Actually, an old trick an apartment owner can do (where 'hot water included' in the rent is frequently offered) is to somewhat restrict the COLD flow at the shower. (Note: If you restrict the HOT, people will just complain, so you have to use reverse psychology . . . bear with me here.) Now, in order to avoid getting scalded, the person in the shower will automatically have to reduce the flow of the HOT, and thus less water (both HOT and COLD) gets used! And since the flow of the HOT water is very good, very few people will complain or even notice! - j q t -
We've been using mixing valves at our hotel on the Oregon coast for quite awhile now. We haven't had complaints about "No hot water" since updating to them. As for inefficiency, We've noticed no downside of them. Electrical costs have dropped since using them. I even installed one at home. Now my wife and I can take longer showers and still have enough hot water for another shower right after.
I think the people claiming this is a hoax are misunderstanding what the goal of this set up is. This video is not a "how to make your water heater more efficient". This is to solve the problem of volume of hot water available. An older home may not have room in the mechanical area for a newer high efficiency of the same gallon tank. This is an option to get a smaller tank size and still have enough water for usage. This is accomplished by the mixing valve located right at the heater. This video is completely accurate when you listen to what is being said and not making any assumptions other wise. For the record I am a licensed HVACR/plumber
I would think recirc pump with hot returns mixing with cold supply to tank would be much more efficient and have same effect of “larger tank”. I think of this as just cooling down your hot water with cold supply
Cooling down overheated hot water with cold water is a bigger waste of energy with less benefit than using a properly sized heater and a tempering tank for supply.
LOL.. this is funny. It's not like we have only a hot water faucet in the sinks, tub or shower. This is just adjusting your water temperature before your adjust your water temperature. Of course, slow down the hot water flow and you can take a longer shower. If you have kids or elderly or that special someone that might scald themselves, just keep the temp to a safe level. This thing will eventually fail, like everything else.
I think the word efficient is perhaps the wrong word to use. some here aren't quite grasping the difference between added volume of the tank, which in turn you would need to heat less water because there is still hot water left in the tank that dosn't require as much energy to bring it up to temp. but here's a thought that some don't seem to get, if less energy is required then it's bloody more efficient. just saying.
Rusty Shaffer in a global sense you are correct. However turning up your water heater without one of these mixing valves would allow scalding water to come out of a faucet if those valves were turned to all hot. Normally you would set your water heater to 120 degrees and 100% of the hot water you use would come out of the tank. Doing it this way only 75% of the hot water you use comes from the tank because the other 25% comes from the cold and mixes to be sent to your faucet. You could handle this same operation without the mixing valve by turning the valve to less hot water day in your shower, but it does present the possibility of accidentally scalding yourself.
Still a lot of people not getting this. Try thinking about the water heater as a storage tank of BTUs, not water. Raising the heater's internal temperature means it's storing more BTUs of heat than it did before regardless of tank size. The thermostatic mixing valve allows you to adjust the heater's temp to 140F and still provide the safe 120F as required by LAW.
I think that a lot of people are completely missing the purpose of this product. What this does is to provide more hot water at a given temperature than the tank will provide on its own. For example, you have a 30-gallon hot water heater that you keep at 120 degrees. By installing this valve and turning up the water temperature to 140 degrees you can then add 16% cold water back to the outflow of the water heater to get the temperature back to your target 120 degrees of hot water. You now have 16% more hot water available at the desired temperature than you would have had without the device or roughly 35 gallons of 120-degree water instead of 30 gallons of 120-degree water.
@@maxxron I believe your 16% is based on the cold water being 0f.......if your cold water is 60f that would effectively make tank 33% larger......not considering that the heater could keep up with consumption thus never going cold
Why would you need a mixing valve to do this? Simple math with 30 gallon tank using gal x degree as a unit measure: 30 gal x 140’ = 35 gal x 120’ ... I you need less at a higher temp, you will have more remaining. Not rocket science. Just don't get why you need a mixing valve. Use your faucet to control the temp.
