Water Heater Installation in El Dorado, AR
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What El Dorado winters and storms ask of a new water heater
Winter nights here average 35°F from December through February, and homes need heat from November through March, 5 months a year. A new water heater has to keep up through those months same as the rest of the year.
The power does not always stay on to run it. Ten years of records show 8 winter storms and 56 damaging wind events, and in 2024 almost a quarter of Arkansas households lost power for at least 24 hours. A gas water heater with a standing pilot needs no power at all to keep its flame lit. An electric unit, or a gas unit with an electronic igniter, will not heat water until the power is back.
Whatever you install has to clear a federal efficiency minimum, and that minimum is not one number. It is a formula based on the tank's rated volume, applied separately across four draw patterns, so a large tank and a small tank of the same type answer to different minimums.
- 35°F
- the average winter night, and colder incoming water means longer heating
- 5 months
- November through March, the months homes here need heat
- 24%
- of Arkansas 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 $290 a year to run in Arkansas compared with an electric water heater.
Estimates for a typical Arkansas home, from EIA household energy data and Arkansas fuel prices. Your home will differ.
- How do I know it's time to replace my water heater?
- The clearest sign is age. Once a tank water heater gets old, the tank itself can start to fail from the inside, not just the parts you can swap out. Watch for water pooling at the base, water that never gets fully hot, or a tank that makes rumbling or popping sounds as sediment builds up on the bottom. Rust-colored water from the hot tap, especially if it doesn't clear after running it a minute, usually means the tank is corroding and won't be fixed by a repair.
- Should I switch to a tankless water heater?
- It depends on what you want out of your hot water, not on your old tank failing. A tankless unit heats water as you use it instead of storing a tank full, so you don't run out during a long shower or back to back loads of laundry. It also takes up less space than a tank. Some homes need electrical or gas line changes to run one, so a contractor will need to look at what's already in place before you decide.
- What changes when you install a tankless water heater?
- The biggest change is that you stop storing hot water and start heating it on demand, which means the unit has to be sized to keep up with how much hot water you use at once. Because there's no tank losing heat while it sits full and idle, a tankless unit typically runs more efficiently over the year than a storage tank does. The unit mounts on a wall instead of sitting on the floor, so it frees up the space the old tank used. Gas line size, venting, and electrical hookups often need to be checked against what the tankless unit requires, since those needs are different from what a storage tank used.