A hundred years ago, for many families, bathing required heating water on the stove and pouring it into a tub, one pot at a time. Nowadays, it is easy to take for granted the luxury of turning a tap and seconds later enjoying a hot shower or steamy soak in the tub. One of the most valuable aspects of a plumbing system is its ability to supply hot water on demand. The mechanism that heats the water is called a water heater or a boiler.
Many non-plumbers use these words interchangeably, but in fact, they have distinct meanings. A water tank is a tank for heating and holding water. It contains heating elements that are powered by either electricity or gas. As hot water is taken from the top of the tank and into the pipes that will deliver it to the faucet where it’s needed, more cold water will enter the tank from the bottom. While a water heater heats water (usually to around 125 degrees Fahrenheit), it doesn’t actually boil water.
A boiler, on the other hand, heats water to the boiling point (212 degrees Fahrenheit) and then converts it into steam. The steam is then used to transfer heat to wherever it is needed. The steam can heat the air in an air conditioning system, and it can also the heated water in a plumbing system. So a Boiler in Westchester County can be a heating system and a water heater in one.
A boiler has some advantages over other heating methods. For one thing, it is very efficient because it is a closed system; any steam that isn’t used is converted back into water that becomes part of the heating cycle again. Since the re-entering water is already hot, it will not take as much power to boil it again. In addition, many consumers choose a boiler that is green, or eco-friendly. There are boilers that burn materials that are not fossil fuels, and these can save a lot of money on fuel.
If you are interested in getting more information about a water heater or Boiler in Westchester County, you can check out Cassidy Plumbing Inc. at
