How to Reduce Your Water Heating Costs

How much do you spend to provide for your family’s hot water needs? About 18% of your total annual energy costs.

So what does a family do when every dollar counts? You start looking for ways to cut back, of course. In keeping with that goal, here are several ways to bring about sizeable reductions on your home water heating costs, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood plumbers:  Your 1 Plumber.

• Don’t use as much hot water. This involves everything from taking faster showers to keeping the hot water turned off while you shave. If you wash dishes by hand, try filling a pan or basin with warm soapy water and then rinsing with cold water only.
• Run only full loads of dishes and laundry. All that’s required here is a little patience and a determination to put less wear and tear on these essential household appliances.
• Turn off your water heater before going on vacation. Just because no one’s using hot water while doesn’t mean your system still isn’t drawing power.  So why spend utility money when there’s absolutely no need!
• Lower your water heater’s 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 you’ll be just as comfortable with less risk of scalding when you lower your thermostat to 120 degrees.
• Insulate your water heater. Insulation helps contain the heat inside the storage tank, resulting in less gas and/or electricity consumption.
• Insulate your pipes. Adding insulation to the first 6 feet or so of your hot water pipes – those leaving the water heater – also cuts back on energy consumption.
• Install low-flow faucets and showerheads. Here’s another practical way to reduce hot water consumption. A typical showerhead, for example, produces between 3-5 gallons of water per minute. With a low-flow replacement, you’ll cut that amount down to 1.3-3 gallons per minute.

At Your 1 Plumber, we also can improve the efficiency and safe operation of your water heater with annual performance and safety inspections. Regular maintenance also helps to prevent repair problems, reduce repair costs, and extend the lifespan of your system. Contact Your 1 Plumber to request service or report a repair issue so we can diagnose it and take the appropriate corrective measures.