Gas Storage to Electric Hot Water: Is It Worth Upgrading?
Gas Storage to Electric Hot Water: Is It Worth Switching?
Yes — and because you already have a storage-cylinder site, the physical conversion can be relatively straightforward. But compare heat pump before choosing resistance electric.
Gas storage and electric storage both keep a reserve of hot water in a tank, so the existing position, water services and drainage can often provide a useful starting point. The main change is the heat source: the gas burner is removed from hot-water service and the new system needs suitable electrical supply. Standard electric is simple, quiet and usually cheaper to buy than a heat pump, but it uses resistance heating. If the existing tank position is outdoors with useful airflow, we strongly recommend comparing heat pump as the more efficient long-term electrification pathway.
Does Electric Storage Suit Your Gas Replacement?
This checks the main decision factors. Final suitability still depends on tank size, existing services, gas isolation, electrical supply, drainage and the exact replacement system.
1What gas supply do you use now?
2What is the existing tank location like?
3What matters most?
Guide only. A licensed installer must confirm the final plumbing, gas, electrical, drainage, tank-base and compliance requirements for the selected system and location.
Can You Replace Gas Storage With Electric Storage?
Yes. Gas storage can be replaced with a standard electric storage system where the property has suitable electrical supply and the existing site suits the new cylinder. Because both technologies store hot water, the conversion can often reuse the general tank position and existing hot and cold water services, subject to the new unit's size and installation requirements.
Why Change From Gas Storage to Electric Hot Water?
The main reasons are usually electrification, moving away from natural gas or LPG, simplifying the hot-water heat source and using rooftop solar electricity where available.
Move Hot Water Off Gas
The new system heats with electricity, so gas is no longer required for normal hot-water production.
Existing Storage Site
The property already accommodates a tank, which can make conversion to another storage system more straightforward than converting from continuous flow.
Simple, Quiet Heating
A conventional electric element has no burner, compressor or fan and operates quietly.
Lower Purchase Price
Standard electric storage is generally one of the lower-upfront storage technologies, although electrical conversion work may still be required.
Use Solar PV Directly
Electric storage can be scheduled into daytime solar production using appropriate controls, helping increase solar self-consumption.
But Compare Heat Pump
If the current tank is in an open outdoor position, heat pump can often use the same storage concept while needing much less electricity to heat the water. We highly recommend comparing it before choosing resistance electric.
Standard Electric vs Heat Pump: Current Installed Today Starting Prices
Compare the full installed pathway rather than product price alone. Standard electric usually has the lower appliance cost, while heat pump usually has the stronger long-term electrical-efficiency case and eligible models may qualify for STCs.
Simple, silent and usually the lower-upfront electric storage pathway.
Current Installed Today collection starting price. Final cost depends on product, installation scope, electrical work and location.
Higher purchase price, but much lower electrical energy use and a stronger fit with rooftop solar where the site is suitable.
Eligible models may also have an STC or state incentive pathway, subject to current rules.
Gas Storage vs Standard Electric vs Heat Pump
| Consideration | Gas Storage | Standard Electric | Heat Pump |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main heat source | Natural gas or LPG burner | Resistance-electric element | Heat from surrounding air + electricity |
| Storage tank | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Existing tank site | Already established | Often useful for conversion | Often useful if airflow, noise and clearance suit |
| Upfront product cost | Varies by gas type and model | Usually lower | Usually higher before eligible incentives |
| Energy efficiency | Government guidance describes gas storage as particularly inefficient because of tank heat loss and burner-area limitations | Simple resistance heating | Strong advantage Uses far less electricity than conventional electric storage |
| Solar PV compatibility | PV does not fuel the gas burner | Can use timer / diverter controls | Excellent Lower electrical load can be scheduled into daytime solar |
| Noise | Burner operation | Very quiet | Compressor and fan operate while heating |
| STCs | No heat-pump / solar STC pathway | No hot-water STCs for conventional resistance storage | Eligible listed systems may qualify |
| Best reason to choose | Stay with an existing gas setup and familiar recovery characteristics | Lower upfront cost, silence and simplicity | Long-term efficiency, solar integration and electrification |
The Existing Gas-Storage Position Is a Major Conversion Advantage
Unlike instant gas, gas storage already gives the property a full-size hot-water cylinder location. That can make the move to either standard electric or heat pump much more logical.
Tank Space Already Exists
The property already has a footprint for stored hot water, although the new cylinder dimensions still need to fit.
Hot & Cold Plumbing Is Nearby
Existing services can often provide a practical starting point, subject to new connection positions and compliance requirements.
Drainage May Already Exist
Existing relief drainage can be useful, although the new system must still meet its own discharge requirements.
Base May Be Reusable
The existing foundation can sometimes be reused if it is sound, level, correctly positioned and large enough for the replacement cylinder.
Service Access Is Established
The home already has a known hot-water service location, reducing the need to invent a completely new installation zone.
Heat Pump May Fit Too
If that same location is outdoors with suitable airflow, noise separation and clearance, the existing gas-storage site can be an excellent heat-pump conversion position.
What Happens to the Existing Gas Connection?
