I currently have a 17-year-old, gas water heater. It's not giving me a problem yet, but I'm getting nervous about it and investigating replacing it. I am trying to be both economic and reduce my reliance on fossil fuels, and HPWHs look like they might be a good option.

For some reason, the current WH is about as far away from the faucets as possible in my 1940's house, but by eliminating fume exhaust needs with a HPWH, I can relocated it to directly below the lines to the bathrooms and next to the kitchen. Luckily, that is also where the drain (for condensate) is too.

I have the skill/knowledge to install one from a big-box store myself, but I'm not sure I trust the quality. Although more expensive, I'd prefer to have a professional installation with warranty assurance and some authority with the manufacturer.

However, the plumbers I've reached out to for quotes have been discouraging of HPWHs in favor of just replacing with gas. I live in upstate NY, so I realize that the efficiency in my 60-degree basement won't be as good as a 85-degree garage in the south, but I thought it was still an economical choice over the lifetime of the unit -- especially if I run it in heat-pump mode only without the direct heater element.

Am I incorrect and a HPWH as a replacement for gas (rather than part of a high-efficiency new-home build) don't make sense in upstate NY? Are the plumbers just not familiar with HPWHs? (I saw somewhere that they are still only a couple percent of all new installs.)

Any experiences with HPWH in the north? Worth it or should I stick with gas?

Thanks!

I currently have a 17-year-old, gas water heater. It's not giving me a problem yet, but I'm getting nervous about it and investigating replacing it. I am trying to be both economic and reduce my reliance on fossil fuels, and HPWHs look like they might be a good option.

For some reason, the current WH is about as far away from the faucets as possible in my 1940's house, but by eliminating fume exhaust needs with a HPWH, I can relocated it to directly below the lines to the bathrooms and next to the kitchen. Luckily, that is also where the drain (for condensate) is too.

I have the skill/knowledge to install one from a big-box store myself, but I'm not sure I trust the quality. Although more expensive, I'd prefer to have a professional installation with warranty assurance and some authority with the manufacturer.

However, the plumbers I've reached out to for quotes have been discouraging of HPWHs in favor of just replacing with gas. I live in upstate NY, so I realize that the efficiency in my 60-degree basement won't be as good as a 85-degree garage in the south, but I thought it was still an economical choice over the lifetime of the unit -- especially if I run it in heat-pump mode only without the direct heater element.

Am I incorrect and a HPWH as a replacement for gas (rather than part of a high-efficiency new-home build) doesn't make sense in upstate NY? Are the plumbers just not familiar with HPWHs? (I saw somewhere that they are still only a couple percent of all new installs.)

Thanks!