I live alone and am really trying to make radical cuts to my budget. I have been turning my water heater off when not in use and only on when I take a shower and that isn't every day, is this saving money or costing money to heat the water ?
2007-07-06 06:07:20 · 4 answers · asked by I Love Jesus 5 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
You are not saving any money. If you turn it off, then when you cut it back on, the heater has to use alot of gas to heat up a tank of water to the desired temperature.
The usual home water heater has a 40 gallon tank. So every time you turn it back on, you are heating 40 gallons of water. This is actually costing you more money than if you leave it on all the time.
If you want to save money, turn your heater's thermostat down to about 130 - 140 degrees. This will let you have hot water on demand and the gas doesn't come on as much because it only has to maintain a lower temperature.
The next thing would be to buy a water heater thermal blanket. This is simply a piece of plastic coated insulation that wraps around your water heater and keeps the heat in the tank instead of letting it radiate in the room. This means your water heater doesn't have to work as hard. This will save you money too.
2007-07-06 06:43:01 · answer #1 · answered by Jimmie C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No don't turn it off, it just cost more to heat it back up. The water in the tank will stay warm till you use it. You might want to take shorter showers. Get your hair wet, turn off the water, then shampoo. Then turn the water back on to rinse and finish your shower, fast.
Wash your clothes,(if you have a clothes washer) with cold water. Don't run the facuets at full force and use cold water to brush your teeth. If you have a dish washer, only wash dishes when you have a full load and use the light wash. If you wash your dishes in the sink fill it with warm or hot water just enough to get suds and rinse spareingly.
2007-07-06 09:25:48 · answer #2 · answered by Moe 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Natural gas is cheap, I would set it on the lowest temp acceptable and leave it. Do you notice a difference in your gas bill with this regimen? If so It must be working.
2007-07-06 06:38:22 · answer #3 · answered by Sunny Days 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Leaving it on and at the lowest comfortable temp with a blanket wrap will save you more money.
2007-07-06 06:11:30 · answer #4 · answered by banananose_89117 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