8 Benefits Of Electric Water Heaters Over Gas Water Heaters
Costs of electric vs gas water heaters
Generally, gas water heaters are known to cost less than their electric counterparts when it comes to heating water. Gas is simply more efficient as it heats faster and uses less energy while doing so, compared to an electric unit. However, faster heating and potentially cheaper fuel costs shouldn’t be the only reason you would choose a gas water heater over electric.
Why choose an electric water heater
Although the basic price differences between gas and electricity and the efficiency of gas heat may persuade you to choose a gas water heater
over an electric tank, let me provide you with a number of reasons why an electric water heater, 4 GPM
is better than a gas one:
- Safety: Your chances of an explosion from a gas leak are much greater than electrocution from faulty wiring to your tank. Plus, the damage to your home after an explosion far exceeds most damage that an electric tank could do.
- Ability to install a timer on an electric tank: When we moved into our home, one of the first items we installed was a timer unit that cuts off power to the entire tank at times we determined. It costs between $40-$55 and can be installed by the average handy homeowner (turn off the fuse/breaker before working with electricity though). We have our timer come on at 5am and turn off at 8am. My wife has enough hot water for her morning shower and evening routine, and we only use 3 hours of electricity max, versus 24. Also, since we’re on time-metered billing, we limit our power consumption to off-peak times.
- Cost of installation: With a gas water heater, you must vent the exhaust through a flu. That means you must install PVC tubing up through your home and out your roof. With an electric water heater, you just install a special outlet or bare wiring. No need to saw holes into your roof!
- Space requirements: Gas water heaters need at least 6-18″ of ventilation around all sides and top, which means you can’t just install the tank in a small closet or crawlspace. An electric tank can be installed in confined spaces without fear of gas buildup or an explosion. There are even small electric water heaters for under the sink! (I’ll discuss tank-less water heaters in a later article).
- Life expectancy: Because electric water heaters use less parts, and subject those parts to less direct heat, they can last years beyond the lifespan of a gas water heater.
- Cost of purchase: Electric water heaters cost less than gas heaters of the same size…period.
- No pilot light: Along the lines of safety, electric water heaters do not use a pilot light, so you don’t need to worry about relighting the flame if it accidentally burns out. However, many new gas heaters use electric ignitions, not pilot lights, which leads us to…
- Gas heaters can no longer use the excuse that they work even when the power goes out: That’s right. Now that many gas water tanks use electric ignitions, when the power goes out, so does your hot water (except what’s left in the tank).
Do you have any more reasons an electric tank is better than a gas one? Was I way off on any of the reasons above? Can you prove why a gas water heater can overcome all 8 reasons to be the better choice?
Lastly if you’re making a decision about which water heater to buy the one I think you should look at is the Rheem 240V Heating Chamber RTEX-13 Residential Tankless Water Heater. Its the latest version of the Rheem water heater and it retails for about $275.
You can get it here at Amazon for $265, or you can click on the image below.
More good reads from Cleverdude:
- How you know your electric water heater is dying
- Do You Know These Tips Can Help You Reduce Your Home Heating Bills?
- Frugal Tip: Saving Money on Electricity using Time Metered Service
- 5 Key Things to Be Sure You Get Right on Your Loan Application
- Review: National Consumer Panel – Pure Awesomeness or Waste of Time?
- Meal Delivery Service: Blue Apron Review
- Which is Cheaper: Keg or Canned Beer?
- Save Money on Water if You have a Pool (Utilities)
- What You Need to Know About Costco Cash Back Rewards
- How Much Money do Youtubers Make?
- Don’t Use Apleebees Coupons To Save Money, Do These 3 Things Instead
Mike is the original Clever Dude, starting the site in 2006 because his wife said “you need a hobby”. Mike loves helping others to avoid the silliness and stupidity that got him into extreme debt, but also learning general life skills and hacks along the way. Mike and his wife “Clever Dudette” are DINKs (Dual Income, No Kids), travel the country in an RV from their home base in DC and are passionate about their respective careers in technology (him) and nutrition (her).