@@gabrielc2175 if you turn water heater up to 140 you may not be able to cool it enough at the faucet Turning water heater up does not make the tank bigger However much cold water you use to mix outside the tank is that much less cold water going into the tank, with less cold water going into the tank the water heater has better chance of keeping up with consumption
You need to think of this as using a concentrate ( super hot water ) to achieve a larger volume of (useable temperature) hot water. Im sure its harder on a regular water heater and probably less efficient, but when you want it ,it will be available. They do make specialized high temp/volume units for house heating to replace a conventional boiler,this could be one and would be the best choice for doing this. I'm no expert, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night! 😉
This is a great idea. It would not only seam to boost the size of your water heater. It would also reduce waste of hot water being that 30% of the water left in the line was never heated so as the stagnate water cools off durring inactivity and will need to be replaced the next time hot water is requested. Also the higher operating temperature of the water heater means that a smaller amount of cold water is coming into the tank to be brought up to temperature. Small events like washing hands or rinsing a coffee mug would not change holding temperature of the water heater to trigger a heating event.
Nope. Everything you just said is wrong. 1. "It would reduce waste of hot water being that 30% of the water left in the line was never heated so as the stagnate water cools off during inactivity and will need to be replaced the next time hot water is requested." This is not true. The water in the line is still cooling and the hot water is still just as far away from the tap as it was before the valves were installed. You will STILL have to wait just as long for hot water. This only reduces use of hot water because you have heated to a higher temperature, not because a percentage of the water in the line was never heated. 2. "The higher operating temperature of the water heater means that a smaller amount of could water is coming into the tank to be brought up to temperature." That is true, but it has to be heated to a HIGHER temperature than before. So you may save some water this way, but you WILL pay more for fuel to heat it. What is more, the amount of water saved is likely minimal because you are still mixing in cold to bring the water you heated BACK down to a lower temp. In short, you probably don't save anything at all.
After some thought , I believe that the mixing at the water heater instead of mixing at the faucet would conserve some hot water but only a small amount. Depending on length and diameter of hot water pipe.just say that the pipe from faucet to WH holds one gallon , without the mixing valve that gallon of 140 degree water's thermal energy will be wasted after faucet is shut off unless that faucet or another close by is used for hot water before said water cools down.If that 'gallon ' of water was 120degree then a smaller amount of heated water would have been consumed.A very small amount of hot water is used for washing hands , shaving, teeth brushing etc., in which case WH would recover quickly . Electric WHs can be turned up to 150 degree max , at this setting a mixing valve would seem more practical to me and would make the high setting safer.I have seen 2 and 3 handle tub faucets with ' loose 'stems that screwed completely out sending a jet of super hot water into wall at rear of bathtub. Please be careful with small children and physically compromised adults . Also , if you partially drain WH turn water on and flush air from tank before turning power back on , if water is drained below top element it can dry fire and ruin .
The idea is that the 40 or 50 gallons of water in the tank are now heated and maintained at 150°F (or maybe hotter) instead of 130 and also have little to no chance of scalding water coming out of a tap even if using only the "hot" water. If the water coming into your house is very very cold, especially during winter, then this won't increase capacity much. It does help safety regardless though. Germs can grow in water heaters that are set too low, so there's another bonus with storing the water hotter. It does take more gas or electricity to keep the water extra hot all the time of course.
@@michaellewis6569 I think normal temp is 120 F, but you keep at 140 which kills bacteria and then the mix brings it back to 120 and a lot more of it at 120.
Hi, i have hot water that runs good pressure then less then good again over weeks or months and i check the cold water tap at sink when this happens and get strong flow. Have the gas temp knob to 4 out of 5 but the mixing value has a turn valve from 1 to 5 and is set in the middle and tried to turn it but seems stuck so corroded and partially blocked? Is mixing valve faulty and causing temp to not be that hot then hotter other times. I got the machine to light and boil and then had shower and was almost all hot water and just tiny bit of cold so that cant be right?
I'd like to know if these valves have the capacity to keep the water at the faucets at the regulated 120°F when the heater experiences stacking. Stacking refers to how the temperature of the water exiting the tank runs much higher than the heater's temperature setting when certain hot water usage conditions exist. For instance, if I take a shower shortly after running a load of laundry and the dish washer the hot water becomes significantly hotter than the 120° the heater is set at.
Time to get hot water at the furthest fixture is determined by the volume of water in the pipes, neither a mixing valve or a bigger tank would help. Insulating the pipes can help, just because you lose a little less heat to warming up cold pipes when you first turn it on, but in my experience it's barely noticeable.
This method gives you more water volume by adding cold water to the hot water. The negative is you need to raise the temperature using more electric/gas. Another option is to use a small instant water booster heater in line with the existing water heater. It goes on only when needed.
