Traditional or storage hot water heaters are typically either gas or electric powered and come in a variety of sizes. Power source generally varies by geography. For example, in Oregon and Washington about forty percent of homes have electric powered heaters while in Northern and Southern California the vast majority of water heaters are gas powered.
Water Heaters Come in a Variety of Sizes
Both residential gas and electric water heaters come in a variety of sizes but the most common are:
40 gallon
50 gallon
66 gallon
75 gallon
80 gallon
120 gallon
The majority of homes have a 40 or 50 gallon tank with the 50 gallon tank being the most common. Larger tanks such as a 66 or 80 gallon tank are usually only used for very large homes or for homes that have a large soaking tub or jacuzzi.
It is possible to upsize or downsize your water heater. Customers are often interested in installing a larger tank if they have recently installed a large soaking tub. When upsizing to a larger tank, we will ensure that your entire system is installed safely and typically this will entail increasing the size of the vent on gas water heaters. Larger tanks emit a larger volume of carbon monoxide and as a result, must have a larger vent in order to be safely installed. We can also check space requirements with you over the phone to ensure that a larger tank will fit. Occasionally a customer will choose to downsize their tank as 66 and 80 gallon tanks are often more expensive than more common 50 gallon tanks. We do not recommend downsizing from a 50 gallon tank to a 40 gallon tank, however, as 40 gallon tanks are typically comparable in price to 50 gallon tanks.
