Water heater for summer cottages and houses: how to choose?

Gas and electric water heaters are used both in country houses and in city apartments where there is no centralized hot water supply or it is provided intermittently. Yes, and the quality of heated cold water is usually higher than hot, intended only for household and technical needs. In addition, hot water supply is one of the largest items of expenditure when paying for utilities. Having calculated the approximate consumption of hot water, the cost of gas or electricity, you can make a choice — it may be more profitable for you to install a water heater and refuse from centralized hot water supply.

Gas water heaters: their types, advantages and disadvantages

Gas water heaters are divided into geysers and gas boilers. Most of their models can operate both on natural gas from a centralized gas pipeline, and on liquefied gas vapor from autonomous cylinders or gas tanks.

Flowing gas water heaters

Flowing gas water heater — this is, in fact, a well-known gas water heater. The gas that burns in the combustion chamber heats the heat exchanger through which cold water passes from the water supply. A mechanical or electronic system ignites the fire when the tap is opened and automatically adjusts the gas supply depending on the water flow, ensuring the desired temperature and preventing it from boiling in the heat exchanger.

The main advantage of flowing gas water heaters is both the low price of the device itself and the low cost of operation due to the cheapness of gas fuel. The disadvantages are the need to install a chimney, “burning out” oxygen from the room and an increased level of danger, requiring extremely careful handling, strict adherence to instructions and regular technical inspections and preventive maintenance.

A separate disadvantage of traditional mechanically controlled gas water heaters is, among other things, the unstable (and even unpredictable) heating temperature — it depends on the temperature of the incoming cold water, its flow rate, as well as its pressure and gas pressure. This is especially evident where several consumers located in different rooms are connected to the flow heater.

Flowing gas water heaters equipped with modern electronics are free from this drawback. They are equipped with a thermostat, pressure sensors, electronic ignition, emergency control systems. Many models have a digital display that allows you to set the desired water temperature with an accuracy of fractions of a degree. The operation of such water heaters is much more convenient and safer, but their price is much higher.

Accumulative gas water heaters

A storage gas water heater or a gas boiler is a tank — titanium, in which there is always a sufficient volume of hot water. Water is heated in advance, and in the future, its required temperature is only maintained as it cools or is consumed.

The main advantage of storage gas water heaters is the lower thermal power, because the water does not need to be heated at high speed. This leads to less intensive oxygen consumption and the release of combustion products, which allows small models to do without a chimney. Another advantage is the exact correspondence of the water temperature to the set one. Moreover, this is ensured by only one thermostat, because such devices do not need to be sensitive to changes in the initial temperature, flow rate and water pressure.

But gas boilers also have disadvantages. This is a larger space occupied and a limited supply of hot water, which may simply not be enough, and it will take time to reheat the tank. In addition, despite the thermal insulation of the tank, which turns it into a thermos, to maintain the desired water temperature, it is required to burn an additional volume of gas, which may be relevant when using autonomous cylinders. And storage gas water heaters are usually more expensive than flow-through ones. Because these devices are not widely used, at least in Russia.

How to choose an electric water heater?

Like the gas electric water heaters are divided into flowing and funded. Electric water heaters are simpler and safer to operate, do not require a chimney and do not consume oxygen, but the cost of hot water heated by electricity is much higher than when using gas.

Instantaneous electric water heaters

For instantaneous water heating in real time, very high power is required, and far from any electrical network can withstand such loads. Therefore, small and low-power (up to 2 kW) instantaneous electric water heaters connected to a conventional network are not able to fully meet all household and household needs for hot water, especially with several consumers connected. They are suitable only for washing dishes and taking a slightly warm and not very intense shower, and then in the summer, when the water coming from the water supply is not so cold. To achieve higher performance, devices are used, the power of which can reach 30 kW or more, but they require special wiring with a three-phase voltage of 380 V.

Although, of course, instantaneous electric water heaters also find their customers: due to the low price and simple installation, such devices can be used in the city during periods of hot water shutdown. And for washing dishes in the country, they are generally indispensable!

Electric storage water heaters

The disadvantages of storage electric water heaters (electric boilers) are almost the same as those of gas ones — large sizes, additional energy consumption, significant heating time and a limited supply of hot water. But lower power, which is not a decisive advantage for gas appliances, here becomes the main comparison criterion in favor of storage heaters. After all, they can provide a full supply of hot water without the use of special electrical networks. The main thing is to clearly define the power of the electric water heater and the volume of the tank you need, which are indicated in the technical specifications, so that hot water would be enough for the whole day, and it would have time to heat up during the night.

Summary

So, if you need an economical and highly productive hot water supply system for permanent use, opt for a gas water heater, and preferably a flow one.

If you will rarely use the water heater, for example, to wash the dishes or take a shower during a hot water shutdown in the summer, a small, low-power instantaneous electric water heater would be the best choice.

A storage electric water heater is a compromise solution, but it takes up a lot of space and requires hot water to be consumed with regard to its remaining amount.

Well, for those who prefer «unlimited», do not count the consumed kilowatts and do not want to mess with the chimney, a high-power instantaneous electric water heater with a special connection is suitable.

You can choose and buy a water heater on our website. Works delivery to St. Petersburg.