain a high mineral content. Over time, this hard water poses problems in the form of lime scale deposits accumulating on the inner surfaces of hot water heaters, plumbing and appliances causing them to weaken or become entirely non-functional. Repairs, maintenance or even replacement of your appliances due to hard water means a big headache and an empty wallet. Here we will discuss a new, unique system called H2FLOW and how it can be beneficial for homeowners by getting to the source of the problem.

We’ve all seen the unsightly buildup around faucets or in dishwashers, but what can be seen on the surface is no comparison to what may be lurking in the plumbing. This buildup, called scale, will wear and tear typical household appliances and cause them to run less efficiently. H2FLOW is a breakthrough technology created to protect and prevent scale buildup that can ruin and affect the performance of household appliances and even cause safety hazards.

H2FLOW works to convert hard minerals into “soft” minerals that will not stick to plumbing, hot water heaters, tankless water heaters or other appliances. This process is referred to as template assisted crystallization (TAC). H2FLOW even helps reverses scale problems that already exist. The process of conversion of hard water minerals prevents scale from sticking to appliances ensuring that they will remain safe, efficient and in good condition.

H2FLOW is designed to tackle several concerns when it comes down to tinkering with your household water. It is available for all hot water heaters and tankless water heaters regardless the make or model and is environmentally responsible because it contains no harsh chemicals or salts. Installation is a cinch due to the H2FLOWs’ accommodating size and several can be installed parallel to each other depending on household flow rate demands. What’s more is its compact size compared to traditional water softeners takes up a fraction of the space, meaning it will conveniently fit in tight corners and small areas.

H2FLOWs’ unique system that prevents crystals from sticking to pipes and tankless water heaters will have you saying goodbye to constant appliance repair costs and maintenance fees forever. It doesn’t run on electricity and only needs replacement every three years. It works with the homeowner to lower operating costs as a result of extending the life of the hot water heater and other system components. H2FLOW helps save money over time and makes it a practical and preventative solution for homeowners.