A power vented water heater works exactly like a regular natural gas, or propane water heater, but with one major difference.

traditional gas water heater venting.

All gas water heaters produce harmful gasses as a result of the fuel combustion process under the tank.  The exhaust goes up threw the middle of the tank, out the top, threw a silver vent pipe, and then “normally” into & out the chimney.  However if you don’t have a chimney, or the one you have is in need of repair and isn’t safe to use, you will need a power vented water heater.   The reason why you need to use a power vented heater is, because the chimney naturally draws the warm exhaust gases up and out, (as a rule of physics called convection).

Without a working chimney naturally drawing the warm exhust out of the hosue, the water heater needs a device to move the harmful exhaust gases out of the house.  That device is a small motor that mounts right on top of the water heater tank..

This is called having a power vented water heater.  Power vented means, a motor is strapped on top of a normal water heater (with more safety features) that forces the CO2 out of the house.  When you need a power vent water heater it means you don’t have a chimney or the one you do have is to old, or is is need of repair of replacement.

Rheem Power Vented Water Heater - cut shot pic

Power Vent water heaters are much more expensive than normally vented water heaters.
Say a 50 gallon traditional “regularly” vented gas water heater costs about 500 dollars, a 50 gallon power vented water heater is going to cost at least 1,000 dollars.  Labor to have power vented water heaters are most as well, due to the fact that there is more labor involved with the installation process.

Many times while installing new power vented water heaters a new hole must be drilled through an outside wall, which can be arduous and time consuming.   Theirs a 50-50 chance that a special core hole drill will be needed to accomplish this task, and renting one of these drills cost about 100 dollars just for the day.

If I don’t have a working chimney can I attach a motor to a regular or traditional natural gas, or propane hot water heater to make it power vented?

NO- You CAN NOT “attach” a motor to a regular/ traditional water heater, because the motor works in conjunction with  special sensors which tells the motor when to turn on and off.   (In the old days, a retro fit power vent motor kit was sold, but this isn’t legal for the majority of plumbing codes across the country today.)  Also they were never very safe, and they were pretty expensive.

Can I just direct the exhaust pipe threw an outside wall with a regularly vented water heater, to avoid the high cost of power vented water heaters?

No-  It’s very illegal, unsafe, and your water heater will turn it’s self off often.

However honestly, yes the water heater will prop work, for a time, in ideal conditions.

What I mean is… If there were no people living in the house, and if there were never bad weather your water heater would most likely produce hot water for years.   However if there is a strong wind hitting the side of the house where the exhaust pipe is punched threw the wall, the water heater will detect a “blow back”  and turn it’s self off.   MORE Importantly, water heater manufacturing companies were forced to add many new safety features over the past ten years.  (because hundreds of home owners have made Fatal mistakes that have claimed many lives across the County due to bad installations, and UN-informed people trying to avoid the prices of a qualified plumbers labor costs.)

If you install a new gas water heater that has these safety features, when you really needed a power vent water heater, the heater will actually self destruct.  Sounds crazy, but it’s true.   All gas water heaters now have sealed combustion chambers,  (so the thing will work even with a 6- 10 inches of water around the tank/ wont turn off and fill the house with gas as a result of the polite being put out)   So the companies added this feature that very literally self destructs, meaning the gas control will turn off, and a window will crack, thus your water heater is destroyed.   All you have to do to see if this happen to you new hot water heater removed the metal cover behind the gas control and look at the small glass window, if the small glass window looks like it’s smokey, cracked, or blacked from a flash of smoke & fire your heater is trash.

We provide top quality plumbing information about services, free estimates, installations and repairs on all Rheem, Ruud, Bradford white, State, and A.O. Smith electric, gas, propane, Bock, Thermaflow/Everhot oil fired hot water heaters, Navien, Rheem, Noritz, and Takagi tankless water heaters, Ruud, Bock, and lochinvar oil fired water heaters, SuperStor storage tanks, Peerless, Laars, and Crown tankless coils, and repairs on all hot water heater throughout the state of Connecticut including Bridgeport, CT- Bristol, CT- Cheshire, CT- Danbury,CT- Derby,CT- East Hartford,CT- East Haven,CT- Enfield,CT- Fairfield,CT- Hamden,CT- Hartford,CT- Meriden,CT- Orange,CT- Middletown,CT- Milford,CT- New Britain,CT- New Haven,CT- New London,CT- Norwalk,CT- East Norwalk,CT- Norwich,CT- Putnam,CT- Shelton,CT- Southington,CT- Stamford,CT- Stratford,CT- Southport,CT- Torrington,CT- Wallingford,CT- Watertown,CT- West Hartford,CT- West Haven,CT- Westport,CT- Wethersfield,CT- Willimantic,CT- all shore areas, and surrounding Connecticut areas. Contact us today for a professional plumbing experience.  Power vent water heaters aren’t cheep, but we are here to get your new power vent water heater installed as quickly, safely, and affordable as possible. Invite us over for a free estimate and we may leave you in shock from how good your were treated.  ; )    203-556-6449