The gas branch serving the old storage system needs to be made safe as part of the conversion. Whether the wider property gas supply remains depends on what else still uses natural gas or LPG.
Keep the Property Gas Supply
Cooktops, heating, fireplaces or other gas appliances can continue using the existing supply. Only the redundant hot-water branch needs to be dealt with for this conversion.
Full Gas Exit Can Be Considered
If no other appliance needs gas, the hot-water conversion can create an opportunity to consider whether the broader gas service, account or LPG arrangement is still required.
Does the Existing Gas-Storage Site Have the Electrical Supply You Need?
Do not assume so. A gas-storage system may use little or no electricity compared with an electric hot-water cylinder. The replacement system needs a circuit, cable, protection, isolation and control arrangement that suits its actual electrical load.
New Dedicated Circuit May Be Required
A conventional electric storage element can place a substantial continuous load on the circuit, so the supply must be sized and protected appropriately.
Tariff Choice Matters
Depending on the property and retailer, standard electric storage may use a controlled-load or time-of-use strategy rather than heating at any time of day.
Heat Pump Can Change the Electrical Picture
Many heat pumps use a much smaller electrical input than a large resistance element, although the exact circuit and connection requirements depend on the selected model.
Already Have Solar PV? Compare Heat Pump Before Standard Electric
Both electric pathways can use rooftop-solar electricity, but they do not use it equally. Standard electric can shift a large resistance-heating load into the daytime; a heat pump can perform the same water-heating task with much lower electrical demand.
Standard Electric + Timer
A timer can move the element into a daytime solar window, helping use self-generated electricity instead of grid power.
Electric + Solar Diverter
A Catch Power-style diverter or similar controller can feed surplus PV into the resistance element, improving solar self-consumption but not the element's underlying efficiency.
Heat Pump + Solar PV
A heat pump can also be scheduled into the daytime while needing far less electricity, leaving more solar generation available for the rest of the home or battery charging.
Where the existing gas-storage site is already outdoors and suitable for both technologies, rooftop solar is a strong reason for us to recommend heat pump over standard electric. A timer improves when resistance heating occurs; a heat pump reduces the amount of electricity the water-heating task needs in the first place.
Do You Need the Same Tank Size as Your Old Gas Storage System?
Not automatically. Gas storage can recover hot water quickly using a burner, so a gas tank with a modest stored volume may serve a household differently from a resistance-electric cylinder. When converting, size the new system around usable stored hot water, peak demand and recovery — not the old litres alone.
Household Size
More occupants generally increase required stored volume and the importance of recovery time.
Peak Shower Demand
Back-to-back showers can empty a storage tank faster than average daily usage suggests.
Baths & Large Fixtures
Large baths and simultaneous fixtures can make peak demand more important than household headcount.
Heating Window
Off-peak or solar-timed electric storage must hold enough usable hot water between heating periods.
Recovery Rate
Do not assume an electric element will recover the tank at the same pace as the old gas burner.
Heat Pump Sizing
Heat pump also needs proper sizing around storage, recovery, climate and operating schedule rather than simply copying the gas tank capacity.
When Gas Storage to Standard Electric Can Genuinely Make Sense
Standard electric has a legitimate place in this conversion. It is strongest where the customer values simplicity, silence and lower upfront system cost more than maximum energy efficiency.
Lowest Upfront Cost Matters Most
A conventional electric cylinder is often cheaper to buy than a comparable heat pump, which can matter for urgent or tightly budgeted replacements.
Tank Must Be Indoors or Enclosed
A standard electric tank can suit locations that do not provide the airflow a heat pump needs, subject to the product and installation requirements.
Silence Is Critical
No compressor or fan makes resistance-electric storage attractive when the only tank position is very close to bedrooms or a sensitive boundary.
Very Low Hot-Water Demand
Where energy use is genuinely low, the absolute running-cost saving from higher efficiency may take longer to recover.
Simple Rental Replacement
Some owners prioritise simple equipment and lower initial capital cost, provided the system is correctly sized and compliant.
Heat-Pump Relocation Is Disproportionate
If making a heat pump work would require major relocation or site reconstruction, standard electric can be the more practical electrification fallback.
When We Would Recommend Heat Pump Instead of Standard Electric
Because gas storage already provides a cylinder footprint, the heat-pump pathway often starts from a strong position. If even a few of the conditions below apply, our recommendation moves strongly toward heat pump.
Existing Tank Is Outdoors
An open external gas-storage location is often exactly the kind of site that can make a heat-pump conversion straightforward.
Rooftop Solar Already Exists
Daytime heat-pump operation can use a much smaller slice of household solar generation than a resistance element doing the same heating task.
LPG Hot Water
Moving away from bottled gas can remove fuel-delivery dependence while the heat pump reduces the electrical energy needed for the replacement system.
Hot Water Is the Last Gas Appliance
Replacing the final gas load can support broader household electrification and may create an opportunity to review whether an ongoing gas service is still needed.
High Hot-Water Use
The more energy the household uses for hot water, the more valuable a large efficiency improvement can become over time.
