How Long Do Tankless Water Heaters Last?

Written on: March 11, 2024

Long Enough to Make Them a Smart Investment

Life would be pretty unpleasant without access to hot water for too long. Like your refrigerator, you depend on your water heater every single day of the year. And as long as it’s doing its job, you probably don’t give it a second thought, but if you have a tank-style water heater and you’ve owned it for 10 years or so, you should start to think about replacing it.

If you have a tankless water heater, on the other hand, you don’t need to worry about replacing it for a while. Just how long does a tankless water heater last? With regular maintenance, these compact and efficient workhorses can last 20 years. That’s twice the lifespan of a tank-type water heater, and just one of the benefits that makes a tankless water heater such a great investment.

What’s a Tankless Water Heater?

If you aren’t familiar with tankless water heaters, you should be! Tankless propane water heaters (also known as demand water heaters) instantly heat water when you need it, rather than keeping a large tank hot all the time.

When you turn on the tap, water flows through the unit and is heated instantly by a propane-fueled heating element. When you turn off the tap, the unit stops heating water. Compare this to the cost of operating a traditional water heater, which requires you to keep a tank holding many gallons of water hot and ready to use all the time. As a result, you can enjoy virtually unlimited hot water—while seeing savings of up to 40%!

The Pros of Going Tankless

• Unlimited hot water: Traditional tank heaters can run out of hot water if you use a lot at once. Tankless water heaters use an electric pilot and a hot propane flame to heat water instantly on demand. There’s no tank, so it can’t hit empty.
• Savings: Tankless water heaters save energy by instantly heating water when you need it, rather than keeping a large tank hot all the time. All that efficiency means you’ll also save money by lowering your energy costs by as much as 40%. And, we can help you take advantage of generous rebaits from Rinnai.
• Flexibility: With no storage tank, a tankless water heater is small – even whole-house sizes take considerably less room than a 55-gallon tank. Most are about the size of a suitcase. It can also be wall-mounted, which means a tankless water heater can be placed just about anywhere in the house, including closets and crawl spaces.
• Longer equipment life: The primary culprit in the limited lifespan of a conventional water heater is the corrosive water stored in its tank. Because it doesn’t store water, a tankless water heater will last 18 to 20 years.

The Bottom Line

Tankless water heaters can be a bigger expense upfront, and they require a little more maintenance that a classic tank water heater, particularly if you have hard water. But the fact is, water heating can represent as much as 30% of energy bills—or even more. When you consider that between bathing and showering, washing dishes, laundry, cleaning and other tasks, the typical American household is paying to heat between 60 and 65 gallons of hot water a day, compared to heating—which is on only part of the year. It makes sense to look for peak efficiency when it comes to heating water.

Ready to learn more about the benefits of a tankless water heater for your Litchfield County home? The pros at Marandola can help you choose the best option for your needs and install it correctly, and provide maintenance and repairs. Enjoy energy efficiency and all the hot water you need with a new water heater! Contact us today to get started.