Average Water Heater Capacity

How to determine the required size of a tankless hot water heater.

Average water heater capacity.

Simply locate the appropriate water heater sizes on ecomfort using your information. Typically residential water heater sizes range from 40 to 100 gallon tanks. 2 3 people you ll need at least a 40 gallon capacity tank. Sizing storage and heat pump with tank water heaters.

If you re going with a storage tank water heater here s a rough guide for storage tank capacity. Below we ve highlighted what size water heater you would need in our example of 6 5 gpm at a 63 f temperature rise. Consequently these are the two most frequently installed sizes. Tankless water heaters capacities aren t measured in gallons stored but in flow rates.

For 1 to 2 people. But if you only need a loose estimate of what size you need versus an exact calculation follow these guidelines. 1 2 people you ll need a water tank with at least a 30 gallon capacity. For a tank style heater household size is a simple indicator of hot water needs.

Usually most homeowners find that either a 40 or 50 gallon hot water tank is the best fit for their needs. Tankless water heaters come in two types gas or electric. You can estimate the necessary tank capacity in gallons based on the number of people in the house. To properly size a storage water heater for your home including a heat pump water heater with a tank use the water heater s first hour rating.

Water heaters running on 120 volt power have a long recovery time which is impractical for most households. A tankless water heaters flow rate should be equal to your family s peak demand. The first hour rating is the number of gallons of hot water the heater can supply per hour starting with a tank full of hot water. The largest of these miniature units can also be used to provide hot water to secondary bathrooms that may be situated far from your home s main water heater.

However every family has different water demand requirements. Well to get an accurate answer you d have to calculate out how much hot water you typically use during your busiest hot water using hour. 120 volt elements consume 1125 watts while residential 240 volt heaters use 4 500 watts. For 2 to 3 people.

On average gas fired heaters are more efficient and heat the water. 5 or more people need a 50 80 gallon water heater. Utility water heaters usually range in size from 2 5 to 19 gallons.