A couple questions. You didn’t seem to address just what this system does. Does it also make the hot water show up faster at the various taps throughout the house? I put on a Watts pump on the hot side and the diverter about 60 feet away upstairs on the kitchen sink. I can’t say I’m hugely impressed. Yes, the kitchen is faster, but not much difference on 4 showers throughout the house and 6 sets of taps. Would this bypass system you featured do anything different than my Watts pump? The Watts pump claims faster hot water on all the taps. I don’t see it.
Would this work on a 10 gallon water heater in a small trailer? 25% only?? I am renting a trailer and the water maybe will last about 8 minutes ugh. In my other place I was able to take a 15 minute more or less comfortable shower. This one I can't even take a bath every so often.
This is primarily a safety device to ensure scalding water doesn't come out if someone uses "all hot" water. If you turn your water heater to a higher temp because you don't have any kids at home and warn all guests that your hot water is HOT then there would be no use for their device. You already mix hot water with your cold water each shower. If you don't, your water heater is set too low or your desired shower temp is really hot.
Also, how much extra water this will give you depends on how high you set the tank, and also your incoming cold water temperature. This will technically work better during late summer than winter because the water temp coming into your house changes.
I just installed a 75 gallon high recovery unit. I get 110 gals hot water first hour. You cannot run me out of hot water by conventional methods. Filling the hot tub up with water hot enough to get into is doable. 220 gal unit.
This valve lets cold water mix with the hot water to extend the time of hot water. I just use the fn valve at the sink or the shower. I run out of hot water, I get the hell out!!
The pressure comes from the city main, therefore from the cold side. Every component that the water goes through will slightly reduce the remaining pressure after the component. This means that the pressure after the hot water tank will be slightly less than before the heater. Since water flows from an area of high pressure to an area of lower pressure, the cold water will always flow to the hot side using the cross-connect, never the other way around. I hope this helps!
@Olphalsson what about the 4+ psi per degree rise created by the water heater doing its job? Even with an expansion tank, there is always increased line pressure when water is being heated.No components immediately after the HW outlet to reduce line pressure. Just the cross connection!
Is there anyway to keep just the hot water line hot (i.e. a heating element wrap for the part of the pipe that's exposed or accessible). My water heater is in the attic and I have access to 15 feet of hot water pipe that I could wrap with a heating element of some sort (if they make such a thing and it's safe). I live in the south so winters are not harsh or a factor The hot water pumps I've seen and installed just transfers the problem to having to wait for hot water to having to wait for cold water. They don't solve anything for me.
1 gal of 120 degree hot water or 1 gal of 140 degree hot water. Now if I add cold water to the 140 degree gal of water ( lets say one gal of unheated supply water) I would have 2 gals of hot water at 120 degrees. That provides more hot water then the 1 gal of 120 degree water. It is a way to have a smaller storage tank and still meet the homes demand for hot water with a slow recovery rate. The mixing valve provides the water to be delivered at a safe temp for the homeowners use. Many large multi family buildings use this type of system.
It isn't supplying MORE hot water, it is supplying HOTTER water in the same amount. It is simply making it safer to increase the temperature of the hot water and avoid burns. It does not improve recovery rate. It has no impact on recovery rate. That is determined by BTUs supplied and that generally does not change with changes in the thermostat. Most water heaters are all on or all off for heating. This is strictly a safety measure. It is not an efficiency measure or anything else.
Almost got me to until I thought about oh yeah it's just throwing hot water mix it in with the Cold line or side. It would be nice to show an example maybe through animation zooming inside of the hot water tank and inside of the water lines to demonstrate how this actually supposed to work. Maybe if you show and tell people might understand it better.
So what you're saying is that if you add a little bit of cold water to the existing hot water (140 degrees) then the mixture will: 1.) Have more water volume, 2.) Won't be as hot (now mixture at 120 degrees due to added cold water), and 3.) Will last longer due to the increased water volume. Yeah, I completely don't understand - can you draw me picture or maybe explain with an interpretive TikTok dance?
seams like your turn up the temp in the tank and your adding cold water to the hot water to make it cold so whats the point just turn down the water heat on the top and bottom turn it down
It adds like 16% back if that number is correct. That 50 gallon tank would be more like 58 gallons with the mixing valve. (Original tank x 1.16 = Equivalent)
Well the comments are funny anyway, you geniuses don't understand he is not claiming to make it more efficient, only ultimately being able to use more hot water before you run out. People with larger families could benefit from this instead of getting a larger tank.