I’m bored (and dinner is taking FOREVER!) so I accept your challenge.
1. Most newer gas water heaters have automatic shutoffs, so gas leaks are a thing of the past. Water and electricity is also a much riskier combination than water and gas.
2. This argument works when you have multiple water heaters. If you decide you need hot water now and have your heater on a timer, you have to adjust the timer and wait for the water to heat up. Keeping the water heated all the time is cheaper than many people realize; I think I read somewhere that keeping a tank of hot water heated only costs a buck or two a month.
3 and 4. These were both probably accounted for when the house was originally built. If not, and you want to switch from electric to gas, then you’ll need to spend the extra money. But then why would you need to install a flue and use extra space if electric water heating is so awesome? Also, on space requirements, since electric water heaters take longer to heat, a lot of families need larger capacity electric water heaters than they would need for a gas water heater.
5. There are lots of gas water heaters that’ll outlast electric water heaters… like ours!
6. Any cost savings of the initial heater purchase is lost over time (and not even that much time) since electric water heating is roughly twice as expensive as gas.
7 and 8. I actually prefer gas heaters with pilot lights since they mean I’ll have hot water in the event of a power outage.
This page says it best: “Electricity is the fuel of choice only where it is the only option.” Still, I can understand why some people would prefer electric over gas for appliances, especially for families who use very little hot water.
Nick,
Do YOU need water at all times of the day? You need to be home to use water! 😉
You can have 2 timers: one for the morning and one for the evening. If you really want to save money, and you have the option of installing an electric water heater, I think the lower purchase price, installation cost, maintenance costs, and longer lifespan, in combination with using a timer to limit the energy draw to specific times of the day, far exceed any random statements of “electricity is twice as much as gas”.
And I’m sure the few days of cold showers in your new home because your pilot light wouldn’t stay on made the experience “charming” 🙂
Ooooh, SNAP!
Nick’s comment is accurate. It costs less to maintain the water temp than to use the timer to heat on demand.
Prove it with real numbers. (I don’t have to prove my statement since it’s my site 🙂 )
I’d like to know why maintaining a temp of 120 degrees constantly for 24 hours is more efficient than just heating water from room temp (or higher, given the tank’s insulation) to 120 degrees and maintaining it for just 4 hours.
Having a gas water heater I can add to the conversation a bit. Let me start by stating that mine was in the house when I bought it. The water heater is 27 years old. Don’t tell me they don’t last as long.
Next, having an existing flue means converting to a tankless water heater is painless.
Further, if you use other gas appliances, safety isn’t much of an issue. You’ve already assumed the risk that gas introduces, which is so small anyway it isn’t worth mention.
I have never had my pilot blow out. I live in windy central Iowa and it isn’t a problem.
We’ve got a gas heater in our apartment, and that thing terrifies me. Not because it is gas, but because it gas in our apartment complex. I can’t repair it and charge the complex. But I may be misinformed…
When my power was out for what felt like forever after a big storm last winter, I sure appreciated my gas water heater, because even though I had no heat, I had hot water!
“Cost of purchase: Electric water heaters cost less than gas heaters of the same size…period.”
That may be true, but it’s misleading and pretty irrelevant. A water heater is not a piece of lawn furniture. You have to pay to operate it, and the cost of operation far exceeds the cost of purchase. The EPA says a gas water heater is about 26% cheaper to operate. That translates to about $10.50 per month in savings. It may actually be more. Others estimate the savings at more like 36%.
Using the conservative number, your “cheaper” electric water heater is costing you an extra $126 per year to operate. That’s $1260 after ten years. $2520 if you make it to twenty years.
A quick scan of Home Depot’s web site reveals that your average electric heater is maybe $125 cheaper than a comparable gas heater. So after throwing away one or two thousand dollars in increased energy costs,
you’re going to brag about having saved $125 all those years ago on the cost of the heater? I think not.
