This is part 5 on ways to take steps to make you home more energy efficient. You can go to the previous entry Part 4 or go to the next entry Part 6 here.
Hot water is important to most of us for our day to day lives. We use it for showers, washing dishes, etc, but we also waste a lot of electricity keeping this water hot. Even when you are not using the hot water heater it is keeping the tank warm. There are lots of things you can do to cut down your heating costs that are relatively easy.
First you can insulate your hot water heater. If you feel any warmth coming off your heater it is wasting energy and could use to be insulated. This can easily be done by placing a fiberglass insulation jacket over the heater. You will just need to cut openings to get a better fit. Make certain to avoid placing anything near the burner or to bloke airflow, especially on gas heaters.
Second you can place insulation on piping especially within 3 feet of the heater. This will help keep the heat that is radiating up the pipes from the heater.
Third you can adjust the temperature on the hot water heater down. What I recently did to make sure I was at the minimum comfortable setting was to adjust it down one every night until the water was not warm enough for my morning shower. I knew I reached my limit 1 notch below “warm”. The next day we were back to the “warm” setting.
Doing all this could save your 10% on the costs for heating and only cost you $30. You should also make sure you do step 3 after you have done the first two. This way you optimize your temperature setting after you have kept the heat in the hot water heater better. Also check out Energy Savers for more on this topic
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