Life can be pretty hectic. And as a result, have you found yourself struggling to get all of the tasks around your home completed? In particular, do you feel like you have to schedule every activity that requires hot water down to the minute? It can be frustrating to know that you need to run the dishwasher and complete the laundry before even considering taking a shower. If everything is not completed on schedule, you will be enduring yet another cold or barely warm shower. All you can think is that there has got to be a way to have the hot water you need for everything without this dreadfully tight schedule. Here is what you need to consider to avoid this logistics nightmare.
Pressure Equals Performance
Before you blame your home’s water heater for letting you down, think about the overall water pressure in your home. If you know that the house or your neighborhood does not have great water pressure, changes to your water heater might not have any noticeable impact. You need decent water pressure to rinse the shampoo from your hair and to rinse your dishes. Low water pressure could be a more significant problem than lack of hot water. Check out the water pressure using only cold water at a kitchen faucet and shower. If the water pressure is lackluster, then understand that increasing your hot water will not fix any pressure issues. Scheduling one hot water activity at a time is the best solution for your home with its current water pressure restraints.
Bigger Can Be Better
Once you know that your home has sufficient water pressure to run the dishwasher and shower simultaneously, the amount of hot water is your next limitation. Increasing the size of your traditional water heater is an option that will provide more hot water to the entire house. This upgrade can typically be done more cost-effectively than other solutions because it does not involve any repiping of your home’s plumbing.
Going Tankless Or Partially Tankless
Tankless water heaters are small units that can be installed under a sink or in a linen closet. The compact size makes them ideal for installation in a bathroom. However, the addition would require some repiping of the bathroom. But the result would be endless hot water for your sink, shower, and bathtub. These innovative water heaters heat the water as it flows through the pipes to any faucet that is demanding hot water. So as long as you have your shower running, a tankless water heater would provide you with piping hot water. In addition, the traditional water heater would still have the capacity and capability to provide all the hot water your home’s other faucets and appliances demand.
Once More Option
If the only hot water hog in your home is an older dishwasher, consider upgrading to a newer, more efficient model. The latest Energy Star dishwashers use as little as three gallons of water per load, while older models use over three times as much. Purchasing and installing a new dishwasher is one of the most cost-effective ways to stretch your home’s hot water. And it will also save you some money on the energy consumed when the dishwasher is running.
To learn more about getting the most out of your home’s hot water supply, call (928) 597-1690. The licensed plumbers at PHD will evaluate your home’s water heater and other appliances to help you determine which solution or combination of solutions will help you get all the hot water you need without a tedious schedule.