I'm pretty dumb, but I actually get how this works. Sure you may pay more to heat the water to higher temp, but the idea is, YOU NEED MORE HOT WATER! So you are willing to pay. Hello? And, you still get about 120 degrees at the faucet, so its kid friendly.
its all in tank size..that and the first hour rating ...you only need a mixing valve if you are coming off a boiler. these wont help much in a tank style.
Raising the storage temperature is effectively raising the tank size. Think of it as storing BTUs and not water. A 50 gallon tank stores more **BTU**s than a 60 gallon tank set at a lower temperature.
Not sure how they can get cold water to enter the hot water pipe when they are both at the same pressure. I see a slight difference if ONLY the hot water is turned on but what if someone else in the house turns on the cold? or you turn on some cold in the shower, how do you get cold water to pass over? Please explain. I am guessing it's the velocity on cold side puts pressure into a smaller tube and the hot side creates a slight velocity vacuum? is this it?
I'm trying to understand how this is more efficient...Why not just set your water heater down to 120 at all times and skip the valve. Why have it maintain 140?
A Mixing valve is NOT considered an anti scald device as it is slow acting . Setting the water heater to 140 is erroneous as stacking can occur and this could allow the temperature of the water to spike more then 15 degrees then the set point
25% more hot water by turning the thermostat up 25% after installing ? I don't understand the gain . The hot water heater needs to be at 140 degrees . Now the hot water heater needs to keep a constant 140 degrees . What an energy pig this is . Sure this device will give you more showers in a short span of time but your power bill will skyrocket UP .
I agree that this can prolong the amount of hot water. I myself have speech-language issues. Some parts of the country, some people do not speak clearly. Be kind. This method is used significantly in multifamily buildings as said by others. My favorite would be to do an instantaneous water heater into a storage tank if the demand was extremely high.
So let's say I have a 50 gallon heater, and I keep it at 120 degrees, with my cold water being 55. If I want to take a 100 degree shower, I need to mix in 69% of my hot water. With a 2.5gpm showerhead, 1.7 of that is hot, so my 50 gallon heater lasts 29 minutes. If I keep my water heater at 140 instead, I only need 53% hot water to get 100 degrees at my fixture. So my 2.5gpm output is only 1.3 gallons of hot, and my tank lasts 37 minutes. Cool. So this basically amounts to: "crank up your hot water heater, but don't do so in order to have hotter showers, just longer showers, and by the way, put this mixing valve on to prevent scalding." Am I reading that right?
Yes. This is primarily a safety device. You will pay more in energy to heat and keep the water hotter, but reducing risk of scalds with small children or others may be worth it.
Mixing valves are common in all types of fluid and environmental temperature control systems, including aircraft. In many cases, they are essential to efficient operation. Properly adjusted, this system will make more hot water available at a temperature that is safe to use. Setting the water heater to 140 degrees without a tempering system such as this mixing valve is not safe if children or elderly people are going to be using the water.
"Properly adjusted, this system will make more hot water available at a temperature that is safe to use." I am glad you added the caveat "safe to use." This solution doesn't produce more hot water, it just makes it so that you can crank up the thermostat on the heater without having hotter water at the tap. It is just a safety solution, not an efficiency solution.
MewCat100- Okay internet warrior. The title is 'How To Get More Hot Water From Your Water Heater'. All tho misleading, the idea is to get hot water longer for use. Hopeless is exactly correct. Your 'This solution doesn't produce more hot water', is bogus, Of course it does. To make it simple, there is a lot more hot in 140 degrees than 120. Plumbers by law need to set water heaters, if they worked on them, to 120 degrees when finished. The home owner can up the dial to whatever they want.