Oil fired water heaters heat water exactly the same way as traditional natural gas, and propane water heaters by a law of physics called convection. The most important difference is that oil fired water heaters use oil as their fuel source.

Oil fired water heaters are more expensive that natural gas water heaters.
The 30 gallon tank alone is over $700, and the 50 gallon is more than $900 at cost, (lower than home owner prices) you will also need a new oil burner that goes for about $300- $400,  T&P valve, copper piping.  Also If the current exhaust piping is bad and needs to be replaced as it is needed in most cases you are looking at another 100 bucks for piping. Oil filters at the main oil tank it’s self should be replace at this time also to better protect your new investment.

What size oil fired water heater do I need? -Oil fired water heaters heats water extremely fast. (twice as fast than natural gas heaters & electric water heaters) The speed of which water is heated is called “recovery rating”.  30 gallon oil fired water heaters can produce roughly 110 gallons of hot water in the “first hour”.  (The water heating industry goes by the measurement “1st hour rating” to measure this speed for all kinds of water heaters.)   If you have a family of 4 people or less most likely a 30 gallon oil fried water heater will meet, and exceed your demands.  If you have a family of 5 or larger, or 3-4 with a whirl pool tub you use regularly you may want to go with a 50 gallon oil fired water heaters.  50 gallon oil fired water heaters create huge amounts of hot water, more than 200 gallons an hour, so you will basically never run out of hot water.  A 50 gallon oil fired water heater takes up a lot of space, uses a lot of oil, thus are very expensive to run.  If you have a very large family, or run a business out of your home which uses hot water, you could need a 50 gallon model, however most homes will be fine with 30 gallon oil fired water heater. Most oil fired water heating companies only offer 30 & 50 gallon tank sizes.

The cost of labor is hard to determine without seeing the old oil fired water heater. The tank itself is very heavy and at least two plumbers are needed to handle the tank properly without damaging it.  Sometimes removing the old tank will take more than two people if the tank is located in a basement and must be pulled up stairs as the old tank can be extremely heavy.  Installing a new oil fired water heater is nothing like installing a traditional water heater.  Other than the water lines everything is pretty much different. Installing the new oil burner can be a pain, and also needs some fine tuning to get it operating at it’s most efficient level, and there is an emergency cut off switch & other electrical connections that need to made. The exhaust pipe almost always needs to be replaced, then the air needs to be bled out of the oil line, (without making a huge mess),  not to mention the new tank weights about 500 hundred pounds.  Installing new oil fried water heaters should be left to expert plumbers only.

The job it’s self takes 2 plumbers about 3 hours, but in reality it takes twice that for us.  1st meeting the client, looking at the oil water heater, agreeing on a price & writing up the paper work, then picking up the heater, removing the old tank & installing the new one, settling up on the bill, then going to the dump to get rid of the old tank.  You have a lunch break in there some where.
How much does a new oil fired water heater cost to have installed? All together installing a new oil fired water heater could take 2 guys nearly a full day, so labor for installing a new oil fired water heater is around 700.  Where as installing a new gas or electric water heaters is done with only 1, maybe 2 plumbers and takes less than one third the time, which is why regular water heaters cost much less.

Saving money on oil fired water heaters: Illegal unlicensed un-insured fellas that call themselves plumbers, (but in reality are painters and what not) obviously will charge less to put these water heaters in if you let them, and may do a good job.  But if there’s a problem in the future will they come back?  If the tank is in some way defective will they install the next one for free?  Will you lose sleep at night knowing  “the friend of a friend/ or nephew” could have mistaking installed a bomb in your basement?
You have nothing to worry about when we are on the job.  So if you want a stress free process and quality job done correctly the first time by licensed & insured plumbers.  That uses the best parts, test & fine tune the burner to get the highest efficiency out put, clean up the job site like we were never there, and put everything including a warranty in writing give us a call.

