I have not purchased a new water heater in about 25 years. So far the existing one at the shop is still doing fine. In my private quarters there, I flip the switch when hot water is needed. Otherwise it stays off. This has cut the electric bill way down for all these years. Three phase commercial electricity does not come cheap, so cutting costs where I can.
Since the cabin is getting closer to being occupied most of the time, water and an affordable way to heat it comes into play. Over the last 20 years I have acquired several low mileage electric heaters. But sitting so long, I didnt bother to do anything but toss them to the curb.
Checking availability of what is current did not surprise me. Cost is about what I expected for a common 30-50 gallon residential upright tank. Electric of course. Nothing on these has really changed over the years. Hard to get any more economical when heating with a direct short. It is one way and that is your only option.
For most standard style 30 to 50 gallon water heaters still sell for about $350-500. This is about par for what I was expecting. They were not that much cheaper 20 years ago. It seems manufacturing cost is stable and demand is still strong.
So I looked at compact style water heaters. These are smaller in size and many are powered by 120 volts, instead of 220. They might be anything up to 12 gallons. Some even 20 gallons. The big difference is the cost. The majority of them were pushing $600-800.
This doesnt exactly make sense. But nowadays not much else does either. The size is less than half and heating is also about one half. Only one heating element. Aside from half the materials to make the water heater, nothing else is any different. Except the price jumps way up.
I was hoping to pick up something affordable. But conventional water heaters in the compact variety seem to be out of my range now. Full size are just too big. Basically anything with a tank is too big to hide anywhere.
Tankless water heaters used to be really expensive, but that has changed. They cost roughly the same as equivalent in size to standard tank models. But there is a much broader price range than the standard tank models. Plus there are all types of variants like mini-tank. Some of these gets expensive. The point of use are not bad in cost considering, but very limited on output when water temp is a bit on the cold side.
My initial plan was to go tankless. But I dont like the high amp draw when in use. The compact water heaters were next in line. But most of them are 120 volts. That limits me to a commercial model powered at 220. I would like to keep between 12 and 20 gallons. But these tend to be the most expensive to choose from.
This puts me back to considering a very small tankless. Not a point of use, but the smallest general use I can find. I would like to keep under a 50 amp two pole breaker. I would really like to keep it under 40 amps. But that is right about the demand of point of use models.
After searching for what is available, I am back to considering building my own. Cutting 30 gallon tank in half, but keep both of the heating elements in use. Then flip the switch 15 minutes before use and remember to turn it back off afterwards. Water will stay hot for a day if not relied on for much after it has been heated and turned off.
Heating water for now is not something I want to deal with using the pot belly stove, or solar heating panels. That is way too much trouble and seasonally backwards to what is ideally functional.
So now I am sitting here thinking of alternatives that may be of help to assist conventional means to heat water. Anything to offset the cost of using electricity or being solely reliant on it all the time. This is one thing that solar panels could be of use if a large number of them were dedicated to only powering up a direct current water heating element. Wow I just might be on to something.
During the main daylight hours of optimum sunshine, have a well insulated water tank wired directly to a timed switch that automatically powers up the heating elements for however many hours in the day is useful to produce decent output.
I know it is a lot of amperage, but on a very small scale something might be doable. Just keeping a few gallons hot during the day would offset the electric bill. A smaller tank with lower amperage elements that stays powered for several hours is still free hot water. This could work well enough for a single person use if someone were to ration during off months.
I dont expect to heat water like is normal for most residences. But an alternative source to assist the main heater would be a step in the right direction. Even if it was only a pre-heat tank that feeds the main hot water heater during colder months. This is an option that could pan out.
Since the cabin is getting closer to being occupied most of the time, water and an affordable way to heat it comes into play. Over the last 20 years I have acquired several low mileage electric heaters. But sitting so long, I didnt bother to do anything but toss them to the curb.
Checking availability of what is current did not surprise me. Cost is about what I expected for a common 30-50 gallon residential upright tank. Electric of course. Nothing on these has really changed over the years. Hard to get any more economical when heating with a direct short. It is one way and that is your only option.
For most standard style 30 to 50 gallon water heaters still sell for about $350-500. This is about par for what I was expecting. They were not that much cheaper 20 years ago. It seems manufacturing cost is stable and demand is still strong.
So I looked at compact style water heaters. These are smaller in size and many are powered by 120 volts, instead of 220. They might be anything up to 12 gallons. Some even 20 gallons. The big difference is the cost. The majority of them were pushing $600-800.
This doesnt exactly make sense. But nowadays not much else does either. The size is less than half and heating is also about one half. Only one heating element. Aside from half the materials to make the water heater, nothing else is any different. Except the price jumps way up.
I was hoping to pick up something affordable. But conventional water heaters in the compact variety seem to be out of my range now. Full size are just too big. Basically anything with a tank is too big to hide anywhere.
Tankless water heaters used to be really expensive, but that has changed. They cost roughly the same as equivalent in size to standard tank models. But there is a much broader price range than the standard tank models. Plus there are all types of variants like mini-tank. Some of these gets expensive. The point of use are not bad in cost considering, but very limited on output when water temp is a bit on the cold side.
My initial plan was to go tankless. But I dont like the high amp draw when in use. The compact water heaters were next in line. But most of them are 120 volts. That limits me to a commercial model powered at 220. I would like to keep between 12 and 20 gallons. But these tend to be the most expensive to choose from.
This puts me back to considering a very small tankless. Not a point of use, but the smallest general use I can find. I would like to keep under a 50 amp two pole breaker. I would really like to keep it under 40 amps. But that is right about the demand of point of use models.
After searching for what is available, I am back to considering building my own. Cutting 30 gallon tank in half, but keep both of the heating elements in use. Then flip the switch 15 minutes before use and remember to turn it back off afterwards. Water will stay hot for a day if not relied on for much after it has been heated and turned off.
Heating water for now is not something I want to deal with using the pot belly stove, or solar heating panels. That is way too much trouble and seasonally backwards to what is ideally functional.
So now I am sitting here thinking of alternatives that may be of help to assist conventional means to heat water. Anything to offset the cost of using electricity or being solely reliant on it all the time. This is one thing that solar panels could be of use if a large number of them were dedicated to only powering up a direct current water heating element. Wow I just might be on to something.
During the main daylight hours of optimum sunshine, have a well insulated water tank wired directly to a timed switch that automatically powers up the heating elements for however many hours in the day is useful to produce decent output.
I know it is a lot of amperage, but on a very small scale something might be doable. Just keeping a few gallons hot during the day would offset the electric bill. A smaller tank with lower amperage elements that stays powered for several hours is still free hot water. This could work well enough for a single person use if someone were to ration during off months.
I dont expect to heat water like is normal for most residences. But an alternative source to assist the main heater would be a step in the right direction. Even if it was only a pre-heat tank that feeds the main hot water heater during colder months. This is an option that could pan out.
