How to Get the Most Bang for Your Buck in Water Heating

Heating water is the third largest energy expense to most home consumers annually. In fact, it typically accounts for roughly 13 percent of the average utility bill. Getting the most bang for your buck when heating water is way easier than you may think.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Forget the rubber duckie and take more showers than baths. Sudsing it up in the tub uses the most hot water in the average household.

2. Go with the flow. Install low-flow, aerating showerheads and faucets.

3. Repair leaky faucets ASAP. Believe it or not, a leaky faucet can waste literally gallons of water in a very short time period.

4. Lower your thermostat. New water heaters sometimes come from the factory pre-programmed with high temperature ratings. A comfortable setting of 120 degrees will provide ample heat for most hot water uses.

5. Trap the heat. Install heat traps on cold and hot pipes at the water heater in order to prevent any loss of heat. Bear in mind that some new heaters have built-in traps.

6. Down the drain. Drain a a quart of water from your water tank around every 3 or 4 months. Doing this removes sediment that may impede the transfer of heat.

7. Always insulate. It's best to insulate the first 6 feet of the hot and cold water pipes that are connected to the water heater.

Tips & Warnings

• Go solar. To see if you may qualify for tax credits or rebates for buying a solar water heater, visit the database of State Incentives for Reneable Energy. More than 1.5 million homes and business in the United States have installed solar water heating with much success.
• Although most new water heaters have a life span of 10 to 15 years, it's probably best to start looking for a new one if your current model is more than 7 years old.
• If you do decide to purchase a new tank, consider buying an ENERGY STAR model to reduce hot water use.
• While it's advised to insulate your natural gas or hot water tank, be careful not to cover the water heater's thermostat or burner compartment.

Resources

• Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy
• The U.S. Department of Energy