Green Hot Water –
Add Convenience While Saving Both Water and Energy
Fast hot water is green hot water because it adds convenience
to your life while saving water and in doing so reduces green house gas emissions.
Get the best of both worlds - conserve water and energy and
make life easier for you.
Being green can be quite inconvenient. Saving water means
low flow toilets, low flow water fixtures, and less greenery in the yard. These
are all good proven methods of practicing water conservation, but sometimes
human behavior can get in the way.
Back in the 80s I was working with the
California Energy Commission to determine methods for determining credits for
energy conservation methods, and devices.
Human behavior is a large part of the equation
Some of the research showed that many of the conservation
methods were not effective due to how the occupants of a home behaved. The
smart thermostats, loads of insulation, double pane windows, outlet gaskets, and
air tight construction didn’t do a lot of good when the homeowner turned up the
air conditioning and opened the windows.
Wasting time, water, and energy
Another human thing to do is to run water down the drain
while waiting for hot water. I’m not suggesting anyone jump into a cold
shower. By all means, wait until the water is hot before you jump. But there
are quite a few people who are simply not patient enough to stand there waiting
for the hot water. These people turn on the hot water full-blast, and then go
do something else while they wait. They shave, or brush their teeth, or start
the coffee, and then return to the shower.
The problem with this behavior is that not only does it
waste a whole lot of water unnecessarily, it also wastes energy. There is no
telling how much HOT water was run down the rain. With a two gallon per minute
shower head, running it for two minutes after the arrival of hot water would
waste 4 gallons of hot water.
Heating the water is much more expensive than the water
being heated
The energy to heat water is much more expensive than the
water itself. For example, let’s assume natural gas costs $1.37/Therm, an 80%
efficient gas water heater, temperature rise of 90 degrees, and a cost of water
of $.0002/gallon (national average). In this case, that 4 gallons of hot water
cost 48 cents to heat, and the water cost less than a penny.
Water conservation products – hot water demand systems
There are several water conservation products on the market
that can eliminate both the wasted water and the wasted energy in these cases.
The products are known as hot water demand systems. These devices not only
eliminate running water down the drain, but get you your hot water faster than
running the faucet.
The way these products work is to pump the water from the
water heater to the fixtures at high speed, sending the cooled off hot water
that was in the hot water pipes back to the water heater through the cold water
line. When you want hot water you press a button, which starts the pump, and
when hot water reaches the fixture, the pump shuts off. The pump is typically
located at the furthest fixture from the heater, and can often supply fast
waste-free hot water at more than one fixture.
ACT Metlund and Chilipepper Sales Manufacture Hot Water
Demand Systems
Chilipepper Sales model CP6000
Chilipepper Sales and
ACT Metlund both manufacture hot
water demand systems. The Chilipepper model CP6000 hot water demand system has
a powerful 1/3 horsepower motor, hooks up to the plumbing with hoses by just
turning off the shut-off valves under the sink, and retails for about $180. It’s
powerful enough to handle pipe runs of up to about 400 feet, and will operate
any tank type or tankless water heater. It comes with a 5 year warranty and a 30
day money back guarantee.
Metlund D’mand Systems
The ACT Metlund D'mand S-50T-PF Kit re-circulating pump has
a small 1/40 horsepower motor, has ˝ inch sweat fittings, and needs to be
plumbed in on the meter side of the shut-off valves, requiring shutting off the
water to the house. It retails for about $340.00 and has a three year warranty.
It cannot be used with a tankless water heater, and is recommended for pipe runs
of less than 50 feet.
The ACT Metlund S-70T-PF Kit has a small 1/25 horsepower
motor, installs with ˝” threaded pipe fittings, needs the water to the house
turned off for installation, and retails for about $440. It has a 5 year
warranty, and is recommended for less than 100 foot pipe runs or less than 60
feet with a tankless water heater.
The ACT Metlund S-02T-PF Kit has a 1/8 horsepower motor,
installs with ˝” fittings, meter side of the shut-offs, and retails for about
$750.00. This model is recommended for pipe runs under 300 feet and works with
tankless water heaters. It has a 5 year warranty.
In conclusion
Home owners can be green by adding the convenience of fast
hot water while substantially reducing the wastage of water and even water
heating energy. Just saving that one 4-gallon wastage a day, with an electric
water heater, would more than pay for the less expensive demand systems in less
than a year, and the CP6000 in months.
Some water companies offer rebates for hot water demand
systems. A water company in Arizona is offering a $200 rebate for installing one
of these systems. Makes for a very short payback period indeed.
All of these systems have life expectancies of about 15
years…the same as the average water heater. Be green, install a hot water
demand system in your home and start saving time water, energy, and money!
Chilipepper
Sales 10 Greg St., # 110 Sparks Nevada, 89431
PH (775)-359-1223
