Got hot water?

With the soaring rates for CUC power, most of us are finding it nearly impossible to pay the added expense of heating water for home use, one of the single largest users of power in the home. Problem is most of us are real wimps when it comes to taking that c-o-o-o-l-d shower! Under current conditions, a standard 20- or 30-gallon water heater, hidden somewhere in the bowels of your home, costs around $100 – $150 or so every month—and that’s just to have a tank full of hot water waiting for you to use it, whether you do so or not. Some have resorted to turning off the monster for most of the day and just turning it on long enough for that shower. But this also uses a large amount of power because you still must heat that whole tank full of water—20-30 gallons or so—even though it usually takes only about five gallons for a decent shower!

Well, there are some things you can do to lower the cost and still get that coveted hot shower. Several stages suitable for every homeowner, ranging from the Cadillac to the horse and carriage are available. The Cadillac, of course being a real good solar water heater. The best one consists of a solar panel on the roof and a separate tank in the house. A complete unit, ready to install, can be ordered in Hawaii and including shipping will run an almost even $3,000. This unit will cut your power for water heating by about 90 percent, so in about 30 months, you will have paid off the investment and henceforth get almost free hot water. I know because I have one and the hot water will last a few days even in bad weather. If interconnected properly to CUC, you can have hot water all the time, but now your CUC bill will be reduced by less than 90 percent. Mine is interconnected, but has not yet cost me more than $5 even in the rainiest month.

Some local ones sold here have a built-in tank on the roof and go for around $600 to $1,000—each. I don’t really like this kind, because I have found that they are somewhat less reliable and efficient, especially at night or during rainy periods. But they will help and will reduce your water heating bill from 50 percent or above. All of these are “whole-house” water heaters, so you can have hot water in the kitchen, laundry, vanity and tub/shower.

The next step down is a “tank-less electric whole house water heater.” These can be bought at several dealers on the Internet and run anywhere from $400 to $700 depending on how many hot water outlets you need. They use an electric coil inside a box that heats only the water that you use. The water passes though the box when you open a hot water faucet, activates the coils, and you get hot water for as long as the faucet is open. These units can save you 75 to 85 percent on your water heating bill. If it’s only the shower you want heated, you can get the lowest cost unit and save around 85 percent or more of the bill. They’re really easy to install and require anywhere from 230 amp breakers to 240 amp breakers.

Another step down is to get an “electric shower head water heater.” These units can be bought for around $70, attach right to the shower head and plug into a 110 volt outlet (at 30 amps) at least 6 feet from the shower. They are extremely efficient, heat water only when you turn on the shower and will save around 90 to 95 percent off the CUC bill for heating water. The best one available in the U.S. is made by Marey—works like a charm and ultra easy to install. With this type of unit, the only place you’ll have hot water in the house is at the shower, but do you really need it anyplace else? Be careful, though—buy only the U.S. certified one as foreign made units typically operate on 220 volts and pose a risk of shock in the shower!

And finally, for those who want to save 100 percent of the CUC cost of heating water, there’s this: Ever notice how hot the water gets in that garden hose you left on the lawn during the day? Simply purchase, or find a 100 foot length of 1 or 1 ½ inch diameter flexible black plastic seamless water pipe and coil it up on your roof. Then connect a cold water inlet on one end and your existing hot water piping on the other. You’ll probably also need a pressure relief valve in the line so the heated water doesn’t build up too much pressure and burst the line and don’t forget to secure it down so high winds don’t blow it around—or off. There’ll be enough hot water in that pipe on the roof for at least two to four showers before you use it all up and must wait for it to re-heat in the sun. Need more hot water? Buy a longer plastic pipe. Advice: take showers at mid-day and be careful as the temperature in the tube can rise to 180 degrees or more! I’m sure some of you can also come up with unique ways to adapt all of this to your own needs.

Or, if your neighbors don’t mind, you could just stand at the edge of the eave of your roof as that mid-afternoon rain shower rolls off that hot roof, just be sure the rain lasts long enough for the rinse cycle! Good luck—and let’s lower those bills.