The Energy Star Tankless Water Heaters
The Energy Star company is supported by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Energy to make the products more environment friendly and help US residents save money. With the help from Energy Star, America saved about 16 billion dollars on bills, in 2007 alone. The tankless water heaters meet the objectives that Energy Star wish to achieve. Because they heat water only when it is used it saves a lot of money on water heating bills.
Tankless water heaters are much better, if you always want to have hot water and if you want to protect the environment. Because the tankless heaters work only when hot water is needed, a lot of energy is saved this way. Not only that you save money on water heating bills, but you also protect the environment by using less energy. That’s why it is much better to have a tankless water heater than a tank based water heater.
Energy Star has a few standards when it comes to manufacturing electric tankless water heaters. First of all, the electric heater should have a minimum flow rate of at least 2 gallons per minute at a 51 degrees Fahrenheit rise, which can be reached without any energy limitation. The pressure can also be adjusted. 2 gallons per minute should be enough for a shower. The tankless electric water heater would only need 14.9 kW for that. This way you can save water and energy. The lowest energy factor that an electric tankless water heater should have is 0.98. Also, Energy Star wants to offer the best warranty, that’s why they think it shouldn’t be lower than 10 years for an electric tankless water heater.
The performance of the electric tankless heaters from Energy Star is very good, to be honest. The average power of a gas tankless water heater has a rating, which can reach 0.80 or more, while there are no energy limitations. However, the electric tankless water heater can reach an impressive rating of 0.99 in performance, which is hard to believe. Another good thing about the electric tankless heaters is that the energy isn’t limited to 12 kW.
Studies were made which show that tankless electric water heaters can save 10-20% electricity, if they are used instead of the tank based electric heaters. Other tests showed a 14% daily electricity save. So, if you care about the environment, the best thing to do is to change your electric tank based water heater into an Energy Star tankless electric water heater.