Hot water heater

March 06, 2026, 01:26 PM

bryan11

Did some estimates on that recently and it came to likely saving around $50 per year. Couldn't find any info on longer life from doing that.

To hopefully extend water heater life we also replaced the old anode rod with a Corro-Protec Powered Anode Rod.

March 06, 2026, 01:30 PM

HRK

quote:
Originally posted by BigSwede:
You could save some money by not heating your hot water

As to your question, I would imagine if you lower the max temp it has to heat the cold water as much, but unless you're going from 130 to 90 I doubt your bill would see anything. You could put a 24 hour timer on the power source and cut it off during the day when you are not using hot water, just have it come on an hour before you need it like AM showers.

Could add a solar water heater to the system and let the sun heat up water during the day to reduce the time it runs.

We installed an on demand water heater, it cut the LP use in half since it's not keeping 50 gallons of water hot all day when it's not being used. which is good considering the cost of the LP has gone up over time.

Right now I'm thinking Solar panels would have been a good idea based on the Iran situation that is going to drive inflation through the roof for the next year as we fight Iran... Oil is up to $90 a barrel, almost double.

March 06, 2026, 01:32 PM

ZSMICHAEL

[

You could save some money by not heating your hot water[/quote]
^^^^^^^^^^^^
That is most unpleasant but about the only choice after a hurricane when the power is off. Now if you are smart you fill the garden hoses and place them in the sun. It gets smokin hot as they say,

March 06, 2026, 01:40 PM

egregore

quote:
Hot water heater

Isn't that a redundancy?

I don't see what meaningful difference there would be in its durability or longevity. Maybe the heating element in an electric one.

I recently had an electric replaced. It was in my dwelling when I moved into it, so was a minimum of 16 years old. Even then it only leaked a little bit, not a catastrophic failure.

March 06, 2026, 02:05 PM

RIC.45

Department of Redundancy Department

March 06, 2026, 05:05 PM

V-Tail

quote:
Originally posted by BigSwede:
[
You could save some money by not heating your hot water

March 06, 2026, 05:51 PM

MikeinNC

No, it’s a consumable item. Prepare to replace it after ten years

March 06, 2026, 07:50 PM

oldbill123

And buy one from the pro plumbing shop not a box store

March 06, 2026, 08:46 PM

darthfuster

My plumber friend says you can extend its life by preventing or removing sediments. I’ve never been that into it enough to flush one out or get a water softener.

March 06, 2026, 10:08 PM

mrvmax

quote:
Originally posted by BigSwede:
quote:
Hot water heater

You could save some money by not heating your hot water

So wait until it is cold then heat it? I doubt that would save any money, it would probably cost more.

People harp at calling them hot water heaters but that is what they are ands what they do. It is only cold the first time it kicks on. I am referring to nat gas and electric traditional, not on demand heaters.

March 06, 2026, 11:14 PM

MikeinNC

quote:
Originally posted by darthfuster:
My plumber friend says you can extend its life by preventing or removing sediments. I’ve never been that into it enough to flush one out or get a water softener.

My dad’s a retired plumber. Every year on Valentines I replace the smoke detector’s batteries. And in March (around my wedding anniversary) I flush the water heater. Not to extend its lifespan, but to get the crud out of the tank. I also remove and inspect the anode (it’s a 1 1/16” socket) BTW you may need 2 people and a cheater bar for it as they have a 600 pound gorilla installing it at the factory. In central Texas I get a lot of calcium and crap from the city. Where I used to live in eastern nc i was on a well and the water heater was on the other side of the filter system and I didn’t get anything

March 07, 2026, 05:05 AM

Georgeair

quote:
Originally posted by mrvmax:
People harp at calling them hot water heaters but that is what they are ands what they do. It is only cold the first time it kicks on.

Still, isn't it a warm water heater? Or a hot but not quite hot enough needs to be hotter than the hot it already is but not really from cold needs to be hotter water heater to split the difference? Either way, if it was already hot, why the hot hell do you want to heat it?

That's going to look like shit on a website or box, BTW.

March 07, 2026, 05:25 AM

pbslinger

I think lower temp setting may cause less sediments if water isn't soft, but I'm not sure. Sediments decrease efficiency and could impact longevity.

I set mine to vacation setting if away for a while, and before I reset to normal, I put a short hose and drain a 5 gallon bucket until it looks like sediments stop coming out. It takes 5 minutes.

I just replaced mine and the old one I installed in 2004, so it lasted about 22 years. The old one didn't leak, but the pilot kept going out. I probably could have replaced the thermocouple and control and gotten another 5 years out of it for about $100. I had already bought a replacement last year, so I just replaced it.

March 07, 2026, 05:57 AM

Jupiter

quote:
Originally posted by Georgeair:
quote:
Originally posted by mrvmax:
People harp at calling them hot water heaters but that is what they are ands what they do. It is only cold the first time it kicks on.

Still, isn't it a warm water heater? Or a hot but not quite hot enough needs to be hotter than the hot it already is but not really from cold needs to be hotter water heater to split the difference? Either way, if it was already hot, why the hot hell do you want to heat it?

That's going to look like shit on a website or box, BTW.

Remember this one, Georgeair?

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...660068715#4660068715

March 07, 2026, 08:02 AM

ruger357

Lower temperature equals less pressure on everything especially the T&P valve.

March 07, 2026, 09:35 AM

Warhorse

quote:
Originally posted by BigSwede:
quote:
Hot water heater

You could save some money by not heating your hot water

Yep!

March 07, 2026, 10:19 AM

RogueJSK

quote:
Originally posted by darthfuster:
My plumber friend says you can extend its life by preventing or removing sediments. I’ve never been that into it enough to flush one out

It's not hard. I do mine once a year, in the fall. Takes about 45 minutes total to drain/flush, but less than 5 minutes of that is actual work on my part.

It's worth the few minutes a year to extend the heater's lifespan.

March 07, 2026, 12:00 PM

mrvmax

quote:
Originally posted by Georgeair:
quote:
Originally posted by mrvmax:
People harp at calling them hot water heaters but that is what they are ands what they do. It is only cold the first time it kicks on.

Either way, if it was already hot, why the hot hell do you want to heat it?

Because water heaters keep hot water hot. It is no different than your HVAC system, if you have it set to cool to 70 it will kick on at 71 and turn off at 69. If you want your house heated to 70 in the winter it will heat until 71 then turn off and come on again at 69. HVAC keeps a cool house cool or a warm house warm just like a water heater keeps hot water hot. Unless of course you have an on demand water heater which will heat cold water to hot only when needed.