*Every body is hell bent on saving money these days, and we realise this, money’s tight for our families as well, but their is no such thing as a cheep oil fired water heater, and they take plumbing talent to install correctly.  Our normal prices are extremely competitive, but please be aware the total cost for a oil fired water heaters starts around $1,900.

If that’s to expensive for you budget, we can install a top quality electric water heater instead for about 800 bucks, but you will have less hot water, and your electric bill will likely double.   (It’s a case of pay now, or pay later)

If you hate the idea of putting another oil fried water heater in your basement, but are stuck with oil/ have no natural gas service.  we can install a propane tankless water heater instead.  You would need to have a propane tank installed but  some propane companies are now offering No start up cost services when opening a new account. Start up costs are going to be more than a oil fired water heater, but you would at that point save money on you energy bill.   Your basement will be a lot cleaner, the air quality will be better,and the tank is small and is mounted on the wall, so it’s space saving as well.


(A new oil fired Tankless/wall mounted/instantaneous water heater just came out, to learn more about that check out this post.)

(If you made it this far, and still stressing about your leaking oil fired water heater by now it’s obviously we know our business, so  if you live in Connecticut just give us a call and relax already!)

Here a picture of a oil fired water heater just about to be replaced.
Specifically from the front, with the camera pointed downward towards the burner.

Best Regards-

We provide top quality plumbing information about services, free estimates, installations and repairs on all Rheem, Ruud, Bradford white, State, and A.O. Smith electric, gas, propane, Bock, Thermaflow/Everhot oil fired hot water heaters, Navien, Rheem, Noritz, and Takagi tankless water heaters, Ruud, Bock, and lochinvar oil fired water heaters, SuperStor storage tanks, Peerless, Laars, and Crown tankless coils, and repairs on all hot water heater throughout the state of Connecticut including Bridgeport, CT- Bristol, CT- Cheshire, CT- Danbury,CT- Derby,CT- East Hartford,CT- East Haven,CT- Enfield,CT- Fairfield,CT- Hamden,CT- Hartford,CT- Meriden,CT- Orange,CT- Middletown,CT- Milford,CT- New Britain,CT- New Haven,CT- New London,CT- Norwalk,CT- East Norwalk,CT- Norwich,CT- Putnam,CT- Shelton,CT- Southington,CT- Stamford,CT- Stratford,CT- Southport,CT- Torrington,CT- Wallingford,CT- Watertown,CT- West Hartford,CT- West Haven,CT- Westport,CT- Wethersfield,CT- Willimantic,CT- all shore areas, and surrounding Connecticut areas.

What they look like, what they are exactly, how they work, & what you need to know if your considering buying one.

*Your at the right place.  We have so much information about them, the information is broken up into different areas.
For more detailed information just read some other posts about tankless water heaters, it’s all in here.

Here is some basic information about Tankless water heaters.

Here is a picture of what you can expect your new tankless water installation to look like when going from an old tank to new wall mounted tankless style.

Navien and Noritz are two of the best names in Tankless Water Heaters today.

This next picture shows the inside of the tank.  For more information on how they work, prices, ratings, tax credits, good & bad things that go along with them, please read some more posts in the tankless area.

We provide top quality plumbing information about services, free estimates, installations and repairs on all Rheem, Ruud, Bradford white, State, and A.O. Smith electric, gas, propane, Bock, Thermaflow/Everhot oil fired hot water heaters, Navien, Rheem, Noritz, and Takagi tankless water heaters, Ruud, Bock, and lochinvar oil fired water heaters, SuperStor storage tanks, Peerless, Laars, and Crown tankless coils, Solar water heating installations, and repairs on all hot water heater throughout the state of Connecticut including Bridgeport, CT- Bristol, CT- Cheshire, CT- Danbury,CT- Derby,CT- East Hartford,CT- East Haven,CT- Enfield,CT- Fairfield,CT- Hamden,CT- Hartford,CT- Meriden,CT- Orange,CT- Middletown,CT- Milford,CT- New Britain,CT- New Haven,CT- New London,CT- Norwalk,CT- East Norwalk,CT- Norwich,CT- Putnam,CT- Shelton,CT- Southington,CT- Stamford,CT- Stratford,CT- Southport,CT- Torrington,CT- Wallingford,CT- Watertown,CT- West Hartford,CT- West Haven,CT- Westport,CT- Wethersfield,CT- Willimantic,CT- all shore areas, and surrounding Connecticut areas.

