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Old 10-18-16, 10:36 AM   #1
oil pan 4
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Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: NM
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Default Looks like it'd time for a new hot water heater

I noticed that one of 2 hot water heaters in my house has started leaking. It's a gas fired hot water heater.
I want to say it's just condensation dripping out but I don't think I can belive this much longer.
This hot water heater only supplies hot water to the back bathroom which has a sink and shower as the only demands on it.
This is the only bathroom at the moment as the main bath room is being torn apart and is on a 30 gallon gas water heater.
Once the main bath room is finished this back bathroom won't be getting used much.

The easy thing to do would be to stick another 30 gallon gas hot water heater in its place. But that pilot lite will waste a lot of gas and the water takes a really long time to heat from cold if I were just to turn it off.
I'm thinking that I should replace it with a 19 gallon electric. I want a 19 gallon because it's short, I can lift it up off the floor and get some storage back which my wife would really love.
2 problems the 19 gallon is 1500w 120v powered.
This bath room is going to have to last 2 people for a few more months. That's not going to work for showing in winter with a 40°f water inlet water. So I would like to put a 240v element in it. I have never tried this before.
Also there is not an electrical hook up for a water heater over there. I can pull the wire so not really a big deal. Problem is I need to run a sub panel in the garage. If I left the water heater as 120v I wouldn't bother with a sub panel but with a 4500 or 5500 watt element I would really want to sub panel.
The 19 gallon is the same diameter as the larger 2 element 30 and 40 gallon heaters. So a longer element should go I no problem.

Does anyone know if a stubby 19 gallon heater can take a longer element?
I can change to a 240v thermostat too if they are different.

Since this is going to be a lightly used bathroom there really isn't any point in putting an expensive high efficiency hybrid or tankless water heater. The 19 gallon is about $300 with my military discount at lowes. Anything that is tankless or hybrid is at least 2x to 4x that much.
I want to do an electric wrap it with lots of insulation and forgetaboutit.


Last edited by oil pan 4; 10-18-16 at 03:24 PM..
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natural gas, tankless, water heater

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