Owning a home means balancing a lot of considerations to ensure your loved ones stay comfortable while not busting your budget. One piece of home equipment that can be easy to overlook is your water heater. But you shouldn’t ignore this unobtrusive unit. It makes a huge impact on your daily life.
After all, without a well-operating water heater, you wouldn’t be able to effectively wash your dishes, clothes, hands or body. And did you know the average U.S. home uses nearly one-fifth of its home energy heating water?
In this article, we’ll discuss one simple action you can take to moderate your energy usage without sacrificing comfort: adjusting your water heater temperature.
The process for adjusting your water heater’s temperature may vary depending on the brand and model, but it’s usually straightforward. Most units have thermostats located at the top or bottom, often hidden behind an insulated access panel. These controls allow you to customize the water temperature based on your needs.
Here’s a closer look at how to optimize your water heater settings for safety, energy efficiency and convenience.
Water heaters are typically set to 140°F by manufacturers. While this ensures a constant supply of hot water, it can also lead to higher energy bills and increase the risk of burns, especially for children and older adults.
When combined with other water conservation strategies, lowering the temperature to 120°F can save you up to $400 annually. Plus, your water heater will still provide water that is hot enough to kill bacteria while reducing the risk of accidental scalding.
Planning to be out of town? Avoid wasting energy by heating water you won’t use. Set your water heater to its lowest possible setting or switch it to “vacation” mode if your system has one. This adjustment will keep the system running minimally while conserving energy. You see, traditional storage tank units reheat unused water in the tank. In vacation mode, this reheating will be minimized, saving you money on fuel consumption.
These simple temperature changes to your water heater settings can save energy and prolong the life of your unit.
Homeowners in Norfolk, Medway, Framingham and other communities in our Massachusetts service area trust the HVAC pros at TF Complete Heating & Cooling for their home comfort needs. We can provide periodic maintenance for your water heater unit to ensure it’s running efficiently. And if your system is reaching the end of its lifespan, we can also upgrade you to a new, more efficient model. We can even help you convert to a super-efficient tankless water heater!
The TF Complete team is standing by to help you with your water heater maintenance or replacement needs. Contact us today to request service.
Contact us today to schedule a routine maintenance visit. If you need an emergency repair, please call our office right away at 508-507-6702, and we will get to your home as soon as we can.