#1 Water Heater Experts in Elgin, IL With Free Estimates
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Elgin’s Water Heater Experts
Discover the advantages of working with professionals
Has your shower started to take forever to heat up, or seems to be losing heat fast? With any number of possible issues as to why your water heater might be performing poorly, it can be difficult to assess and diagnose on your own. The problem could be anything from pipe corrosion or clogged plumbing, to a faulty heater. With just a simple phone call, Advantage Plumbing, Heating & A/C will come to you and inspect your water heater thoroughly to determine where the problem is and what the best solution might be. We also offer water heater maintenance programs to ensure your water heater keeps working at peak efficiency, reducing the possibility of costly water heater repairs or replacement. Other plumbing companies will frequently jump to a hasty conclusion and claim that the heater is faulty before then recommending a complete replacement or system overhaul when you may have a number of more cost effective options available. At Advantage Plumbing, Heating & A/C we use our multi-point inspection process to professionally diagnose your water heater issue and then provide you with not only our recommended solution, but as many alternative options as we can so that you can make the best decision for your home, family and budget.
Every home has some kind of water heater installed. Chances are good that you haven’t even thought about it at all until your problem arose. While problems generally form over time, they can be discovered half way through a hot shower on cold winter morning. Most people don’t even know how to maintain their water heater. Which is where we can help you with one of our regular maintenance schedules to extend the life of your water heater and reduce the need for costly repairs. Regular maintenance is completely necessary to the efficiency and effectiveness of your water heater. As water is being pumped into your water heater, dirt and other sediments or minerals begin to accumulate at the bottom of the tank. This debris will cause your system to run less effectively and cost you significant money in the long run.
Looking for a new water heater? We perform installation and servicing on every kind of water heater from standard & hybrid water heaters, to tankless & combination water heaters, and even water based in-floor heating systems.
Standard Water Heaters
Standard water heaters can easily last as many as 30 years. However, a majority of water heaters fail after only 10 years of time. This is primarily due to a failure to perform the necessary routine maintenance, as your water heater’s efficiency can cause it to wear out at an increased rate. If you seem to be experiencing problems with your water heater in the suburban Elgin area, look no further than Advantage Plumbing, Heating & AC. We’ll start by inspecting your water heater before providing you with a number of options to repair or replace your system so you can make the best decision for your circumstances. Our expertise includes working with both gas and electric water heaters, and we offer warranties and guarantees on all parts and labor.
How Do Standard Water Heaters Work?
With a majority of water heaters in America being standard tank-type water heaters, also called storage water heaters, they contain water within a cylindrical vessel keeping it constantly heated so that it is ready for immediate use. While residential water heater tank sizes can range from very small as many as 75 gallons, 40 gallons is the most common size found in homes. The primary advantage of any larger tank type water heater is its ability to to supply water with a smaller range of temperature modulation in comparison to tankless water heaters.
A number of standard water heaters use natural gas, while others utilize electricity, solar panels, propane or heating oil as the main power source. Using the process of convection, or rising heat, gas water heaters have water injected into the bottom of a tank through a dip tube. Once heated by the gas burner, the cold water at the bottom of the tank is naturally rises and is replaced by more cold water starting the heating process all over again. Directed by the hot water pipe at the top of the tank, the hot water is then sent on its way to your faucet.
Alternatively, electric water heaters generally contain a pair of resistance heating elements, one at the bottom and another located at the top of the tank. Using a switch that is able to sense the water temperature, it governs the power that is directed to these heating elements, that way, when you turn on a hot water tap, cold water enters into the tank through the bottom and activates the heating elements until the water is heated and then dispatched throughout your system.
Tankless Water Heaters
The most commonly experienced problem when it comes to water heaters is the hot water running out. Tankless water heaters are built specifically to solve this problem however. Keeping water heated at all times can account for up to 30% of an average homes’ energy costs, whereas tankless heaters don’t heat the water until you need it and then dispense hot water right there on the spot providing an endless supply of hot water. Thus allowing you to save money on your energy bills, especially for summer homes or other areas you may not frequently utilize the hot water at.
Also known as instantaneous, continuous flow, inline, flash, on-demand or instant-on water heaters, tankless systems heat the water as it moves through the device, instead of storing it and constantly using power to keep water heated at all times. Coming in everything from extremely compact sizes that can be placed at more than one point-of-use in your home such as the kitchen or bathroom, tankless heaters are also available in larger sizes to allow a single tankless unit to heat water for an entire home. Extremely popular in Europe & Japan for quite some time now, tankless water heaters are only more recently growing in popularity in the United States.
How Do Tankless Water Heaters Work?
When you turn on your shower, sink, tub or washing machine, a sensor in the heater’s water flow turbine detects the flow and begins the heating process. Sending a signal from the water turbine to the control board, which then detects the temperature of the incoming water before heating it to the desired water temperature. As the water circulates through the tankless unit’s copper heat exchanger, it results in a continuous stream of water at the preferred temperature. Likewise, when you turn off the hot water tap, then the tankless water heater enters into standby mode and will again sense the demand for hot water before activating again.
Making The Best Choice: Tankless or Tank?
Different water heaters offer a different set of advantages and disadvantages for different situations and homes. Tankless water heaters tend to be higher efficiency and are generally recognized as lasting twice as long as standard tank-style heaters. Additionally, the wall mount capability of tankless water heater’s small size can help you recapture valuable square footage in your home while their increased energy efficiency means they the unit only runs when you need hot water instead of constantly running like standard water heaters.
On the other end of the spectrum, standard tank water heaters are generally half the cost of a tankless unit. And while tankless water heaters can end up stifling water pressure while it runs through the unit, standard water heaters have no such limitations. Additionally, standard water heaters are able to provide water for an entire home while tankless generally have to be installed much closer to your showers, and sinks which can end up requiring multiple units to be able to adequately heat the water in your home.
With a number of technical factors to be considered, it is essential to consult with an installation expert and have them assess your water system before you select the type of water heater for your home or project. Call Advantage Plumbing Heating & AC today so we can help you make the best decision possible. We’re available 24/7 for emergencies and can have an expert dispatched to your home as early as today. They’ll inspect your entire system taking note of any potential problems before providing you with a variety of options and the information to be able to make the best decision possible when it comes to your water heater.