#AVERAGE AGE OF WATER HEATER FAILURE FREE#

Tankless water heaters, which heat water on demand and cost about two to three times as much, last longer – about 15 to 20 years. When they fail, the main sign is a leak showing that the tank itself has been compromised. Traditional tank water heaters, where a tank of water is kept continually hot, last between eight and 12 years, depending on how often they are used, and how hard your water is, said Medaglia.

#AVERAGE AGE OF WATER HEATER FAILURE FREE#

“Keeping them clean and free flowing helps prevent that.” “Over time they pit from acidity, get little pin holes and leak in the seams where they are connected,” DeMarco said. “Roofs with a steep pitch tend to last longer because they don’t have as much snow and debris sitting on them.”įlat roofs generally last about 20 years.Īluminum gutters can last well over 20 years and you can easily extend their lifespan by routine maintenance and repairs when needed. “It depends on how well it was installed in the first place, how much snow has rested on top, whether there has been damage from leaves and debris, whether leaks were addressed properly over time,” he said. At the same time, there are roofs that were installed in the 1960’s that are still functioning fairly well, DeMarco said. One installed after the 1990’s should have about a 30-year lifespan. Pitched roofs with shingles that were installed in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s were made of a material that had a 15-year life span, and roofers generally don’t see those anymore. How long your roof will last depends, in part, on when it was installed because material quality improved, said DeMarco. Medaglia said that when the economy was struggling, he generally saw more customers opting to repair and limp through the final years of an HVAC system. “That probably makes your decision for you.”Īir conditioning systems generally have a 15- to 20-year life span, and most often it's the outside unit that fails first because of the exposure to the elements. “Say after about 15 years your fan assembly goes, the repair cost can be half the price of a new unit,” said Medaglia. Gas or electric-fired forced hot air furnaces generally last 15 to 20 years, said Michael Medaglia, owner of Water Works Plumbing, Heating, and Air Conditioning of Westwood. “We were at a home a few months ago that was only five years old, but they had burned so many extremely hot fires in it that it was totally trashed,” he said. In the worst cases, it can’t be repaired or rebuilt and a steel liner needs to be swapped in.įactory-built fireplaces – built in a factory and assembled on-site – have metal flues and generally last between 15 and 25 years. Sometimes sections can be replaced other times the whole liner needs to be replaced. What usually fails are the mortar joints between sections of terra cotta, or cracking in the terra cotta liner itself, Oosting said. “If people have barely used it for 30 years, it can be in great shape, or if they use it very frequently, it can need replacement after a much shorter time.” “That’s guided by use,” said Rudi Oosting, owner of Oosting Custom Masonry and Chimney Service Company, in Midland Park. Chimneyįor a masonry fireplace with a terra cotta liner, like you see in most older homes, the lifespan is about 20 to 30 years.

“If no water gets behind the stucco, it can easily last a person’s lifetime,” DeMarco said. As long as the mortar in a brick home was mixed and cured well, it can last 100 years without any sign of wear. Newer versions of cement board can easily last 50 years. Other housing cladding options have similarly long lives. If “nothing lasts forever” is the rule of thumb for what's inside and outside your house, siding might be the exception to the rule. Very few homeowners have concrete driveways, which last about the same but the repair and replacement costs are much higher, he said. It's time to replace a driveway when the cost of repairs is approaching the cost to replace. “The point it would be no longer usable would be 30 to 40 years, but most people don’t want to keep fixing and patching.” “If it’s installed correctly, an asphalt driveway can last at least 20 years,” said Mitch George, owner of Tri County Paving in Hopatcong. That’s why it’s good to have a general idea of the lifespan of various components so you’re not faced with an unpleasant surprise.

Like many things in life, when it comes to your home, nothing lasts forever.

How long your roof will last depends, in part, on when it was installed because material quality improved.

Gas or electric-fired forced hot air furnaces generally last 15 to 20 years.

For a masonry fireplace with a terracotta liner, the lifespan is about 20 to 30 years.

People change siding for looks and style.

Average age of water heater failure