It’s officially Autumn in Florida. How do I know? Because this past weekend I adjusted my hot water heater’s temperature gauge. For those of you that don’t know, I adjust my hot water heater’s temperature gauge seasonally. When the outside temperatures drop, I turn the gauge up and when we welcome back warmer temperatures, the gauge goes down. It’s little things like this, that helped contribute to my power costs only being $35 last month.
But back to the reason for the adjustment…
For a cold weather wimp like me, the mornings are chilly (in the mid 60’s…the 60’s you guys!). So I need my shower to have lots of hot water, unlike the summer time when I only need a bit of hot water. I opened up the hot water heater panel, adjusted the gauge and voila!, more hot water.
Perhaps you don’t know how most hot water heaters work and how this can save you money. The simple explanation is this: most hot water heater temperature gauges are set between 120°F-125°F. Your hot water heater, heats water to the set temperature, then the water cools a bit and the heater, heats it back up again. It does this all day long to ensure that the moment you want hot water, it is available. If you’re not using all of the hot water in your tank, then you can turn the temperature down to save money. That’s what I do in the summer, when I set the gauge to 100°F. But now I’m cold (in the 60’s, remember?), so I adjusted it up to 115°F and as it gets colder, I’ll adjust it up to 125°F.
Want to try it yourself? It’s easy! Grab your screwdriver and I’ll show you how.
Your hot water heater may be different than mine and you should check your manufacturer’s manual for additional information and safety precautions, but this should give you the basic steps.
- Safety first, you are working with an electric appliance, so the first thing you’ll want to do is turn off the breaker to your hot water heater.
- Next, locate the panel(s) on the outside of your hot water heater and remove it.
- My hot water heater temperature gauge is covered in a layer of insulation, which I push aside with the end of my screwdriver.
- Underneath you’ll find the gauge, use your screwdriver to turn the indicator up or down to the desired temperature.
- Replace the insulation and the panel cover.
- Turn the breaker back on and you’re all set!
Be sure to tell everyone in the house that you’ve adjusted the temperature of the hot water, especially if you’ve turned it up. Experts recommend that hot water temperatures do NOT exceed 125°F, especially for children.
Turn the temperature up in the winter and back down in the summer and you’ll be able to save energy and money!
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How very energy efficient of you!