Written on: December 6, 2021
When the temperature plummets during a Hudson Valley winter, there’s nothing like a long, hot shower or bath to take the chill off.
Your home’s water heater works harder in the winter than any other time of year. That could impact your energy costs. Here’s why that is.
If own a conventional water heater with a storage tank, it’s probably down in the basement, where it gets pretty cold this time of year. As the heated water in your water heater tank sits there waiting to be used, it loses heat. That’s what standing heat loss is. The more standing heat loss there is, the harder your water heater will have to work to make sure your water is kept hot for when you use it.
In winter, the freshwater coming into your home has a lower inlet temperature. That means it’s colder. Your water heater will have to work harder to get that colder water up to your desired temperature.
Remember those hot showers? You’re probably taking longer, and hotter, ones this time of year. You may also be using appliances that use hot water more often, like running more dishwasher loads when you have company over the holidays or doing more laundry when the kids are home from college. All that use means more hard work for your water heater.
Between those three things, you probably won’t be able to avoid higher energy bills. Especially since around 20 percent of your energy costs are from water heating.
But you can do something to control those energy costs: Make sure your water heater is operating at peak efficiency. Proper maintenance by our trained, experienced service technicians can also prevent breakdowns and help your water heater last longer.
When you’re ready for a new water heater, we can help you upgrade to a high-efficiency one like a propane tankless water heater that can cut your water heating energy costs by 40%! Contact us to learn more.