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I have always had tank-type water heaters and I don’t recall ever running out of hot water (family of 4). Is this actually a problem people have or is it just a

I have always had tank-type water heaters and I don’t recall ever running out of hot water (family of 4). Is this actually a problem people have or is it just a tankless water heater industry talking point?

lightedman 3y ago
Various places will have different-sized water heaters installed. As a child, I lived in one place that had a measly 20 gallon electric heater. It sucked, badly. Dad showered first, then I got woken up to shower - barely any hot water.
mikeyouse 3y ago
Nope it’s a real problem, an undersized tank, high usage devices (eg a big bath tub) or just low temperature set on the unit for safety’s sake can cause the hot to run out. Modern tanks have a label on them that will let you know how many gallons of hot water it can deliver in its first hour of usage, some of those numbers are much lower than others.
- stephen_g 3y ago
  The good thing about the heat pump I've got is that it's also surprisingly quick to heat up. If you do run out (I never have, but I experienced the speed the first time it was turned on when it was installed) you can go and press the 'Boost' button on the controller and you will have 50L in 20 minutes and a full tank (mine is 315L) in 3 hours. The system also heats the tank to at least 60 degrees C at the sensor point (about 2/3 of the way down) at least once every 24 hours and then has a tempering valve on the output for safety. That way you don't have scalding water at the point of use, but do have lots of hot water available and no issues with Legionella bacteria.
bluGill 3y ago
I have a large 2-person tub, even though I have a 80 gallon water heater (double normal size) it cannot fill the tub. That is a rare use case though, and I don't use the tub very often so I'm not sure I'd recommend it to someone thinking about that. (when my wife and I want to relax it is nice). As a kid my family had off-peak water heating, 200 gallons of water heaters, that were only turned on for a couple hours at midnight. We ran out of hot water about every 5 years - when mom did a lot of laundry and we all took long showers/baths on the same day. One time the breaker blew and we suspect it was 2 days before we noticed.
- EricE 3y ago
  you can run the tank hotter and use a mixing valve to deliver hot water at a safe temperature. Let's you have a smaller, more efficient tank and also ensures your water heater is hot enough to never get infected with the bacteria that causes legionnaire's disease. Double win!

lightedman 3y ago

Various places will have different-sized water heaters installed. As a child, I lived in one place that had a measly 20 gallon electric heater. It sucked, badly. Dad showered first, then I got woken up to shower - barely any hot water.

mikeyouse 3y ago

Nope it’s a real problem, an undersized tank, high usage devices (eg a big bath tub) or just low temperature set on the unit for safety’s sake can cause the hot to run out. Modern tanks have a label on them that will let you know how many gallons of hot water it can deliver in its first hour of usage, some of those numbers are much lower than others.

stephen_g 3y ago
The good thing about the heat pump I've got is that it's also surprisingly quick to heat up. If you do run out (I never have, but I experienced the speed the first time it was turned on when it was installed) you can go and press the 'Boost' button on the controller and you will have 50L in 20 minutes and a full tank (mine is 315L) in 3 hours. The system also heats the tank to at least 60 degrees C at the sensor point (about 2/3 of the way down) at least once every 24 hours and then has a tempering valve on the output for safety. That way you don't have scalding water at the point of use, but do have lots of hot water available and no issues with Legionella bacteria.

bluGill 3y ago

I have a large 2-person tub, even though I have a 80 gallon water heater (double normal size) it cannot fill the tub. That is a rare use case though, and I don't use the tub very often so I'm not sure I'd recommend it to someone thinking about that. (when my wife and I want to relax it is nice). As a kid my family had off-peak water heating, 200 gallons of water heaters, that were only turned on for a couple hours at midnight. We ran out of hot water about every 5 years - when mom did a lot of laundry and we all took long showers/baths on the same day. One time the breaker blew and we suspect it was 2 days before we noticed.

EricE 3y ago
you can run the tank hotter and use a mixing valve to deliver hot water at a safe temperature. Let's you have a smaller, more efficient tank and also ensures your water heater is hot enough to never get infected with the bacteria that causes legionnaire's disease. Double win!