Archive for the ‘water heater’ Category

8 Ways to Reduce Water Heating Costs at Home

Wednesday, November 14th, 2012

In a typical household, water heating accounts for about 18 percent of energy consumption. Anything that you can do to reduce that portion of your home’s energy usage can have a big impact on your utility bills. That’s why we put together the following tips to help Champaign, Urbana homeowners reduce their water heating costs.

8 Ways to Lower Your Water Heating Costs

In general there are four different ways to cut your water heating costs: reduce your hot water consumption, lower your units thermostat setting, add insulation and install water efficient appliances. All the following tips fit into one of those categories:

  1. Take faster showers. Showers typically account for the largest percentage of hot water consumption in your home. Reducing your showers by a couple of minutes is a great way to cut your water heating costs.
  2. Run only full loads of dishes and laundry. You want to make sure you’re getting the most out of the hot water you’re using, which is why it’s best to wait until your dishwasher or washing machine are full before running them.
  3. Turn off the water heater while vacationing. There’s no sense in heating water when you’re not going to be using it! If no one is going to be home for more than a few days, lower the thermostat on your water heater or shut it off completely.
  4. Lower your water heaters thermostat. This is one of the easiest ways to cut down on your water heating costs. Most manufacturers set their water heaters at 140 degrees, but the typical household only needs its unit set at around 120 degrees.
  5. Insulate your water heater. Insulation helps contain the heat inside of your water heater, resulting in less gas and/or electricity consumption.
  6. Insulate your pipes. Adding insulation to the first 6 feet r so of the pipes leaving your water heater is another great way to reduce heat loss.
  7. Install low flow faucets and shower heads. Low flow faucets and shower heads make it easy to cut down on your hot water consumption because they allow less hot water to get through at the source.
  8. Use water efficient appliances. Any time you’re looking for a new water heater, dishwasher or washing machine, make sure they are water efficient units that consume less hot water.

If you have any questions about how to lower your water heating costs, or if you’d like a plumbing system serviced or installed in your home, contact Lanz Plumbing, Heating and Cooling, your Champaign, Urbana plumbing, heating and cooling company.

Bye: Troy Lanz

 

 

 

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What Size Water Heater Do I Need for My Piatt County Home?

Wednesday, February 1st, 2012

When installing a new water heater in your Piatt County home, it is important to get one that is the appropriate size. Of course, one that is too small will not handle the capacity you need, so you will be stuck with water that is not quite hot enough.

You may think to just buy one that you are sure can more than handle the capacity you need, but there are drawbacks to this strategy. A water heater that is “too big” will also draw more power, resulting in waste and unnecessarily high bills. Plus, it will cost more up front than you really need to spend.

The trick is to get a water heater that is the correct size for your needs. For a conventional water heater with a tank, the metric you will need to refer to is the unit’s first hour rating, or FHR. To determine the necessary FHR, you first need to determine during which hour of the day your home uses the most water. Typically, this is either first thing in the morning or later in the evening, when most people are bathing. Once you know this, determine what the water usage is during that hour based on average usage for each task. For example, let’s say a typical morning in your home consists of:

  • 3 showers (average of 12 gallons each)
  • 1 food preparation (5 gallons)
  • 1 hand dishwashing (4 gallons)

That’s about 45 gallons of hot water needed during that hour, so you need a unit with an FHR somewhere in that ballpark. The U.S. Department of Energy has a good worksheet to use for these measurements, which includes average usage rates for common household hot water tasks.

If you are looking at getting a tankless water heater system, the process is a little more complicated. The important figure to know in that situation is the maximum temperature increase possible for a particular flow rate. That means adding up the flow rates for all the various appliances you may use at once, then figuring out how much you need to increase the temperature.

If you find any of this confusing, consider contacting a professional plumbing consultation during the selection process. That will ensure you get the water heater that is right for you.

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