My 2 cents,, a water heater is simply a retaining vessel with a set amount of holding capacity,, fixed in nature to heat incoming cold water to a set temperature by either electrical elements or flame supplied by burning gas. The keyword "fixed" meaning you only have so much capacity within whatever design load is for your particular water heater. If it's a "40 gallon unit",, it will only supply 40 gallons of heated water at a time & at a set temperature in accordance with what your thermostat settings happen to be set. Generally speaking,, you'll have double 4500 watt elements supplying 40-50 gallon heaters working independently of one another to supply a steady flow of hot water. These are the "true working elements" of a water heater & anything beyond that simply isn't feasible as an "added source of supply". Now,, with all that said,, this device is designed to "seemingly" simply slow down that particular usage of the designated capacity by "pre-mixing" the two set temperatures of water at the inlet/outlet of the heater itself. I'm not quite sure how this is different from utilizing a mixing valve at the chosen source itself being your shower or kitchen sink? In single lever designed faucets,, those are all mixing valve type units themselves which typically do the same job this so called "mixing valve" does here. Perhaps something escapes me in my simple analysis so if the author of this video would kindly explain the actual distinction where this design makes a meaningful & substantive difference,, I & others questioning this device might learn something of value. In my simple world,, I simply don't get what this device actually does extending a hot water supply..
It is based on the assumption of supplying 120F water (which I believe is code; mop sinks are allowed to be 140). -store hotter water, and mix it down.
a 40 gallon water heater doesnt give you 40 gallons of heated water. remember cold water is entering the bottom of the tank with the idea of it pushing out the hot water through the top. mixing does occur and it slowly cools by way of convective heat transfer. it also depends on the temperature of the water coming into the tank.
I've been told that the higher temperature in the tank lessens the chances of bacteria forming and the mixing valve brings it back down to prevent scalding.
Great idea to stretch the stored hot water but then you have to calculate the added utility cost of running the water heater at 140 instead of 120. My advice Which will save hundreds of gallons of water is to install a recirculating pump. This will maintain the hot water in the line all the time. This way you don’t waste the many gallons of cold water emptying out until the hot water reaches its final destination. Which in many older building could be hundreds of lineal feet away from the main water boiler.
lertyuis said, "Why is it so hard for some people to understand how this works??! Man, we need more science in the classroom!" You're right. But we also need more math with word problems and more reading comprehension classes. Dumbing down America ... one day at a time.
I got more hot water out of my water heater by adding another 1,,,,1 is gas,,,the other electric,,,,hooked up in tandem which deliver 80 gals of hot water,,,,,,how much did that apparatus cost??????and how much more water did you get?
i do and did have the space,,,i built the room just to house firewood and water heaters after having 2 water leaks while away on vacation when it was in the attic,,,now they can leak down the driveway
my heaters are set at 205 and in the summer,,,,i have 100 ft of pex run thru the rafters in the attic,,that colect heat from the hot attic which feeds directly to the water heaters that accounts for at least 40 more gals of hot water for each use
This is interesting - you turn up water heater temp setting to make hotter water, thus increasing the energy used by the hot water heater to likely what was being used before. So the energy efficiency rating of the heater is rated higher, but energy savings are not. Basically you initially use more energy to heat the water to a higher temperature, then add cooler water. The added water is heated outside the tank. So which happens? 1. Does the system cost more to run b/c the tank is set to make the initial water more hot (costs more in a traditional system), or 2. Does the amount of added water being heated by the hotter water exiting the tank balance out the extra energy being used? The faster the tank itself is evacuated, the more energy being used. So is the amount of water exiting the tank lessened enough by the addec cool water so the energy usage is the same as original? Whichever way it is, I am sure the pencil pushing, beurocratic, whackos who think they have the right to govern private business by regulating water heater specs love this new valve system. But, then again, its not really about saving energy when it comes right down to the matter. Its about how much control the government can gain over private businesses and people.
The nanny state doesn’t think you can handle mixing at the faucet. In time these mixing valves will be tamper proof and your temperature will be set by the state. Also the water heater will not last as long at this higher setting.
He didn't mention that you would now need to add a Pressure/Expansion tank to your system since you are now creating a Closed System. The cold water supply valve prevents pressure building up in the tank as the water heats to just push the expansions back up the cold water supply pipe (an open system). A 50 gal tank heating water to 120 F can expand to 53 gal, blowing up your water tank if you don't have the expansion tank installed.
Mixes 140° water with cool water to equal 120° water equaling longer hot water supply. Basically the same thing as turn your faucet cooler but this way there is less risk of scalding.