What they look like, what they are exactly, how they work, why they break down, and what your options are.

How they work, here.

We provide top quality plumbing information about services, free estimates, installations and repairs on all Rheem, Ruud, Bradford white, State, and A.O. Smith electric, gas, propane, Bock, Thermaflow/Everhot oil fired hot water heaters, Navien, Rheem, Noritz, and Takagi tankless water heaters, Ruud, Bock, and lochinvar oil fired water heaters, SuperStor storage tanks, Peerless, Laars, and Crown tankless coils, Solar water heating installations, and repairs on all hot water heater throughout the state of Connecticut including Bridgeport, CT- Bristol, CT- Cheshire, CT- Danbury,CT- Derby,CT- East Hartford,CT- East Haven,CT- Enfield,CT- Fairfield,CT- Hamden,CT- Hartford,CT- Meriden,CT- Orange,CT- Middletown,CT- Milford,CT- New Britain,CT- New Haven,CT- New London,CT- Norwalk,CT- East Norwalk,CT- Norwich,CT- Putnam,CT- Shelton,CT- Southington,CT- Stamford,CT- Stratford,CT- Southport,CT- Torrington,CT- Wallingford,CT- Watertown,CT- West Hartford,CT- West Haven,CT- Westport,CT- Wethersfield,CT- Willimantic,CT- all shore areas, and surrounding Connecticut areas.

In this post you will see what some indirect water heaters look like, you’ll find out what  they are exactly, how they work, and what your options are if/ or when you need a new one. Enjoy

Tankless Coil and Indirect Water Heaters.A home’s space heating system can also be used to heat water. Two types of water heaters that use this system are tankless coil and indirect. No separate storage tank is needed in the tankless coil water heater because water is heated directly inside the boiler within a separate chamber of the heating system. The water flows through a heat exchanger in the boiler whenever a hot water faucet is turned on. During colder months, the tankless coil works well because the heating system is used regularly. However, the system is less efficient during warmer months and in warmer climates when the boiler is used less frequently.

A separate storage tank is required with an indirect water heater. Like the tankless coil, the indirect water heater circulates water through a heat exchanger in the boiler. But this heated water then flows to an insulated storage tank. Because the boiler does not need to operate frequently, this system is more efficient than the tankless coil. In fact, when an indirect water heater is used with a highly efficient boiler, the combination may provide one of the least expensive methods of water heating.

Over time indirect water tanks need to be replaced like anything else.
Glass lined storage tanks can last 10-12 years and cost about as much large traditional water heaters 500- 700 dollars.  Stainless steal lined storage tanks can last 20-30+  years, and cost some whaere between 900- 1,200 dollars some brands such as superstor come with long term warranties.

We provide top quality plumbing information about services, free estimates, installations and repairs on all Rheem, Ruud, Bradford white, State, and A.O. Smith electric, gas, propane, Bock, Thermaflow/Everhot oil fired hot water heaters, Navien, Rheem, Noritz, and Takagi tankless water heaters, Ruud, Bock, and lochinvar oil fired water heaters, SuperStor storage tanks, Peerless, Laars, and Crown tankless coils, Solar water heating installations, and repairs on all hot water heater throughout the state of Connecticut including Bridgeport, CT- Bristol, CT- Cheshire, CT- Danbury,CT- Derby,CT- East Hartford,CT- East Haven,CT- Enfield,CT- Fairfield,CT- Hamden,CT- Hartford,CT- Meriden,CT- Orange,CT- Middletown,CT- Milford,CT- New Britain,CT- New Haven,CT- New London,CT- Norwalk,CT- East Norwalk,CT- Norwich,CT- Putnam,CT- Shelton,CT- Southington,CT- Stamford,CT- Stratford,CT- Southport,CT- Torrington,CT- Wallingford,CT- Watertown,CT- West Hartford,CT- West Haven,CT- Westport,CT- Wethersfield,CT- Willimantic,CT- all shore areas, and surrounding Connecticut areas.

