It would seem that we are one of the very few countries in the world to use hugh water heaters that take up space and heat the room they’re in. Most other developed countries use on-demand water heaters and have for over a century.
It would seem to me that one of those would be cheaper in the long run, but only ever owning one house in my entire life, all I can go by is what I see and hear from other people, and from my experience in Germany.
It may be a very long run.
A friend of ours visited Israel and found that the water heater was on the roof and used some solar to keep the water hot. It also had to be turned on and off when it was going to be needed. She wasn’t told about that before the morning of her first shower. She found out the hard way.
It's not just a source of hot water, in a drastic emergency, where the municipal water supply fails, it can be tapped for drinking water. I've been through enough erf quakes and hurry Cains to be Able to factor that in...