The mixing valve is like a thermostat on your car but prolly a little less technical. The video states that you need to get a thermometer and measure the hot water at the tap to get the required temp. What that means is the mixing valve is using the pressure drop across the cold supply line and the hot field line to inject a portion of cold water into the field line to regulate the temperature so when it comes out at the tap it is the desired temperature. This also implies that it is mechanical and not automatic. You set the temp by adjusting the valve that increases the flow of water to regulate the temp. The quality of new water heaters negates the extra heat but there will be a little more cost for heating. Water heaters are in all kinds of places and where it is at helps the efficiency, in a protected space or exposed. For a solution to not enough hot water this will help. A 40 gallon heater is spread thin on 5 people. I can tell my kids to do the water temp for showers at a lower temp and there is no way to get that followed properly. This valve will force the temp to be lower and thereby increasing the available hot water. Some heaters have a faster recovery time and this helps too but they are less efficient to begin with and are not usually selected when compared to other units. Hope this helps.
Safety is the main reason imo, particularly with kids washing their hands or taking baths. Easy to get scalding burns with the water heater at higher temps to get more first usable hot water. If you use a device like this and the max temperature coming out of a faucet is 115° then you are set.
Many homes with hot water heaters in the house don't have room for the bigger diameter 40 gallon models. Go with a 30 gallon your short on capacity. Do this to get by, not save energy.
You are not getting more hot water, you are merely blending the hot and cold to extend the amount of heat within the hot water. All of the existing valves, whether it be a shower valve, faucet, etc. are already being blended when you turn it on and adjust the temp. You're not doing your customers any favors by turning up the temperature to 140 degrees, except shortening the lifespan of the heater. Also, at that temp of 140 degrees it takes less than 5 seconds to severely scald a person. Water Heater manufacturers recommend a heat setting of 125 degrees.
What??! Set to 140*?? This reduces efficiency, as 140* is too hot a setting - especially if you're bleeding in cold water to "dilute" hot water you created but don't want to use. What exactly are you trying to do here??
We just got a new water heater, due to it was old, they said they were putting in a 50 gallon, we wanted the 50 gallon cause we got a new jacuzzi tub and our 40 gallon was not filling the jacuzzi all the way with hot water, well they didn't tell us the 50 wouldn't fit and just put in what we had the 40 gallon, they said that if they put in the mixing valve it would fix the problem with being able to fill our jacuzzi with hot water, is this true? My jacuzzi tub,by the time it's filled it's only Luke warm, I want hot water, not Luke warm.. thanks.
If its lukewarm now, Its NOT going to be piping hot with the help of a mixing valve, the best thing to do is have the opening enlarged, often not a big deal if not a load bearing wall, do the paint and trim (finish work) yourself, or add a second 40 gal water heater ( IN SERIES) to give you 80 gal total...
go to the hot water tank, remove the grey,or blue side plates. if you'res has 2 of them, then lift the insulation with a screw driver put in the mid if the plastic screw ( the one with NO WIRES) and turn to increase the temperature to 140 or 150 degrees. if it has 2 sections ( top and bottom ) increase both to the same temperature; most are set at 120, set you're own temperature. if you feel that it is not enough, then build a storage closet for that hot water heater,and make sure it is insulated from the cold weather. ur wlcm
Denise Long Shiflett The 50-gallon would not have provided the result you were anticipating anyway. For hot-water supply demand, there are two methods: store it or make it (also known as the recovery rate). I'd guess you would need 100-120 gallons to fill a spa. - this size of wtr. htr. begins to get into another category of firing capacity etc... which is probably WAY more expensive. An other option may be an instantaneous (natural gas) heater. Another option yet may be an additional storage or holding tank (of which circulation will be needed). It is an expensive and very consuming accessory. A practical compromise is the larger bath tubs, but that surely isn't good enough for the glamor-bathrooms.
I keep my water heater all the way up ... Ppl know don't touch full hot or you'll get burned ... They regulate temps at faucets no extra equipment needed
I'm glad you noticed that. I argued with a plumber who installed hundreds of water heaters and says that temperature makes no difference to the life. I owned an apartment building with 30 gallon gas fired water heaters in each unit. Over the years I changed out nearly 50 of them. Some 6 year guarantee tanks lasted 15-18 years when the temp setting was at medium or below. The ones that failed in 5-7 years were the ones where tenants insisted on setting the temperature to the high stop. I think the thermal cycling cracked the glass lining in the bottom seam of the tank earlier and they would corrode and leak sooner. It didn't matter what brand of water heater I bought.