The standard “tank type” water heater is found in most homes and with just a little maintenance, provides years of trouble free operation.   Tank type water heaters heats cold water and stores the hot water until it is needed.  This post will give you a clear understanding of the components which make up the gas & electric hot water heaters.

Water heaters works by a law of physics called convection which means heat rises.  Heat rising and convection is a simple rule that we live with everyday.  Cold water is supplied to the tank and pushed to the bottom of the tank through a dip tube.  The denser cold water stays there and is heated by the gas burner- in gas water heaters & heating element in an electric water heater.  As the water heats up, it naturally rises, and is drawn off by the hot water discharge pipe. The hot water pipe is much shorter on the hot water pipe than the cold water pipe which ensures that only the hottest water is being used from the tank.

Cold water is provided to the tank by a cold water supply line and controlled by a shut off valve.  It is important to know where the water supply shut off valve is located in the case of a tank failure/ leaking tank. The hot water discharge is the end of the hot water “heating system” and where the hot water line meets the line that supplies all your sinks, tubs, showers and appliance needing hot water.

When you are looking at your water heater what you see is the tank jacket, and the tank jacket is made of  lite steel and encloses a pressure tested water storage tank. Between the storage tank and the tank jacket is insulation to reduce heat loss of the heated water. It is not a good idea to use those fiberglass insulation tank covers to the outside of the hot water heater.  They hold mositure on the tank and promote rusting of the tank, fiberglass insultion tank covers can even void some manufacuers warrieties.

Inside the tank you will see a dip tube. The dip tube is where the cold water supply enters the tank to be heated by the gas burner. Since cold air and cold water is denser than hot air or hot water, the cold water sets at the bottom of the tank until it is warmed by the burner and heated enough to rise (through convection) to the top of the tank where the hot water hangs out.

In glass-lined tanks there will also be a metal Anode rodin the tank, usually magnesium or aluminum) sometimes it’s called a sacrificial anode . The anode rod is bolted and fastened to the top of the tank and extends deep into the tank. It’s purpose is to draw corrosion to itself instead of the metal tanks it’s self.  Small cracks develop over time in the glass lining, and the anode rod improves the life of your water heater tank.  Is is nearly impossible to exchange the anode rode because they bond with the heater from years of heating and cooling/expansion & contraction.  If you could replace the anode rod in theroy hot water heatres could last 20-30+ years.

The natural gas or propane is supplied by a pipe having its own gas shutoff valve. Just like you need to know where the water supply shutoff valve is located, you need to know where the gas line shutoff is located too. The gas line fees into a gas burner control module that serves as a kind of thermostat for the water heater. It also controls the ignition of the pilot light .

From the control module we now proceed to the gas burner assembly. This includes the pilot light and gas burner itself. The pilot light and burner adjustment are key to proper and energy efficient operation of the water heater. The gas flame should about 1/2 inch in height and should have a blue tip.

Gas Combustion Exhaust Flue The exhaust flue serves two purposes. It exhausts combustion gasses from the burner and it serves as a type of heat exchanger helping to heat the water in the storage tank. The flue must be properly exhausted to the outside and there are specific code requirements for the type of flue construction and acceptable details.  General rule of them is that, the exhaust wants to rise naturally and the smoke pipe/ or flue pipe takes the exhaust to the chimney, and the chimney takes it up and out of the house.  If their is no chimney in your house, or the one you have is bad/ condemned you have, or need a power vent water heater.  A power vent water heater has a special motor that sits on top of the water heater and forces the exhaust thur 3-4 inch pvc pipe to an outside wall. The location of the pipe must be a  few feet away from any windows and door ways.

Safety features. A safety feature of the hot water heater includes the pressure relief valve and discharge pipe.  The purpose of this valve is to relieve excessive temperature or pressure build up inside the tank if it approaches the limits of the tank’s safe design range. This valve is located on top, or side of the tank and is threaded directly into the tank striaght from the factory . To test the valve lift up on the handle slightly and hot water should discharge out of the overflow pipe. However if the water heater, and valve is very old it’s possiable that once you open the valve it won’t completly shut again!

Draining the Tank. The hot water tank can build up sediments in the bottom of the tank and if left unmaintained  it can rob you of hot water, and make your water dirty.  By draining the tank using the tank drain valve these sediments cannot build up. And if you don’t have sedimentation then that helps to prolong the life of your tank and improve your water quality.

Before you flush your water heater you must perform these following steps!!!