Free tool
Gas, electric, heat pump or solar?
Including how long each one lasts and what breaks on it.
Power
About 180 L of hot water a day
Pick two to five. 3 selected.
| Electric storage | Gas continuous flowThe most common thing we fit. | Heat pumpOur climate suits them - they never see the cold that hurts them down south. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runs on | Electricity | Gas | Electricity |
| Efficiency | 100% | 84% | 3.2x — it moves heat rather than making it |
| Cost to install | $ — The cheapest thing to put in, especially like-for-like. Dearest to run, which is the trade-off. | $$ — Similar to a gas tank to fit, though it needs correct flueing and sometimes an upgraded gas line for the higher burn rate. | $$ — Not much more work than swapping a tank, but they are heavy and the trim can be awkward depending on where the old unit sits. More components than a tank too, so expect more servicing over its life. |
| How long it lasts | 10-15 years | 12-20 years | 10-15 years |
| What goes wrong | Element, then thermostat. Eventually the tank rusts through and you find out via the floor. | Water valve, flame rod, and scale in the heat exchanger on hard water. | Compressor and fan. More moving parts than anything else here. |
| Who it suits | A cheap like-for-like swap, or a rental where the owner pays to install and the tenant pays to run. | Most Brisbane families on gas. Endless hot water, nothing sitting there losing heat. | Getting off gas, or replacing an electric tank and wanting the running cost to drop hard. |
No install prices, on purpose. What an install costs depends on where the old one sits, what the gas line does and where the drain is — a number here would be a guess at your house. The $ ranking says which is dearer without pretending to a precision we haven't got.
Put real running-cost numbers on these