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Reap Savings by Reducing Your Hot Water Usage

By Nadine Cheung Posted 10:00AM 02/19/13 Savings Experiment |
Savings Experiment: Vitamins

Have you taken steps to reduce your hot water usage?

Did you find our video on hot water helpful?

Reducing your hot water consumption is not only good for the environment, it's good for your wallet, too. So, to cut down on the energy expenses in your home, try these easy energy- and money-saving tips.

In the kitchen, set your dishwasher to the shortest cycle to use less water in general. You can also use a booster heater just for the wash cycle. This will decrease the overall temperature in the water heater. Over time, using less water at a lower temperature will equal great savings.

Skip the pre-rinse, too. The machine will do the work for you, and according to The Daily Green, washing a full load of dishes in the dishwasher will save as much as 35 percent of the water used to do a load of dishes by hand.

If you have a garbage disposal, don't use hot water when you run it. Not only will cold water save you money, but it keeps the motor, bearings and shredder from overheating. Additionally, hot water can melt fat, which may become solid further down in the drain and can cause blockages.

Hot waterThe bathroom is another major place to cut water and energy expenses in your home. For instance, most toilets use 1.6 gallons of water per flush. Grab a weighted bottle or a brick wrapped in a plastic bag and place it in the water tank. This will displace the water and help you save water up to 10 gallons per day when you and your family flush.

These are just a few eco-friendly water-saving tips you can use in your home to reduce your utility bills. Keep them in mind and you'll be able to prevent your savings from going down the drain.
Tagged: bathroom, for the home, kitchen, lower electric bills, lower water bill, reduce hot water use, save on hot water, save water, savings experiment, SavingsExperiment, use less hot water, water saving

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yocoty

Every hot water heater comes with a 'vacation' setting on the valve. You set this when you will be gone 5 days or more. Reducing that has been in the works for years.

March 05 2013 at 11:57 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
yocoty

I am not sure if people are aware that each hot water heater valve has a "vacation" setting. You can set it to this when you are going to be out of town for a 5 days or more. It's already built in to save you money.

March 05 2013 at 11:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dnskc

Hard to believe people would go to such extreme measures as some of these comments suggest to save a tiny bit of water. The volume of water it takes to flush your toilet is miniscule and water in these quantities is cheap. Peeing in a bottle or not flushing is crazy. You might be saving $2-3/month. Saving is fine but let's use a little common sense. Same with conserving hot water. The lady who shut off her water heaters and warmed up water in the microwave for personal hygiene for seven years--wow. If willing to go to all that effort, she could turn on one water heater for an hour per day for probably less than $5/month. The craziest is the person who thinks displacing water in the toilet tank will cause the sewer to back up. Where do ideas like this come from? Scary.

February 25 2013 at 5:28 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to dnskc's comment
d2a3v8i3d4

The water heater person should get a water heater timer which does what she is looking for.She should also realize that a microwave uses large amounts of electricity so heavy use is offsetting her savings and shortening the microwaves life.

March 05 2013 at 7:59 AM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
Hi Mr. B

Just don't shower at home, or use the bathroom at home and your water bill will be $0.

February 22 2013 at 11:06 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Foxisenior

When I go in the shower, I wet down and then turn off the water and put shampoo on my hair and soap up my entire body, then I turn on the shower and rinse off the shampoo and the rest of me and that's it. Five minutes and I'm finished and step out and towel off. Same thing during the day when I wash my hands. I wet them, and turn off the water and soap them up and rub them and then turn the water back on and rinse them off and towel dry. Complicated? i don't think so.

February 21 2013 at 10:58 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Foxisenior's comment
d2a3v8i3d4

You can buy a small valve that is attached between the shower head and head to shut off the flow.It is made specifically for doing what you are describing.

March 05 2013 at 7:57 AM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
soultosoul01

I have a Peerless Boiler which is a combo hot water heater and boiler to heat our home. In winterrtime whan the boiler is running to make steam, it heats the coils to 220 when running, so the water for showering and bathing, eashing dishes, is "free" if that mnakes any sence.

February 21 2013 at 6:38 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply
Howard and Lynn

Use an enema evey other day....cuts down on flushes by 50%!

February 21 2013 at 6:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Howard and Lynn

Mike Flush twice......it's a long way to the kitchen!

February 21 2013 at 6:19 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Howard and Lynn

Ken nailed it. Save a quart of water a pay a plumber $100 for snaking your toilet. Holy ****!

February 21 2013 at 6:15 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
soultosoul01

If you are on a medication that demands you go nd use the toilet many times per day, either pee in a bottle multiple times and flush when filled, or pee in a container and throw it into the sink. Just force some tap water down the pipe afterwards and a hit of bleach once a week.

February 21 2013 at 6:14 PM Report abuse -2 rate up rate down Reply

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