The house I live in has an existing oil-based boiler for both heat and hot water. The hot water tank (50 gallons) will likely need to be replaced in the next few years as it is more than 10 years old, probably approaching 15. I am on well water without a water softener, and I assume that the previous owners never did any sort of maintenance with the current hot water tank. (A neighbor mentioned that there is some sacrificial part that can be replaced every so often to extend the life of the tank.)
I keep reading that the hybrid heat pump water heaters are incredibly efficient, and I hate having to burn oil during the warmer months just to heat my showers. My plumber tells me that it’s a really efficient system and that I should keep it intact as long as I can. He also seems a bit old school in his opinion and preferences, as he scoffs at the idea that I would eventually like to replace the whole boiler and system with a heat pump system instead.
Is there a good place to learn about how my existing system works, and any way to compare to possible savings (or pitfalls) of switching to a new system? Are there other options, such as tankless hot water heaters, that I should consider? I gather that recovery time with a hybrid heat pump water heater will be much slower than the existing system, so should I also calculate for a larger system (65 or 80 gallons)? Two adults live here full time but we frequently host guests and family gatherings, and we sometimes need enough hot water for 10 or so adults to shower. There are three full bathrooms in the house and one day we may add a fourth.
Yes but make sure you get a really solid labor warranty. We got a State branded hybrid water heater and the heat pump failed in the first year. Had it failed after one year we’d be on the hook to pay foe the labor to replace it even if the water heater itself was covered under warranty.
Thankfully the replacement has been flawless so far, hopefully it was just a fluke.
It’s so neat walking into the utility room and feeling the air is noticeably cooler and dryer, especially with my modest almost-homelab setup in the same room. I love being able to feel that its doing its thing, and that’s also how I knew the previous one had its heat pump fail, it was immediately obvious when walking into the room after no hot water.
Even when the last one failed, it was one button press to make it fall back to the resistive heating (I run mine in pure heat pump mode full time) and that worked perfectly fine until the replacement installation