Oct
16
Green Hot Water Heaters
Filed Under Green Plumbing, Hot Water Heaters
Whether you’re looking at reducing the size of your carbon footprint, or just concerned with making your home a little more energy conscious, looking at green hot water heaters is one of the first places to start. After all, the way you use hot water in you home impacts a good portion of your daily life.
Going green involves two things when it comes to water: reducing the amount of energy it takes for heating and using it, and using less of it to fulfill your daily needs.
Thousands of gallon of water are 
wasted each year in the average home waiting for water to heat. Think about your own water habits. You turn on the shower a few minutes before hoping in to let it warm up. Or you leave the faucet running to warm it before washing your hands.
The actual type of hot water heater you have in your home doesn’t matter as much as how efficiently you use it. Look around online, or in any magazine that offers green tips. You’ll usually find articles on tankless water heaters or solar water heaters. While you may consider both to be an option, keep in mind that either model can be two, three, even four times more expensive than a standard hot water heater. And in many cases, the energy savings they offer would take you years to recognize in the form of monetary value.
Tankless water heaters
Tankless water heaters boast to being able to provide instantaneous hot water. That’s true – and false. While they do eliminate storing water in a tank that needs to be kept warm on a constant basis, it doesn’t solve the issue of delivering warm water the second a faucet is turned on. Even with tankless systems, water cools down in the pipes. This water has to be emptied from the system before hot water can be released.
Solar hot water heaters are also making headlines these days. Yet as efficient as solar hot water heaters are, their cost is two to three times higher than tankless systems, and as much as eight times higher than a standard hot water heater. If reducing your carbon footprint is important to you, it may be worth a look. But if your goal is simply reduce water usage as much as possible, while saving money in the process, there are other options.
The best way to eliminate the need of running water down the drain while it heats is to put in a hot water circulation system. Water is constantly pumped to and from the water supply in order to keep it warm at all times.
Going green doesn’t mean spending lots of money. It’s also about being conscious of your impact on the environment. Take baby steps – the steps that are easiest for you. Your local green plumber can help you create a plan that will improve the way you live now and well into the future.
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This is a very useful article and I agree with the importance of staying green with both our hot water heaters and even our sprinkler systems.
Colorado Sprinkler Repair