Cost-effective hot water on demand: Tankless hot water systems

Also known as combo boilers, tankless hot water systems are not new. They have been around for decades but are only now coming into their own as homeowners look for eco-friendly water efficiency options in household hot water systems. The beauty of these systems is their compact size, the fact that they don't require regular servicing and with a tankless hot water system you will never run out of hot water.

Another plus is their durability. Standard hot water tanks have a life span of about eight to 13 years after which time you would need to look at possible replacement. A tankless hot water system has a life expectancy of at least 20 years.

Opting for a tankless hot water system

As the name implies, the system does not have a water holding tank, but does have the same water heating internal components. Water is sourced from a piped connection but then the heating coil within the unit directs the hot water to the outlet in use.

Before choosing a system, you first have to establish the type of unit that's going to be best suited to your needs. Things to take into account are:

• Whether you want gas, electric or solar powered
• The capacity of the unit
• The safety features
• The lowest running costs
• Eco-friendliness and energy efficiency

The number of bathrooms in your home as well as the number of residents will also determine a lot, plus whether you wash in hot or cold water and, if you use a dishwasher, is it connected to the hot water system or does it heat its own water. Whichever unit you go with is still going to reduce your costs and energy losses. Standard tankless hot water systems can deliver adequate hot water, at only slightly less pressure than a normal hot water system, to only one outlet at a time. Pressure and heat will drop if another outlet is in use. But continuous flow high pressure systems are designed to be more efficient and can operate on natural gas, LPG or three phase electricity.

Being much smaller that standard hot water systems, the tankless hot water system has the advantage of being able to be mounted on a wall or in a cupboard and can be installed internally or externally, though restrictions exist for internally mounted gas systems.

Suppliers for tankless hot water units

Rheem, Rinnai and Bosch are just three of the companies that supply tankless hot water systems and can be contacted via their own sites; however, any retailer that carries their ranges would have tankless units, and would be able to answer any questions you may have.