Gas or Electric Hot Water Unit?

When your hot water unit goes cactus, there’s not much time to stuff around deciding on whether to get a gas or electric hot water unit… You just want hot water! Let us take the hassle and confusion out of this annoying situation! See our summaries on 4 hot water unit models you have to choose from!

Electric Hot Water Unit

These have been the more common hot water units in Australia for decades. However this is starting to change, with the rising costs of electricity and high greenhouse gas emissions. The environmental effects these are having have even caused the government to pass a legislation to try and limit their use. 

Electric Heat Pumps

Heat pumps heat your water by extracting heat from ambient outside air, in a similar way that reverse cycle air conditioners work. These have lower greenhouse gas emissions, but the upfront costs (surprise, surprise) are substantial. The popularity of these has decreased due to their high maintenance and repair costs. Not to mention they are also extremely noisy!

 

Gas Storage Hot Water System

Similar to the electric tank/electric hot water unit, the obvious difference that its run by a gas burner (not electric). These are far more energy efficient and have lower greenhouse gas emissions. Gas heaters also eliminate the worry of time-of-day tariff issues. This means that gas storage units don’t have to be as large as electric ones and can run at any time required. Installation costs are the same as electric.

Gas continuous Flow Hot Water Systems.  

Also known as Instantaneous or Tankless, these systems heat the water as you need it. These units only heat the water as it passes through, so there is no storage tank. This solves the problem of never running out of hot water! The upfront costs of this system is extremely low and greenhouse gas emissions are far lower tan electric storage units. These units are also very energy efficient and running costs are manageable.

Solar Hot Water Systems

If you’re an environmentalist and money savvy, this is the unit for you! Solar units have some of the lowest running costs and greenhouse gas emissions, but are unfortunately the most expensive to install. These solar water systems are also equipped with a booster, useful in periods with minimal sunlight. When this booster kicks in it can cause running prices to rise, so it’s important for there to be a sufficient number of panels and tank storage to minimise the use of the booster. 

 

So it’s clear that people are steering away from the previously popular electric units and transitioning to gas and solar units. If you are still feeling a little lost, feel free to give our team a call and we can best guide you, tailoring our recommendations specifically to your home, budget and lifestyle!

Give us a call on 1300 830 956!