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TECHNOLOGY AND YOU

Never wait for hot water again

Q: It seems like I have to wait forever to get hot water at the bathroom faucet in the morning and it never gets really hot. Are there any low-cost, do-it-yourself gadgets or methods to get hot water quicker? - Mike H.

A: I know how annoying this can be. Until I installed a simple demand-type rapid hot water kit in my master bathroom, it took over a minute to get hot water to the faucet. Now it takes only a few seconds to get steamy hot water in the morning. By installing it at the faucet further from the water heater, I get hot water quickly now at all the faucets.

Waiting for hot water not only wastes your time, it pushes up both your electric and water bills. Running the water while waiting to get hot water at the bathroom faucet wastes up to 15,000 gallons of water annually for a family of four. What's worse, the water is only lukewarm when it finally gets there.

There is also a hidden energy loss when letting the water run while waiting for it to get hot. In the winter, all that room-temperature water wasted down the drain is replaced by very cold water from the water main, which must be heated. In the summer, the hot water, making its way slowly to a distant bathroom through long copper pipes, giving off heat that the air conditioner must run longer to remove.

There are two basic designs of do-it-yourself rapid hot water kits — demand-actuated and timer-actuated models. The basic design concept is similar. Both include a small simple solenoid valve under the sink and a small electric pump. Most kits use screw-on (no soldering) flexible pipes and all the materials and parts needed are included.

The solenoid valve, with easy-to-install fittings, connects the hot and cold water supply lines under the bathroom sink. With a demand-actuated kit, when you want hot water, you just press a demand button on the wall or vanity front. This starts a tiny quiet high-volume water pump that draws hot water quickly from the water heater through the hot water line.

When the pump starts, the cool water from the hot water line is diverted through the solenoid valve back into the cold water line under the sink. This creates a loop and the cool water goes back to the water heater. Not a single drop is wasted down the drain.

In several seconds of pump operation, hot water reaches a temperature sensor in the solenoid valve under the sink. This stops the pump and switches the solenoid valve back to normal sink operation. Now you turn on the faucet as always and you have hot water.

With a demand-actuated system, you can also install additional wireless remote demand buttons in other bathrooms or a kitchen to start the tiny pump. In this way, you can have hot water quickly at any faucet in that hot water plumbing branch. Most houses have just one or two branches.

This type of kit also provides much hotter water. Since the high-volume pump brings the hot water to the faucet so fast, it does not lose its warmth in the copper pipes as before. This may allow you to set the water heater temperature lower for even greater energy savings. The small pump, running tor just a few seconds, uses a negligible amount of electricity.

On a timer-actuated kit (no demand button), you set the hours when you need instant hot water at the faucet (usually in the morning and at night). These models provide literally instant hot water. During the timer-on period for hot water, the pump and solenoid valve switch on only when the hot water temperature at the faucet drops below a certain level.

Another very low-cost option for some homes is a valve-only kit that relies on gravity for the hot water circulation. These models can be used where the water heater is lower than the faucet. Since hot water is less dense than cold water, it naturally circulates up to the faucet. This keeps warm water in the pipes, so insulate the pipes to minimize the energy loss.

Still another instant hot water option is to install a mini-tank (two to four-gallon) electric water heater under the sink. This allows you to have steamy hot water at that faucet only without setting up your main water heater thermostat.

Write for Utility Bills Update No. 807 - listing of demand/timer instant hot water kits and mini-tank water heaters, features, prices and installation instructions. Please include $2 (with check payable to Jim Dulley) and a business-size SASE. Mail to: Jim Dulley, Illinois Country Living, P.O. Box 3787, Springfield, IL 62708. For instant download, go to http://www.dulley.com.

James Dulley is a mechanical engineer who writes on a wide variety of energy and utility topics. His column appears in a large number of daily newspapers.

18 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING SEPTEMBER 1998