Thanks to hot water systems, homeowners can enjoy warm showers or clean dishes whenever they want. These systems are mainly designed to heat water for all of the applications we may need it for. If you’re planning to buy a water heater for your residential or commercial property, you should know that each type of this kind of system will achieve water heating in a slightly different way.
Generally, there are two most popular types of hot water systems in marketing, namely; instantaneous hot water systems and storage hot water systems. Which one of these two is suitable for you?
Instantaneous Hot Water System
The first type of hot water system is instantaneous. This system heats water only when you need it. In this system, no insulated tank is required, which means that you don’t need to worry about purchase cost and heat loss. That makes it much simpler to accommodate for changing needs, especially when people come to stay and move out.
However, if you’re going for this type of hot water heat system, there are some considerations you’ll need to make:
- This system is smaller than a storage system and can be mounted on a wall or cupboard. You can either do the internal or external installation.
- There’s a slight reduction in the amount of pressure during the water delivery
- This system may work either on natural gas, LPG, or 3-phase electricity
- Some standard units can deliver hot water with just an open tap at a time. Opening a second tap can reduce the pressure and temperature. High-powered systems can produce better flow rates and work sufficiently when multiple points of use are open.
Storage Hot Water System
The system comprises an insulated tank used to store the heated water temporarily, which your home will need throughout the day. The size of the tank that your home needs will depend on several factors. So, below are some guidelines to consider when it comes to storage water systems:
- You have to determine the right size of the tank your home needs by putting the number of hot water users in your house. If you buy a too-small tank, you may end running out of water. On the other hand, if you choose too big a tank, you may end up spending unnecessary costs on the operation.
- The size of the tank also plays a role in the water heat loss while water is stored in the tank. A smaller tank implies that less heat loss in the tank is experienced. Other factors that affect heat loss include tank insulation and temperature settings.
- There are storage hot water systems that use solar heat or thermal collectors like black-colored pipes within a glass-lidded insulated box for heating the water. A booster placed in the tank will help in heating the water more.
- Regular storage heated water systems only use a single source of heat that could either be a heat pump, gas, or wood burner together with a heat exchanger or electric element. Some systems even utilize gravity feed or mains pressure.
- Heat pumps utilize less amount of electricity than electric elements. Heat pump systems come with compressors powered by electricity for the refrigerant gas extracting the heat of the air that ultimately heats the water inside the storage tank. The system works the same way as a refrigerator and generates the same operational low noise.
Conclusion
If you’re in the market for a new hot water system for your home but are unable to find the right one for your needs, then we hope that this post was meant for you. With our comparison of the storage and instantaneous hot water system, you’re able to narrow your options down.
