Water Heating Tips to Curb Your Usage and Eliminate Waste

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Water heaters typically account for up to 18 percent of your energy bill and are the second largest energy expense in your home.

Following these water heating tips can help you keep both your hot water use and utility bills under control.

Water heating tips to curb usage and eliminate waste:

  1. Use less water
    • Use aerators, low-flow faucets and low-flow showerheads.
    • Stay on top of leaks, which waste gallons of water in a short time.
  1. Turn down the temperature
    • One of the simplest and most effective water heating tips, adjusting your hot water heater temperature to 120 degrees or less can greatly reduce water heating costs.
  1. Insulate
    • Insulate the first 6 feet of cold and hot water pipes connected to the heater.
    • Insulate your hot water tank.
    • Install heat traps on cold and hot pipes at the water heater to prevent heat loss. (These are built in on some models.)
    • When insulating, be sure to follow manufacturer’s suggestions or get professional help to avoid malfunctions and safety issues.
  1. Upgrade to a more efficient model
    • Start thinking about upgrading to an Energy Star-rated model when your current water heater is about 7 years old, before it fails. This will give you appropriate time to research a replacement that is the best fit for your needs.
    • Consider tankless and gas on-demand water heaters. These models can save you up to 30 percent on energy costs compared to storage tank models.
    • Use Energy Star-rated dishwashers and clothes washers to further reduce hot water use.
  1. Maintain
    • Draining your hot water tank and removing sediment that impedes heat transfer every three months helps your water heater operate more efficiently.

For more water heating tips, such as how a grey water heat recovery system can capture energy from waste hot water, contact Apollo Home Heating, Cooling and Plumbing. We’ve been offering great customer service to the greater Cincinnati area since 1910.

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"I called Apollo because of a water leak I thought I had in our upstairs shower going into the kitchen. Robbie came and assured me everything was fine & looked at all the other plumbing. He ended up changing a few pipes for our washer & clearing a drain. He was very nice & knowledgeable with all my questions. I ended up signing up for the care plan & was very happy with my service."
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"We scheduled an estimate AND a tune-up. We knew something was wrong with our furnace, but hoped we could make it through the rest of the season. Upon telling Bill what our furnace was doing, he warned us immediately what the possible outcome was going to be; a cracked heat exchanger. He watched the flames roll backward, tested carbon monoxide levels, which were so high they meter’s last reading was 5,600 before saying “high”. He immediately shut it down, tagged it, and explained that with levels that high and children in our home he wanted off right away. He continued his inspection and showed us via a camera that not only was it cracked in multiple places, but had holes all over it. He gave us a few options for repairing it; his knowledge as well as genuine concern was beneficial and refreshing. Luckily we also scheduled an estimator, Micah, to come too and we were able to get costs between repairing and replacing (with several options). We decided to replace with a much higher efficiency furnace and one sized properly to our home. Hands down, not only did they both provide us great service and knowledge, but without sounding dramatic, they may have saved our lives. This was our first time calling Apollo, but it won’t be our last."
- Sarah B.
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