In the interest of full disclosure, I actually prefer electric water heaters because they’re just easier to deal with. But you go electric for reasons such as personal preference, knowing full well that you are paying more.
There really is no value argument in favor of electric.
What is the general application of 2.5 and 4.0GAL tank water heaters.Where ? the biggest market ?
Not only does the Flume have to be installed, it is a major source of energy loss for the whole house. Warm air flows out even when the flames are off. In the summer the air that goes out the flume is replaced by by uncooled air passing through the home walls adding to the additional energy cost your Air Conditioner has to compensate.
During the winter the cold air draft created from the flume has to be heated by your furnace. This negates any energy savings offered by Gas. If you only look at energy conversion to cost, Gas is better. Include installation, home owner’s insurance reduced rate for electric and your Furnace / AC not having to treat fresh outside air Electric is cheaper and better for the environment. Some of us get our power from wind energy. Not having to pay an additional utility and their delivery charges is priceless.
Unatural gas is now comming from the fracking process, which is destroying the enviroment,making people sick, and killing animals. I also respond to a lot of monoxide poisonings caused by bad ventalation and fires from gas waterheaters. Haven’t responded to or have ever heard of a response to an electric water heater.
Dude,
I converted to electric when my gas went out … and wanted to know where i can find those timers for $50. I would assume they work with any electic heater as the mains feed into them and then into the thermostats, correct ?
Thanks,
Peter
I was educated as a Physical Chemist but have spent the last 40 years as an electrical engineer – in the pure sciences and engineering disciplines it is mostly the same math but different units.
In my first home in Omaha with standard efficiency natural gas furnace and water heater of the 70’s, I calculated in the month of January that the system consumed the entire volume of air in my home 4 times a day. Remember oxygen is only 19% of the air and to produce that nice blue flame (no carbon monoxide) the system will use 15%-20% more air than is required for combustion to cool the exhaust gas for use in metal chimneys.
My 4th home in Des Moines was geothermal. I designed the home from the beginning to be passive solar and geothermal. The techniques I used do not work for retro situations.
My 5th home is in Minneapolis. I recently installed a very high efficiency Lennox furnace. Both intake and exhaust are PVC pipe. I’ve replaced the gas water heater with two electric water heaters. One location location has a 6 gallon point of use heater and the other a standard 40 gallon.
Benefit:
1) I have hot water at all using locations in 10-15 seconds without circulation. The using locations take precedence. I don’t need a chimney.
2) With my new furnace and electric water heaters I don’t need holes in my home to support combustion and up draft. I’m not heating outside air, therefore saving money.
3) Last, because I don’t need to draw in cold dry outside air into my home. It should be more naturally humid in the winter.
The last two points are hypothesis at this time. I’ll collect data this winter.
@Bob, interesting idea about getting rid of the gas burners in your home to rid the need of holes in your house. We have a gas water heater upstairs and I think that’s the only reason we still need the chimney (for ventilation, although we could remove it and just have a long, ugly vent stack), but I hadn’t considered switching the heater to electric from gas.
We would still need someone to come in and shut off the gas lines (preferably out of the way so we can get more room for storage, etc in that closet), and I still need a chimney inspector to send a camera down to make sure that’s all the chimney is in use for. Thanks for making me rethink things.
Our house is 8 years old with a gas water heater and exhaust fan. We are on our second exhaust fan. The first one started grinding so bad we replaced it. The second one is now making such an annoying high whining sound that it can be heard throughout the house. Hard for me to be near it when it running. Thus I am here reading about electric hot water heaters. Love that timer idea. And I just thought of something else. When the exhaust fan is running the air flaps on my bathroom exhaust fans flap. I’m guessing I’m losing heat from the house too. Thanks.
Thank you all for answers.
My furnace broke 2 years ago and we’ve been using space heaters since. It taught me that i can handle the house being cooler and that I can reduce my consumption. In the mean time I’ve been struggling with what to do about replacing my 37 year old furnace.
