Hot Water

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It is very cold here now and it I am filling a two litre bucket with cool water while waiting for hot water. Is there something that can be done so water is not wasted (other than catching it like I am doing?) Maybe insulating the pipes? Is it expensive and wasteful to get one of those recirculating water thingees?

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), January 03, 2002

Answers

You could do the tankless water heater thing--I think some can be installed under sinks and so on, so you actually might want to have more than one, depending upon how far away the tap is from the heater. Our furthest tap (shower) just about fills up a Clout (Costco brand) dishwasher powder container before getting hot.

I have also wondered whether you were better off to get appliances (dishwasher, washing machine) that heat their own water to the desired temperature (often advertised so that you can keep your heater down to 120 to 1) reduce the risk of burns to children turning on the hot water, and 2) to save energy), thereby saving the cost of having the tank heater on all the time, and of course saving water. The energy required to heat the water would be the same, but at least you're not keeping the heater on all the time.

The water issue is of concern depending upon how scarce it is in your area and how much you pay for it. The biggest water waster is probably flushing the toilet, unless you are using rainwater or your caught water for it.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), January 03, 2002.


How old is the house? How many stories? How easy is it to get to the pipes. (Mostly exposed, or in the wall, or a finished basement?)

Smaller copper pipes hold less cold water than larger galvinised pipes.

Insulating the pipes helps, the water may not cool down so much between uses.

The curculating thing will use more energy, probably more than you lose by dumping a 1/2 gallon each time you use water. You would need to insulate the pipes for this anyhow, so if you can get to the pipes try insulating them first. See if it helps for your pipes and your habbits.

---:Paul

-- paul (ramblerplm@hotmail.com), January 03, 2002.


I think there are systems that heat the water just before it comes to the faucet (that's why they are installed under sinks, for example), so there is no recirculation as such, but don't know how much it would cost to redo the plumbing, and it might be expensive to hook up a shower to this type of system.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), January 03, 2002.

The recirculating system can be put on a timer for just prior to peak hot water demand like 4:30 in the AM in time for your shower (If you use a small DC pump instead of gravity). But the recirculating system requires a looped plumbing installation on the hot water side. If the plumbing is not already there the expense of it as a retrofit might not be worth the conservation and you might not like getting the house all torn up to run the new pipes.

-- Oscar H. Will III (owill@mail.whittier.edu), January 03, 2002.

I have a new tankless heater you can have for what I have in it. $5 I bought it at a auction and have no need for it. It is 110 volt for under sink. I am in West Central Indiana.

-- Mel Kelly (melkelly@webtv.net), January 04, 2002.


Hi, Mel, if Ann doesn't want it, please contact me!! I tried to e- mail you, but it wouldn't go through.

-- Bonnie (chilton@stateline-isp.com), January 04, 2002.

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