Your water heater is the second highest energy user in your home. AES Ohio has tips to help you save energy and water.
Water heating accounts for about 17% of a typical home’s energy bill, second only to heating and cooling costs. Taking just a few simple steps means heating water can cost you less.
Water heater
- Set your water heater to 120°F. Dropping the temperature from 150°F saves about 12% a year. It costs you $0 and is a quick DIY job.
- Insulating your water heater can reduce heat loss by 25 - 45%. Also, insulate hot water pipes. Both are DIY projects most anyone can handle.
- When you take a vacation, set your water heater to the lowest setting or put it on vacation mode.
- Consider investing in a tankless water heater. Also known as ‘on-demand’ water heaters, they don’t store gallons and gallons of hot water that has to be constantly re-heated. Tankless water heaters heat water as needed.
Shower, faucets & toilets
- Install a water-saving showerhead – it won’t reduce your water pressure. A seven-minute shower using a new, 2.5 gallon-per-minute, low-flow showerhead uses less water than a bath.
- Fix leaky faucets, especially if it’s the hot water. A leak of one drip per second wastes 1,661 gallons a year.
- Using low-flow fixtures around the house can achieve water savings of 25% - 60%.
- Turn off your bathroom fan so it doesn’t pull heated or cooled air from your house.