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If you’re on a mission to cut down on your water heating costs, then it’s worth getting familiar with the types of hot water systems available in Australia.
In real terms, hot water systems equate to roughly 21% to 25% of the average Australian’s annual power bill. While an air conditioner unit consumes around 3833 kWh per year, it pales in comparison to an average six star efficiency water heating unit, which clocks in at 5164 kWH per year.
If we’re throwing a quarter of our electricity expenses to heating water, getting familiar with the types of hot water systems and how they differ is nothing short of an investment. Depending on where you live, the number of residents in your household and the funds you have to purchase a unit, switching hot water systems has the potential for lucrative savings in the long term.
According to recent figures released from the Federal Government, around 48% of the energy used for water heating comes from natural gas, 45% from electricity, 3% from liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and 4% from solar. As such, this gives a fair indication of what types of hot water systems every day Australians are using.
If you’re in the market for an upgrade or are simply on the hunt for a hot water system alternative to what you currently have, the first decision you’ll need to make when choosing a hot water system is the energy source and heating method: electricity, gas, solar or heat pump?
As a general rule, electric hot water systems are the most common type of water heating unit found in Australia, primarily because the units themselves are cheap to purchase and relatively easy to install. While they’re quiet and cost effective up front, the downside of electric units is that they’re not generally praised for their efficiency and ongoing affordability as they need to work harder to get the job done.
In comparison, gas hot water systems are embraced thanks to their long term affordability and their ability to heat water faster. Depending on where you live in Australia, gas is a much cheaper resource than electricity, so the running costs are often much lower. Although the unit is about the same price as an electric system, if not slightly more, switching from electric supply to gas can get very expensive if your dwelling doesn’t have the infrastructure already in place.
For environmentally conscious households looking to get off the grid, hot water systems powered by solar panels and a storage tank present a modern alternative. As a general rule, a four person household typically needs about four square metres of solar collector area (or roughly two solar panels) plus a 300 to 360 litre water tank. Consumers need a large tank to allow for days with less sunlight, or days when there’s more hot showers than usual. However, if your panels can’t be installed in an ideally sunny location, they may be less efficient and you’ll need a larger collection area.
Finally, a heat pump offers a much more efficient form of electric storage tank system, and works on the same principle as a fridge or air conditioner via extracting heat from the air and using it to heat the water tank. These bad boys are soaring in popularity thanks to the simple fact that even though they are still powered by electricity, they only use around 30% of the energy used by traditional electric systems. Thus, heat pumps present an affordable and renewable energy system without the need for extra panels like solar, thanks to their ability to absorb the heat in the surrounding air to heat water.
However, once you’ve decided on your heating method, you’ll need to choose between a hot water system with a tank, or one that heats the water as it’s needed. Most electric, gas, solar and heat pump hot water systems use a tank, and households that use a lot of hot water on a regular basis will often find a storage tank system is the most cost-effective option. In comparison, an “instant” or continuous flow hot water system heats only as much water as you need, when you need it.
If navigating the many types of hot water systems is giving you a headache and you could do with some advice, then it’s always worth speaking to the professionals. Thankfully, the team at Shield Electrical are your one stop hot water system shop, and offer everything from installation, maintenance, repairs and more.
Here at Shield Electrical, we are a Brisbane based electrical contracting company, and pride ourselves on being shockingly good at watt we do. For us, friendly and reliable customer service isn’t just a nice add on – it’s how we do business. Don’t take our word for it though, just ask our clients.
Established in 2015, Shield Electrical is lighting the way when it comes to providing electrical work with world class customer service. With our headquarters based in the central suburban pocket of Coorparoo, our team of qualified industry professionals are readily available to deliver quality workmanship, fast quotes, and affordable pricing.
Whether you’re on the hunt for an electrician for domestic services, residential, commercial and industrial construction, security systems or even just further energy saving tips, get in touch with us at Shield today to source practical solutions that don’t break the bank.