I can’t find any mention of the monthly charge just for being connected to the gas line – whether I use it or not. I pay $17 base charge monthly, and $6 for the gas I used to heat my water and cook. $@##@!! There is $194 right there.
It is not easy to find all the factors that pertain and few “experts” look at all the considerations.
The flue pipe has always bothered me. Another person mentioned insurance reduction.
One contributor said that the existing flue pipe made it easy to install a tankless heater. I hope they know that the nature of the gas tankless requires a stainless flue – very specific and expensive.
The comment on fracking did it for me.
I will be looking at heat pumps now.
The comment about the basic use charge is an important one. My service charge near Pittsburgh is $13.95/mo. You can’t live without electric, but you can live without gas. Getting rid of gas obviously saves $168 per year. But there’s a really, really big reason to get rid of gas. I have 4 acres. My gas comes through a neighbor’s property via an easement, over a hill, with the 3″ pipe laying on the surface of the ground, then goes underground next to my septic tank and into my basement. It is 600′ to the main line from my home. My brother has 11 acres. It is 350′ from the main line to his home. Almost nobody–the gas company, homeowner’s insurance, the utility insurers who call at 6:01 pm–will insure a line longer than 125′. In the middle of last winter, my brother’s pilot went off on his furnace. The plumber checked gas pressure at the furnace and found it to be below minimum. He was required to immediately red-flag the address and within 10 minutes Equitable was at the road turning off the gas. Off to Motel 6 they all went. Because of corrosion, he was forced to dig up the line. Had to be done by an Equitable-certified Master Plumber or the gas would not get turned back on . 350′ through some trees, under a stream, $18,000. Whomever above said that gas is the way to go had better a) live closer than 125′ to the gas main and b) get line insurance to cover a red-flag situation. Even at my previous house, which was 60′ from the street, my neighbor had to replace his meter and move it from the road to the house (new code). $3000. Gas costs less per month for sure. Until the plumber shows up and red-flags you. At that point, you’ve bought a bass boat that you take to the lake and sink. Or 3 nice quads that you roll off the trailer and into the river. I’ve begun the switch to all electric.
One last thing: the guy above who condemned fracking…where do you get your information? GasLand has been proven to be a total fraud. There hasn’t been a single person sickened by fracking, with the possible exception of jobsite injuries to frack laborers from dust handled improperly, and MSHA is putting particulate standards in place for dust. We can all dream about solar and wind. Nonsense. The largest wind farm in the world, California’s Alta Wind, produces about the same MW as the little, non-descript Shelocta, Pa. coal fired plant. But the Shelocta plant is 1100 acres and Alta Wind is 10,000. Up on Lake Eire, Perry Nuclear produces 3 times as much power as Alta on 1/15th the land, with not one gram of “greenhouse” gas production. We’re just not there yet. Wind won’t get us there, either. It is a wildly expensive pipe dream that feels good in battleground states, especially when the Iowa Caucuses are considered. Subsidies for wind should be killed immediately. Wind is a feel-good elixer for Texas subsidy-seekers and Northern Plains doofuses…folks who think that Udder Cream will cure cancer and vote for Jesse the Body. Solar has a shot…maybe. The math and scope works pretty well. But for now, and by “now” I mean the next 50 years, we have coal and natural gas, with some solar making small inroads. And because of fracking, a lot of very clean burning natural gas will help us all, even the Minnesotans who actually believe the global warming drivel.
Just came upon this…very interesting. As a single mother, I try to save every bit. I live in the country and I ran out of propane last Saturday. Now, in SC we don’t need heat now, but my 6 yr old needs a warm bath!! OH WELL!! Propane company can’t come out for 7 days, unless I want to pay an Emergency fee of $250!!!! Not to mention the propane cost $2.90 a gal w/a 200g minimum!!! That’s $600!! $850 if I want it in 2 days instead of 7!!! Well, I’m sorry, but it’s cheaper for me to buy an electric water heater that I can pay for monthly!! I mean, I’m boiling water on my electric stove right now to bathe my child, so I’m STILL using electricity!! I’m surprised no one mentioned that propane is a non renewable resource too. It comes from petroleum and we import petroleum from the Middle East. Albeit, a small amount, but so what. I mean we use electric cars as to not use petroleum, so why not electric heaters??? Our electricity is made here in the USA and it employs millions of hard working AMERICANS! I honestly can’t think of a better reason than that!!! Even if it does cost more!!!!!
