Water Heater Installation in Durant, OK
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What a new water heater needs to handle in Durant
Winter nights here average 34°F from December through February, so a new tank is drawing in cold groundwater for a good stretch of the year before it can bring it up to temperature. Recovery rate is worth checking against the household when you're sizing a replacement.
Wind is the bigger risk. Bryan County has logged 50 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and a quarter of Oklahoma households lost power for 24 hours or more in 2024. A gas water heater with a standing pilot keeps making hot water through an outage like that. One that relies on electronics to ignite will not, until the power comes back.
- 34°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 5 months
- November through March, the months homes here need heat
- 25%
- of Oklahoma households lost power for a day or more in 2024, and a heater with an electric element or electric ignition stops without it
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A heat pump water heater would save about $250 a year to run in Oklahoma compared with an electric water heater.
Estimates for a typical Oklahoma home, from EIA household energy data and Oklahoma fuel prices. Your home will differ.
- How do I know it's time to replace my water heater?
- Age is the first thing to check with the manufacturer's date on the tank, since older units are the ones most likely to fail without warning. Watch for water around the base of the tank, water that takes longer to heat or runs out fast, or a rumbling sound from sediment that has built up inside. Rust colored water from the hot tap, especially if it doesn't clear up, usually means the tank itself is corroding from the inside, and that's not something a contractor can repair.
- Should I switch to a tankless water heater?
- It depends on what you want out of it, not on whether your current tank is failing. A tankless unit heats water on demand instead of storing it, so you don't run out during a long shower or back to back loads, and it takes up a fraction of the space a tank does. It won't help if the power goes out, since most tankless units run on electricity or need it to ignite the burner. Have a contractor look at your gas line and venting first, because switching from a tank often means upsizing both to keep up with a tankless unit's demand.
- What changes when you install a tankless water heater?
- The biggest change is that hot water no longer runs out. A tank holds a fixed amount and takes time to recover once it's empty. A tankless unit heats water as it flows through, so as long as it's sized right for the house, you get hot water for as long as you run the tap. What often changes underneath that is the gas line and venting, since tankless units need more gas flow than most tanks were set up for, and the vent has to match the manufacturer's spec exactly. A contractor will check both before install, not after.