Minimize Energy Bills with a Solar Water Heater

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Heated water is absolutely necessary for our way of life, and so many people are content to pay whatever they have to pay for this commodity. However, you may be spending several times what you need to if you use a traditional electric water heater. If you are still using one of those big tanks, then now is a great time to upgrade to a cheaper and more efficient water heating unit. Instead of supplying power off of the electric grid, you can use the power of the sun to heat your water, granting you some big savings each year. A solar water heater uses solar rays not to produce electricity, like with photovoltaic cells in solar panel arrays, but simply to produce heat energy.

Some Maintenance but Much Cheaper

A solar hot water heater is the perfect choice for ecologically aware individuals and families. A conventional water heater may account for as much as ten percent of your electric bill per month, although that number certainly varies a lot depending on the age of your water heater (newer conventional water heaters use less energy than older models). Installing a solar water heater is more profitable under certain conditions than others. For example, purchasing a new house and installing a solar water heater can easily help you save $20 a month, while the cost can be as little as $10 a month on your mortgage. Home owners with mid-1990 models or older will also see significant savings when they install a new solar water heater in their home.

However, there is a small amount of maintenance associated with solar water heaters. Fortunately, it isn't costly or time-consuming, and you'll only need to perform it about every three years (the hardest part is simply remembering to perform it). Different solar water heaters require different forms of maintenance, but it won't be anything too difficult to perform. Another note of caution: solar water heaters generally have a backup source of electricity (generally off of the grid) for when the sun does not supply quite enough power to heat your water. While in theory this isn't necessary, nobody wants to shower in cold water, so you can expect your solar water heater to still use about 10% the electricity that your conventional water heater uses. So far, no 100% electricity-free water heater has been developed, but you can certainly take a huge step towards that goal with a solar water heater.

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