My neighbor just replaced his gas water heater at a cost of $850.00. They installed a solenoid operated damper on the flue which required running a new electric line and controls. His electronic ignition and interlocks made the cost high.
I believe that the heat transfer efficiency of a calrod directly in contact with water is 100% while the efficiency of gas is about 35% at best. If you don’t believe it try touching the flue at the top of your gas heater.
On new construction the savings by not installing a flue pipe should be part of the comparison analysis.
We are moving to a new house from a propane
We wonder about the electric water heater option for a second home in the mts. Would electric be more efficient since we can totally turn it off when we do need hot water. The house is heated with gas however and will stay heated @ 55 when we are not there.
My pilot just went out again. Before this i replaced my water heater because the pilot went out again. Damnit, I’m going to get me aa electric water heater.
I have lived in my house for 30+ years. Until November 2014 its been an all electric home (heat pump with electric coil backup heat). My energy company brought natural gas down my street and offered to install the supply line and gas meter for free if I installed a gas heater and gas water heater. I took them up on their offer and have since installed a gas heating system.
I have a 50 gallon electric water heater (one year old). This is the fourth electric water heater that I’ve had over 30 years. I replaced one heating element during that time period. The tanks developed leaks after ~ 8 years of operation. My current water heater cost $800.00 total (parts and labor).
I wanted to switch to a gas water heater ($$savings). I have to install a power vented gas water heater and I have to run a 15 to 20 ft horizontal vent pipe (3 inch PVC pipe). I solicited four estimates for this install. Lowest was $2500.00. Highest was $3000.00. If I use the estimated annual energy cost for my present electric water heater and the new gas water heater, my annual savings is ~$300.00 per year ($25.00/month). So, using my current electric rate, it would take me 10 years to recover a $3000.00 investment in the gas unit. Would the gas water heater last 10 years? or, would I be installing a follow on unit before I re-coup the money for the first install? I think everyone’s situation regarding a gas water heater install is different.
Power vented gas water heaters are not cheap. The energy star certified ones that I’m looking at range between $1000.00 and $1300.00. AS you can see from the estimates that I received, my installation cost is not cheap either.
ONE REALLY GOOD REASON I AGREE WITH NICK: CARBON MONOXIDE. I’ve lived in a new condo for 6 years, the vent and air pipes were installed wrong. Birds nested in the intake,(which should have been the exhaust). I had a very high CO reading in my HVAC closet and have been breathing in 16mmp’s or so, for I don’t know how long. And I’m lucky: though i felt dopey at times, supposedly I shouldn’t have damage as I didn’t have severe symptoms. My neighbor had waking headaches at night. Her reading was 3 times mine, in the closet: 2200!! Did you know carbon monoxide detectors expire?! Mine didn’t work at all, even at the hot spot. I’ve had no hot water,(or heat), for two weeks and one plumber wanted to cut a hole in my ceiling to replace the pipe to have it clear. This is being dealt with, and not dealt with/pending by the HOA. and now the fire department is helping out… SO, I stumbled across smart Nick because I started asking questions like: can I have NO GAS in my home??!! Safety first- bottom line. and thanks for the timer info. Do you have any pointers for where to start in making the switch? Thanks again!
so, maybe a little off topic here, but i’m out in the country, as one of the other people, and my situation is LP at about 1.70/gallon or electric. in the summer i’m at about 10cents/KWh and in the winter months it’s a little lower. I can do the installs myself, either way i go, but between power vent and electric, i’m trying to figure out what way to go.
i have geothermal as well, but that is only going to effect the storage tank. so i guess what i’m looking for is LP versus gas for my primary tank.
thanks! 🙂