HOT WATER OPTIONS
Hot water for less
To get the most heat from the least amount of non-renewable energy, go for solar water heating. The next most efficient water heating option is probably a heat pump hot water system, followed by wetback water heaters and instant gas.
Saving hot water
There are several easy ways to cut down on your use of hot water without sacrificing your lifestyle:
Fit water-efficient showerheads.
Fit water-efficient taps. Consider having your hot and cold taps separate. It’s more common to have a mixer these days – make sure the handle is left in the cold position so it doesn’t draw hot water unless you need it.
Use cold water for washing clothes, rinsing, filling the jug etc.
Turn off the water heater when you go on holiday.
Have showers instead of baths and keep your showers relatively short.
Choose water-efficient household appliances.
Fix leaks and drips.
Don’t run the hot tap unless you need hot water
Water heating options
Solar water heating can provide a large contribution using free energy (the sun) and greatly reduce your reliance on reticulated energy sources. Depending on usage patterns and household size, the next most efficient water heating option is probably a heat pump hot water system.
Solar water heating
Solar hot water heaters use the sun’s free, unlimited energy. A well-installed system should be able to deliver up to 75 percent of hot water heating over the year, in most parts of the country
However, the concept of solar hot water heating has a few challenges:
the high initial cost compared with other water-heating options
difficulty in ensuring the system’s designed and installed correctly
difficulty in telling whether the system is working properly due to the non-user friendly interfaces
needs annual maintenance.
What to Do with an Old Water Heater
Have you recently changed or are about to change your water heater? Once your shiny new toy is giving you nice hot water, what do you do with the cast-off? Here are some ideas.
Firstly, whoever is fitting your new heater may be able to dispose of the old one for you. It could be that you want to dismantle it and scrap it yourself or take it for recycling. Alternatively, you might want to repurpose it so you can carry on using it for something else.
Cut the Power Supply
First things first! Disconnect the gas or electricity that has been powering your water heater.
Gas Water Heater
On a gas-powered water heater, there will be a shut off valve located on the supply pipe. Follow the supply pipe along its length until you find a lever. This will usually be level with the pipe when on; turn it through 90 degrees to shut off the supply.
Electric Water Heater
For an electric water heater, you’ll need to find your main electric service panel. This is generally located on a wall in your garage, basement, or the outside of your home. If you know which fuse or breaker switch supplies the power to your home then either remove that fuse or switch that breaker to off. If you are unsure or can’t find the right one then use the main lever which will be at the side or top of the box. This will cut the power to your whole house.
Drain the Tank
The next step is to turn off the water supply and drain the water from your heater. The water supply comes from a cold water inlet located near the top of the tank. Again, follow the pipe until you find the lever or knob to shut off the water.
Homebuyers feel duped by hot water tank rentals included in their new homes
She’s now living with a rental contract with Enercare that lasts for the “useful life” of the appliance (an average of 14 years), paying $56.43 per month for the water heater. She can get out of it if she buys the equipment outright at $3,600 — three times the cost of lower-efficiency models offered in some stores, but less than she’d pay for the same model she currently has in her home.
Buyer seeks documentation
But the law fails to address the issue at hand for buyers of new builds. She asked her builder for documentation about her contract, but she got a response saying that they didn’t have any. Her home purchase agreement does state that a buyer executes a lease/rental agreement for the hot water tank, but her lawyer argues it doesn’t confirm that she is taking it for up to 18 years.
says that in their agreements with home builders, “the home builder is required to provide all the necessary rental details to the purchaser and agrees to do so as part of their legal obligations under their agreement with Enercare
“A homeowner is not required to rent their equipment and can purchase it outright from the builder or otherwise negotiate with the builder.” On — who had rental contracts for his hot water tank, air handler and air conditioning unit — was quoted $5,000 for each unit if he were to buy them outright. “I did the math. It just wasn’t adding up,” he says.
Landlord chooses to rent the equipment
frustration with started in November when her tenants couldn’t get hot water due to a broken part of the hot water tank. “I was so angry,”
Water Heater Repair Services
Hot water is essential to your home or business. It’s something we take for granted until we don’t have it. There are a few reasons that can cause you to have no hot water and they all involve your water heater.
TYPES OF WATER HEATERS WE REPAIR:
Standard Tank Water Heaters
Tankless Water Heaters
Commercial Water Heaters
Unfortunately, because many water heaters are gas or electric you usually need to call an experienced plumber to help find and repair your water heater problem. When you have a problem with your water heater you need help fast.
has many experienced technicians available to repair all types of water heaters. Whatever your water heater problem, you can turn to for fast reliable service to your water heater problem anytime, day or night. Because know that hot water problems happen when you least expect them plumbers are available
Standard Water Heaters
can replace all types of tank water heaters. Many times water heaters fail when you’re least prepared. experienced plumbers can replace water heaters same day for emergency situations.
Will a Tankless Water Heater Really Never Run out of Hot Water?
are big proponents of new technology. The newest advances for storage tank water heaters have made them more energy-efficient than ever before. But often recommend homeowners try a different type of water heater technology to take advantage of new methods for heating up water, such as a heat pump water heater, which uses heat from the air to warm up the water.
especially excited about the tankless water heater. Although the tankless water heater isn’t exactly “new” (the first versions were invented in the late 1900s), the technology that has made them useful and affordable options for households is a recent development. When people hear about the benefits of these water heaters, they’re often excited about their possibilities.
Is This Really True? Will I Never Run out of Hot Water?
Answering this requires some explanation about how a tankless system works compared to a storage tank system. A storage tank system does exactly what it says: it stores water kept at a high temperature so it’s ready for use. But this means the supply in the tank can be depleted, and it can take a while for the natural gas burners or electric heating elements to replenish the heated water supply. People can end up with cold showers until that happens.
With a tankless system, there isn’t a supply of hot water that can be depleted. Instead, the water heater heats up water as there is a demand for it. If you turn on the shower for hot water, the tankless system will detect the movement of water in the hot water lines and start to apply heat through a heat exchanger to the water. It will keep doing this as long as there is demand—and that means you won’t run out of hot water!
But … yes, there’s a downside to this. Although a tankless system can’t run out of hot water, it can be overwhelmed with demand. A single tap won’t do this: run that single shower all you want, you’ll keep getting hot water. (But please don’t do this! Save water, save energy!) If more than one tap is on-demand hot water at the same time, however, such as other showers or a running washing machine, the water heater will struggle to keep up and drain extra power.