For decades, residents of Richmond, VA have relied on standard, storage-based water heaters to supply hot water to their homes. Storage-based water heaters are available in various sizes, making it easy to find the right capacity for each household and environment. Compared to tankless models, they’re also inexpensive and easy to install. Their main drawback lies in their lack of efficiency. Rather than heating water as residents need it, these units heat water and store it indefinitely. This leads to frequent heating and reheating cycles that are punctuated by significant energy losses. If you have a tank-based water heater, adding insulation to this appliance could help you save. Read on to find out how much and why.
Water Heater Use Accounts for a Large Portion of Your Home Energy Bill
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), water heater use accounts for about 18% of the average home energy bill. While HVAC system use takes a much greater toll on consumers’ monthly budgets, the appliances that supply hot water to their homes have a significant impact as well. If you want to limit your carbon footprint and lower your spending on energy, improving the efficiency of your water heater is a good start.
Standby Heat Losses: How Tank-Based Water Heaters Lose Energy
Even if you have a busy, bustling household with people who remain indoors all day, there are long periods of time when no one is actively using hot water. For instance, when everyone turns in for the night and after everyone has had their morning shower, stored water in your water heater’s tank could sit unused for hours. During this time, your water heater will turn on and use energy every 30 to 80 minutes to reheat it. This will occur until the stored water is dispensed at a hot water tap. Unfortunately, as soon as it is, the heating and reheating cycle will begin anew.
The heat that escapes water heater tanks is known as standby heat loss. Standby heat losses aren’t the same for all storage-based water heaters. Tank sizes, integrity, and designs can all result in less or more energy waste.
Standby Heat Losses in Gas and Electric Water Heaters
Even when uninsulated, electric water heaters lose far less energy than gas-fired water heaters do when in standby mode. A modern and efficient electric water heater could lose as much as 1.4 kWh. Comparatively, a gas-fired model can lose up to 8.3 kWh. The primary difference lies in how these units are fired up. Electric water heaters use electric ignition switches. Dated gas water heaters often have pilot lights instead, and their pilot lights require a steady flow of natural gas even when they’re in standby mode.
The good news is that new gas water heaters have piezoelectric (piezo) switches instead. These switches send small bursts of electricity to thermocouples to keep gas lines open and fire water heater burners up. Installing a gas water heater with a piezo switch will lower standby energy losses, especially when paired with sufficient insulation around the water heater’s tank.
How Insulation Helps
There are three types of energy loss that gas-fired water heaters experience: standby heat loss, distribution losses, and firing losses. You can sidestep firing losses by switching to an electric storage-based water heater or by upgrading your older gas model to one with a piezo switch. For all fuel types, insulation can minimize the energy losses that occur during both standby mode and distribution. The right insulating materials will trap heat inside of the tank so that less energy is used for reheating water stores and less often. Additionally insulating hot water pipes will ensure that further heat loss isn’t incurred as heated water moves toward taps when needed.
How Much Money Can Insulating Your Water Heater Tank Save
The EPA estimates that water heater insulation could pay for itself in as little as one year. As per the EPA, adequate insulation could cut standby heat losses by as much as 45%. In some households, this reduces water heating costs by up to 16% to produce significantly lower monthly energy bills overall.
Other Ways to Cut Energy Waste at Your Water Heater
Properly maintaining water heaters is also important for limiting their carbon footprint and your own. Water heaters with sediment-filled tank bottoms aren’t as efficient as water heaters that are regularly flushed. Ill-maintained water heaters are also more prone to developing cracks in their glass liners, leaks at their connections, and rupturing.
Many homeowners are switching to tankless water heaters. Having a tankless water heater eliminates standby losses given that these units only heat water as needed. However, these units can also benefit from insulation. Insulation adds a layer of protection around tankless models. Furthermore, insulating hot water distribution pipes in tankless water heating systems prevents heat from seeping out as hot water moves from the point of origination to the point of use.
Is a Tankless Water Heater Right for Your Home?
In some environments, upgrading to tankless water heaters provides a wealth of benefits. These units are smaller and far less conspicuous than standard, tank-based appliances. This frees up storage area and provides more options for water heater location. Given that they don’t hold hot water all of the time, tankless water heaters also last a bit longer than storage-based models. They aren’t prone to the same sediment-related corrosion and other structural damages.
However, tankless water heaters aren’t without their drawbacks. Although they supply hot water on demand, this doesn’t mean that they’re capable of providing an unlimited amount. Just like storage-based appliances, they have their limitations. In medium to large-sized households, two tankless water heaters are often necessary to meet everyone’s needs. There’s also the fact that tankless water heaters are significantly more costly than their alternatives. Having to install two of them could increase your water heater replacement costs significantly.
What About Single-Fixture, Point-of-Use Water Heaters?
Another alternative to standard, storage-based water heaters is single-fixture, point-of-use water heaters. These are small-sized, on-demand water heaters that are installed underneath sinks, near appliances, or close to showers. In bathrooms and other rooms with multiple hot water taps, it’s often possible to have a single point-of-use water heater serving all local faucets and appliances. Notwithstanding this fact, a typical household will need a number of these units to serve as an effective, whole-house water-heating solution. For most consumers and living environments, this is neither cost-effective nor convenient. Point-of-use water heaters work best in small efficiency units such as tiny homes, mobile homes, and in-law apartments.
If you intend to add a new room to your home, convert an unfinished basement or attic into a bedroom, or design another livable area, you might include a point-of-use water heater in your renovation plans. In some cases, when adding plumbing connections to newly created spaces, these appliances make it easier and less costly to incorporate water heating.
We’re proud to serve Richmond, VA and the surrounding communities. We’ve been providing superior heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical services throughout the region since 1983. We also offer standby generators, water heaters, and air quality testing. For help insulating your tankless or storage-based water heater, call Davis & Green now.