Long-Term Ownership
A longer time in the property gives lower operating-energy demand more opportunity to offset the higher upfront equipment cost.
STCs: Standard Electric vs Heat Pump
Conventional resistance-electric storage does not create hot-water STCs. Eligible air-source heat-pump water heaters can create Small-scale Technology Certificates when the exact system and completed installation meet current scheme requirements.
No Heat-Pump / Solar STC Pathway
Standard resistance-electric storage is not an eligible renewable hot-water technology under the heat-pump and solar STC pathway.
Eligible Models May Qualify
The exact heat-pump model, installation date, location and completed installation must satisfy the current scheme requirements. State programs can sit on top of the federal pathway in some areas.
Supply Only vs Supplied & Installed
Installed Today supplies hot-water systems across supported Australian metro areas and offers supplied-and-installed options where available in eligible Brisbane and Gold Coast service areas.
Arrange the Complete Conversion Scope
Gas-storage-to-electric conversion can involve licensed plumbing, gas and electrical work even when the existing tank position is reused. Confirm the complete scope before ordering.
- Confirm the new tank size and recovery requirement.
- Confirm whether the existing base and drainage can be reused.
- Confirm gas isolation requirements.
- Confirm the new electrical circuit, protection and control strategy.
Available Where Offered
Where an installed option is available, use the product installation choices to build the required scope. Final availability and price depend on the address, access, existing services, gas work, electrical requirements and selected system.
- Installation availability is location dependent.
- Conversion work differs from a like-for-like replacement.
- Electrical upgrades can materially affect final cost.
- Check exactly what the selected package includes.
How a Gas-Storage-to-Electric Conversion Usually Works
Assess the Existing Tank Site
Confirm base, access, plumbing, drainage and whether that same location could also support a heat pump.
Size the New Storage System
Choose capacity and recovery around actual household demand rather than automatically copying the gas tank litres.
Plan Gas & Electrical Work
Make the redundant gas branch safe and provide the electrical supply, protection, isolation and controls required by the new system.
Install & Commission
Complete plumbing, drainage, electrical setup and testing, then configure the heating schedule to suit the household, tariff or solar strategy.
Gas Storage to Electric Hot Water FAQs
Can I replace gas storage hot water with an electric tank?
Yes. Because both systems store hot water, the existing gas-storage position can often provide a useful starting point. The new cylinder still needs suitable sizing, electrical supply, drainage, base and plumbing, and the old gas branch must be made safe.
Is gas storage to electric easier than instant gas to electric?
Often, because gas storage already gives the property a full-size tank position, water services and usually relief drainage nearby. The electrical conversion and final system sizing still need to be checked.
Can I choose the same tank size as my old gas storage unit?
Not automatically. Gas storage can have different recovery characteristics from electric storage, so the replacement should be sized around household demand, peak usage, heating schedule and recovery rather than copying the old litres alone.
Is standard electric cheaper to install than a heat pump?
The standard electric appliance is usually cheaper to buy, but both conversions can require electrical work and changes to plumbing or drainage. If the existing gas tank position already suits a heat pump, compare the full installed price rather than the product price alone.
Should I choose electric storage or a heat pump when leaving gas?
Choose standard electric where lower upfront cost, silent operation or an enclosed location are the priority. If the existing tank is outdoors with good airflow, especially with rooftop solar or higher hot-water usage, we strongly recommend comparing heat pump because it can use much less electricity for the same stored-hot-water task.
Can I use solar panels with a standard electric hot-water tank?
Yes. A timer or solar-diverter control can move resistance heating into periods of rooftop-solar production. This improves solar self-consumption but does not change the underlying resistance-heating efficiency, so a heat pump remains the stronger comparison where the site suits one.
Do I need to remove the gas meter?
Not automatically. If other appliances still use gas, the property supply can remain while the old hot-water branch is made safe. If hot water was the final gas appliance, full gas disconnection or account closure can be considered separately.
Will my existing gas hot-water electrical connection run the new electric tank?
Do not assume so. A gas-storage system may use little electricity compared with a resistance-electric cylinder. The new system may require a dedicated circuit, suitable cable, protection, isolation and a different control arrangement.
Can standard electric hot water receive STCs?
No hot-water STC pathway applies to conventional resistance-electric storage. Eligible air-source heat-pump water heaters may create STCs when the exact model and completed installation meet current scheme requirements.
When should I stay with gas storage?
Staying with gas can remain practical where the existing gas setup is working well, the property will retain gas for other major appliances, electrical conversion would be disproportionate or the household specifically values familiar gas recovery characteristics.
Can I buy the electric hot-water system supply only?
Supply-only ordering is available on suitable products and delivery areas. Because the conversion can involve plumbing, gas and electrical work, confirm the complete licensed-trade scope before installation.
Leaving Gas Storage? Compare Standard Electric and Heat Pump Before You Decide
Standard electric is the simple, quiet and lower-upfront electric-storage pathway. But your existing gas-storage site already gives you one of the biggest things a heat pump needs: space for a full-size cylinder. If that position is outdoors and suitable — especially with rooftop solar — we strongly recommend comparing heat pump before committing to resistance electric.
