The Complete Handbook of Water Heaters
A practical reference for professionals, contractors, and businesses choosing, installing, and maintaining water heating systems
by Alumigogo Books
non-fiction
The professional's guide to water heater systems: types, specifications, installation, maintenance, and business opportunities—without the sales pitch.
About this book
Water heaters are expensive, long-lived, and often misunderstood. Whether you're a plumber troubleshooting a failed unit, a facility manager evaluating options for a commercial building, a contractor installing a new system, or someone looking to build a business around water heating, you need practical knowledge grounded in how these systems actually work—not marketing claims or generic how-to content.
This handbook covers the full lifecycle of water heating: what different types actually are and how they differ, what specifications actually matter when you're evaluating one, how to choose the right system for a specific situation, installation best practices, maintenance routines and real troubleshooting steps, and the business landscape of brands, suppliers, and opportunities. Each chapter is written for someone who needs to make a real decision or solve a real problem, with concrete examples, honest trade-offs, and technical depth grounded in field experience.
Whether you're replacing a failed tank, sizing a system for a new build, diagnosing a performance issue, or starting a service business, this is the reference you keep on your phone or desk.
Reader Reviews
Mary King
★★★★★I bought this expecting a general overview and was surprised by how much depth it actually has. Chapter 1 alone explains the physics of why you can't get hot water upstairs and what expansion tanks do—stuff I've pieced together from a dozen other sources. The troubleshooting section in Chapter 5 is genuinely useful. My only real complaint is that it doesn't go deeper into code requirements by jurisdiction, which is critical in my work as a contractor. Overall, solid reference I'll actually use.
Donna Baker
★★★★★As a facility manager dealing with aging water heaters across multiple buildings, I found this really practical. The comparison of tank vs. tankless in Chapter 2 is clear and honest about the actual trade-offs, not the marketing spin I usually see. Chapter 3 on sizing is concrete—actual flow rates and recovery times, not just a vague formula. My only criticism: the business section in Chapter 6 is less useful if you're managing systems in-house rather than selling or contracting. Still, I'd recommend it to anyone making a water heater decision.