20 Year Old Oil Fired Water Heater, Time To Replace?
Posted on | December 3, 2009 | 4 Comments
I recently purchased a house that has an oil fired water heater. Looking at the entergy rating on the tank, it says I will spend 249 a year to heat oil if oil is 1.22 a gallon. Obviously, heating oil is about 3.15 a gallon, based on my last bill. The tank is 20 years old. Would I save a substantial amount switching to an electric water heater or electric tankless water heater? The unit seems to be working fine but I’m concerned about its age and the fact that oil is alot more expensive than it was 20 years ago. I’m leaning towards tankless but thought I’d get some opinions.
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4 Responses to “20 Year Old Oil Fired Water Heater, Time To Replace?”
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December 3rd, 2009 @ 5:14 pm
I have yet to hear anything good about electric tankless water heaters. The power demands are enormous – more than you can get out of a typical residential panel. I did stumble across one that I thought would work, but it turned out to need 4 breakers rather than 2 (and that fact was sorta hidden in the description).
You might start thinking about an electric tank, but then again, if it ain’t broke, are you sure you want to fix it? Maybe some low-flow shower heads, pipe insulation, etc, can help reduce the amount of oil it uses.
December 3rd, 2009 @ 8:42 pm
I have installed a few tank less water heaters in the past, and have not been in pressed with them. Your best bet is to go with electric.asap.
December 4th, 2009 @ 2:48 am
Get a new heater, you will save alot of money. Tankless only saves you space, no more money than a tank.
December 4th, 2009 @ 3:33 am
I don’t know how much your electricity rates are – they’re about $0.08/Kw-Hr where I am here in Canada. Based on that rate and your indication of fuel prices where you are – the equivalent heat value of electricity to your oil would be $4.27/gal
You would get better fuel efficiency with a new burner on the heater (or a new unit altogether) – but you have to weigh out the fuel savings against the capitol cost of a new unit. If you save 10% on your fuel bill and you pay $800/yr – that’s $80/yr saved, against the cost of a new unit of -say – $1200.
Tankless units WILL save money because you don’t pay to store water 24 Hr/day for potential use of 3-4 Hr/day. That being said – I don’t recommend electric tankless and they don’t make oil units.
My recommendation – bottom line – keep the old heater till it dies and then get the best new heater on the market to replace it – you might have it another 20 yr.