The way I do it is, I turn the temperature up on the hot water heater and then mix more cold water with the hot when I take my shower. That cost me nothing and does the same thing.
You can't legally turn up the temp of the water heaters anymore - look up scalding lawsuits.. By law, the max temperature that can be available at any fixture is now 120F. If you turn up your water heater, then you need a thermostatic mixing valve installed even if you have anti-scald fixtures as well. They didn't explain that part.
That method will work, but it comes with higher scald risks. Yes, you know to adjust the water temp at the fixture but will everyone using your water know the hot water is now dangerously hot? The method in the video gives the same result (increased amount of 120°F water at the fixture) without the increased scald risk.
The only plus is it would keep you from getting scolded. You can do the same thing at the faucet by adding cold water to the very hot water. Would be good if you have small children.
Hey, this looks great, but without all the plumbing, you can adjust the waters temperature and enrease the flow at the faucet. Snake oil at work here folks don't buy it.
I really don't understand that I've installed thousands of hot water heaters and never come across we have to put one of those in that's the most ridiculous thing in the whole wide world turned in your hot water heater up so you can adjust your temperature I put it in a hundred and twenty degrees and it's just fine. most ridiculous thing I've ever seen in my life LOL never in a million years
Benny's Smokin' BBQ - You do understand why someone might have the need for one of these right? I have no use for one but could totally understand where someone else might need one.
well as a matter of fact this morning it was -1 and I took the 20 minute hot shower so what do you say about that it's the type of hot water heater that you get your buy a crappy hot water here you'll get crappy service out of it to buy the best of the best
I fail to comprehend how increasing the HEAT on the water heater will make it more efficient , I think it's another ruse to put the innocent population into MORE spending and eventually "shorten" the life of your water heater...
Higher water temperature equals higher heat loss so I guess this is the trade-off for getting more hot water from your under-sized water heater. Will cost more I would say.
I would be looking at a good quality on-demand system. No wasted energy keeping a tank hot for no reason during the day and set temperature hot water when you need it.
Classic case of government regulations with unintended consequences. Regulation causes water heater size and price to increase. Company makes a product that works around the regulations. Consumer buys workaround which runs temperature hotter which wipes out the efficiency gain mandated by the regulation. Consumer spends more for water heater plus even more for mixing valve. Company makes lots of money selling mixing valves. Interesting, the new regulation ultimately forces consumer spending which promotes business. Must be a Republican that made the new regulation???
We just had a plumber remove this system because it was giving us problems. He took one look and said he knows what’s wrong. They also didn’t include a tuning valve.
The same can be achieved without this mixing valve. But you must be very vigilant if infants are around. Basically if you turn up your water heater temperature, you need less hot water and more cold water to have a decent shower. But this unit just makes it so the output at the hot water faucet will give children and adults enough time to react and pull their hands away thereby not scalding instantaneously.....
Actually, code requires certain fixtures to not allow over 120 degree temps... by using a thermostatic valve in the system. It can be done at the fixture, by water heater, or both.
The mixing valve is not needed . Your shower or sink faucets does the exact same thing. Turn up or turn down the thermostat to the setting you like. I have survived more than half a decade without this mixing valve being described in video.
I understand the principle that the tank stores hotter than needed water and the mixing valve tempers the hot water to the temp desired. Thus you get your 25% more capacity of hot water left in the tank. But to constantly be heating the tank to this max temp you defeat the energy conservation principle and waste either gas or electricity to achieve your results. To me, this is heading in the wrong direction. Thanks
Don't you already have a mixing valve at your sink? Isn't that what the cold water tap is for? I did this ten years ago, turned up the water temp at my tank and just use less hot water at the tap and more cold water. It's the same thing and we all already own the mixing valves
Or just forget all of this and use your faucet handles to adjust your temp as needed like we've been doing for 100 years. All the mixing valve does is prevent you from accidentally scalding yourself.
Well, that's the problem. You can no longer send 140F water into a fixture for scalding reasons, so the water heater must be legally set to 120F, or you can bump its temp and use the thermostatic valve to temper it. Raising the heater temp means it's storing more BTUs than it did before.
You're also leaving fewer BTU's in the pipes on the way to the fixtures if you use a mixing valve. I mean holy crap, do you use a car? Surely you'd rather walk on foot like we've been doing for thousands of years?
