Saving Money on Water Heating Costs
I was pretty surprised to read that the cost of running your water heater can be as much as 13% of home energy costs. It made me feel a little bit guilty about the hot showers I sometimes enjoy perhaps a little too long so I hope to follow a few of these tips soon:
- Turn down the thermostat on your hot water heater - although the standard setting is 140F, you can usually live just as well with it turned down to 120F and save up to 10% on the heating costs.
- If you go away on vacation, turn the water heater off for the period you’re away. Similarly, try to turn it off when it’s not needed for hours, for example by having a timer switch it off at night while everybody’s sleeping.
- Insulate your hot water heater, especially if it is an older model with poor insulation - touch the outside and if it’s hot or warm, you could save energy (and therefore money) by insulating it. Alternatively, consider upgrading to a new and more efficient model.
- Use less hot water by taking quicker showers - try using a timer to notice exactly how long you’re spending in the shower. You can also turn the water on and off while you’re soaping up to save some of the hot water.
This entry was posted on Friday, February 13th, 2009 at 5:57 am and is filed under Saving Money. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
