Water Conservation – Be Green and Fight the Drought with Hot Water

By connecting a temperature controlled pump between the hot and cold water lines at a sink fixture, the autocirc1 circulates the hot water, similar to a traditional hot water circulating system.

Home

Electric Water Heaters

Electric Water Heater Operation

Electric Water Heater Repair 
Guide

Gas Water Heaters

Gas Water Heater Operation

Gas  Repair Guide

Flushing Your Water Heater

Heat Pump Water Heaters

Tankless Water Heaters

Residential Plumbing
Systems

Traditional Type
Circulating Systems

Cold Water Return 
Type Systems

Thermo siphon
Type Circulating 
Systems

Article Index

Be green, practice water conservation –  Fight the drought with hot water!

Conserving water is important for a number of reasons.

We all should be conserving water for a number of reasons.  In some locations there are droughts occurring, in some areas water is just scarce to begin with.  In many places the water table is dropping, requiring deepening of wells.  Glaciers are disappearing and in many places this means an end to the run-off that created streams and rivers.

In the years ahead there will be more and more water shortages.  As the earth’s population increases, more water is required for both personal use and for things like growing food.

Using water means using energy

For every gallon of water you use, you are using energy as well.  There are exceptions of course, but for most people the water in their plumbing system has been pumped there, and has been filtered or treated in a water treatment plant, and then when it goes into the sewer system it goes to a sewage treatment plant.  All of this requires energy. Generating that energy releases green house gasses into the atmosphere.

Currently, common water conservation methods that are, low-flow toilets, low flow bath and kitchen fixtures, low flow shower heads, and strategies such as using plants in your yard that don’t require very much water.  All of these methods require sacrifice on the part of the user.

A new way to conserve water and energy

There is a way to conserve tremendous amounts of water, and doesn’t require sacrifice on the part of the user.  It’s really more of  a convenience for the user.  The concept behind this new conservation method is actually not new, but in recent years it’s been through some revolutionary changes that make it inexpensive and easy to implement.

The method as you may have surmised by now is the circulation of the hot water.  The old hot water circulating systems of the past were expensive, wasteful of energy and required special plumbing.  With instant hot water you don’t have to run water wastefully down the drain while you are waiting for the hot water to reach you.  A typical family of four can save over 10,000 gallons of water per year.

Add convenience to your daily routine

Not only do you conserve water, but you are provided the convenience of fast hot water. The old traditional hot water re-circulating systems have evolved into today’s hot water demand systems.  Hot water d mand systems are much less expensive than their older counter parts, and are easy to install.  They are also extremely energy efficient. Hot water demand systems use less than $2.00 a year in electricity, and can reduce water heating energy requirements as well.

There are several manufacturers of demand hot water systems, including the Chilipepper CP6000, the Metlund D’MAND system, and Taco Inc. that markets a D’MAND system identical to the Metlund d mand systems. These systems consist of an electronically controlled pump that connects to your plumbing under a sink or fixture.  When you want hot water at your sink, you press a button that activates the pump. When hot water reaches the sink, it turns off, and hot water is only 2 or 3 seconds away.

These units can often supply quick hot water to more than one sink, and can even sometimes get quick hot water to all of your sinks.  You can determine out how a hot water demand system will work for your plumbing layout by performing a simple procedure. When your pipes are all cold, like the first thing in the morning, pick the sink that you think is the furthest from the water heater, and turn on the hot water until it arrives, then shut it off. 

Doing so simulates what the demand hot water system does, except that it doesn’t run the water down the drain.  Now go to the next closest sink and see if you get hot water a any faster.  By letting the pipes cool off, you can try experiment with different locations for the demand system and find the best location for it.  If you need to, you can use more than one pump in a house.

Metlund, Taco Inc. & Chilipepper Sales market hot water demand systems

Metlund (and Taco Pump) offer 3 models that range in price from less than $300 to about $800.  The larger Metlund models can be used with tankless water heaters. Chilipepper CP6000 has a suggested retail price of $179.99, and is much more powerful than the Metlund and Taco systems and will therefore work with any kind of water heater including any tankless model.

Both systems are easy to install and both have code approvals.  Both systems save you the same amount of water, both have a life expectancy of about 15 years, and both systems have 5 year warranties except for the smallest Metlund unit which has a 2 year warranty. The Chilipepper CP6000 provides a 30 day unconditional money back guarantee. If you don’t like it you can send it back for a full refund.

In some areas the local water companies offer rebates for the installation of these systems, some rebates programs offer up to $200.00

So now you know… for less than $200 (and in some areas FREE by obtaining the rebate) you can get your hot water quicker, eliminate running water down the drain, save thousands of gallons of water each year, and reduce the resulting greenhouse gas emissions.  If you have a septic system you substantially reduce the amount of waste water your system has to handle each day.

Taco Inc, has a D'MAND system brochure stating that the combined savings due to reduced water consumption, energy consumption, and sewage treatment costs can add up to a savings of from $180.00 to over $600 per year.  If true, the CP6000 could pay for itself in just a few months.  If you were one of the ones who save $600 a year, that would add up to a savings of $9,000 over the life of a typical system.

Be green, save the planets water, save your own money, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by installing one of these water conservation systems today.