Gas Water Heater Timer

Energy Adviser: Planning trip? Keep energy costs down while away

With gasoline prices coming down this spring and the open road calling, maybe you can take that vacation after all. Before leaving on your adventure, especially if you plan to be gone for a couple weeks, make a checklist of ways to cut your power bill while away.

Start by looking at the temperature settings for your home’s interior. Heating and cooling a house accounts for approximately 43 percent of the average household’s utility bill. Here you can make adjustments and reap the greatest savings.

Even though summer temperatures in Clark County and Western Washington are not extreme, energy experts at Clark Public Utilities say for every degree you raise the inside air conditioning thermostat temperature, you’ll save between 1 percent and 2 percent on the cooling portion of your electric bill.

Average outdoor high temperatures range from the low 70s in June to near 80 degrees in August. Extreme highs can climb into the 90s, even more than 100 degrees as they did last year. You may not want the house interior to get too hot on those hottest days while you’re gone. Raising the cooling temperature will help keep the power bill down.

Homeowners can also find savings by turning down the temperature on the water heater or turning it off. Switch the electric water heater off at the circuit-breaker panel, or set a natural gas water heater to “pilot” or “low.” Be sure to turn the heater back on as soon as you return since it will take one to two hours to reheat. The savings? Keeping the water hot in the tank, even when not in use, costs about $6 a month.

Clark Public Utilities offers a brochure called “Vacation Conservation” for homeowners who plan to be away. The tips are online at http://www.clarkpublicutilities.com or have the brochure mailed to you by filling out an online order form. Here are more vacation energy-saving tips from the utility:

• Refrigerator: If you are going to be gone for a month, you could save an average of $7 by switching off the refrigerator. Before turning it off, however, empty and clean the freezer, place a box of baking soda on the refrigerator shelf and prop open the refrigerator door. Left closed, a refrigerator that is switched off develops bad odors. If you do decide to leave your refrigerator on while you’re gone, remove perishable food and fill the refrigerator with gallon jugs of water. This reduces temperature fluctuations and saves energy.

Hot Water heater timer to save electric. DIY green project | How ...

@mixcatcom OHHH NO!!! NO TANKLESS heaters. Consumer Reports says you do NOT save any money-it would take over 20 years to recoup. High maintenance. I heard and read **MANY** complaints, some people said it took FOUR MINUTES of constant running water before they got hot. I seen some videos they run it, it makes TERRIBLE noise. Two videos I seen of them LEAKING which is a fire hazard. And “cold sandwich” effect. Tankless is major FAIL!

Great video. I have researched this a lot, only to find out that the average electric water heater only runs for about 3 hours a day. Your water heater has no exterior insulation, which I would recommend. Since the heater has to bring the water back up to temperature after being off for several hours, it will use more electricity during that period of time. To save 50% on water heating, you would actually have to turn off the heater 60-70% of the time.

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