The number three is pissing me off. This post should be popping out Friday, not today. I should be putting the finishing touches on “Race Card Pt II – Electric Boogaloo” right now instead of writing my community post. Life decided to piss all over me today, however. Allow me to explain.

Everything began about 3:00 AM as my tooth began to hurt (and by hurt, I mean shoot jagged spikes of fuck you into my tender brain). Our money is deposited into our account at 5:00 am via direct deposit, and today was when our baby bonus comes in. Checking the account, I noticed we were down to our last three dollars – not enough for ibuprofen or ambesol. I ended up tossing and turning, never actually getting to sleep until at least 5:30, when I finally drifted off to the sound of rain.

Why is this important? Flush down the drain with me to find out.

For some reason, Maggie was up earlier than normal; I am fairly sure she was up before the alarm went off at 7:30, and that is not like her. I was aware of her yelling about something and hearing splashing – I could also still hear the rain. She came in and out of the room a couple of times trying to get me up, but I was pretty dead to the world until I heard her say “the apartment is flooded”. That got my attention pretty goddamn quick. It seems the “rain” I heard was water pouring out of the ceiling and walls, because our upstairs neighbor’s hot water heater had decided to take a giant shit on my personal happiness. It was a fucking mess.

We got everything situated quickly, and Maggie took the lead on this one – something I am insanely grateful for. I had the mental capacity of a dead giraffe… a dead giraffe with a freaking toothache. Maintenance invaded our house by 7:30; we got the kids up and fed. My oldest son, Jason, is autistic. He is very high functioning and an amazing child, but he needs help to understand his feelings and environment. Part of that help is therapy, which he has thirty hours of every week. His home therapist, an amazing woman named Wendy, comes every weekday at 9:00 am and plays with him until 3:00pm, part of a therapy program called Applied Behavior Analysis. It’s a great program and he has made lots of progress, but that isn’t the point. This morning was the day his Senior Therapist (who runs his program) was to drop in for her weekly meeting. On top of that, this was also the morning his speech therapist was coming in to check on his progress.

I think you can see why snowballs hate hills.

Regardless, I ended up getting a nap in the afternoon – which turned into me sleeping for five fucking hours. Maggie was really sweet to let me, but it has completely messed up my schedule (no sweetie, I am not complaining that you let me nap. Thank you again). My Race post is about three paragraphs long, and I just can’t get it out right now, so we’re doing Other Heads today. Fuck you, it’s my blog.

Epixaricacy : Danielle has set up a great blog focusing on MMOs. Her writing is hilarious – I can’t make it through a post without cracking up several times. She needs to write more! She recently related her experiences in Star Trek Online, coming to a lot of the same conclusions I did. The post I enjoy most on her blog is Ghosts of MMOs Yet to Come. She, Josh, and I are supposed to be putting together a Time Traveling MMO of DOOM also.

Kiersten Writes: Kiersten White is a Young Adult writer whose first novel is coming later this year, published by HarperTeen. I spent a good hour or so browsing her blog after seeing a tweet by Jess Hartley, and I absolutely love what I have read so far. The post Jess brought to twitter’s attention is In Which I am the Bearer of Very Bad News, where she talks about being on submission after finding an agent. This is an amazingly insightful read, and I highly recommend it. Congratulations on being an author, Kiersten!

This is a screenshot of my Stats page. Do you know what I thought when I saw this? Don't act like you don't see it too. Talk about a figure.

Cartographer’s Guild: For this week’s website, I am turning your browsers towards the Cartographer’s Guild. Maggie found this site when I was looking up resources for creating maps electronically – I love making hand-drawn maps, and was curious to learn how to get all 20^th Century (I’ll work on the 21^st Century in a decade or nine). There are so many resources for map-making and how-to posts that you can easily spend days just browsing. This is an amazing resource, and I recommend it to anyone making maps for writing or gaming.

Thanks for reading all! The Exaltified Part I – The Dawn Caste post has become my most browsed, with over 157 hits at the time of this writing, pushing my total hits for Wednesday up to 270 – also the most I’ve ever seen. I want to give a big thanks to Mr Gone for clearing me to post the link on the White Wolf forums. See you all tomorrow when Creationgasm returns, and look here later today for Maggie’s next installment of Ten Things We Hate about You.

-Pax-

Pilot Light Issues

Is there no hot water coming from the water heater and/or is the pilot light out?  Unlike the new furnaces these days, many hot water heaters still use a pilot light.  The pilot light for the  is always lit so that when the gas valve calls for heat the pilot light will ignite the main burner.  For a variety of reasons, a pilot light can go out therefore causing the water heater to not produce hot water.

Causes For A Water Heater Pilot Light To Go Out

A water heater’s pilot light can go out due to part malfunctions caused  by age or other factors, dampness, room pressure, or environment among other reasons.  If the pilot light gets wet or damp it can obviously go out.  Room pressure can cause the issue of no hot water as well.  If the room has a negative pressure, in other words the room is starving for air, a back draft from the chimney can occur which causes the pilot light to blow out.  This can also be caused by a strong wind.  A dirty or cramped environment can cause the pilot light or water heater suffocation by restricted air flow. 

Possible Solutions

At Roger Vadnais Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning our professional service technicians have had training to repair a variety of hot water heaters in the event that there is no not water being produced.  To schedule an appointment contact us at (651) 429-3303 or visit us online at www.rogervadnais.com

Some of the cities we service for plumbing, heating and air conditioning include:

White Bear Lake, Vadnais Heights, Little Canada, Gem Lake, Shorview, Hugo, Lino Lakes, Lake Elmo, Dellwood, Mahtomedi, Oakdale, Pine Springs, North Oaks, Maplewood, Centerville, Roseville, Stillwater, Grant, Woodbury, Arden Hills, Willernie

CLICK HERE FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT HOT WATER HEATERS

If you live in the east and go through cold winters, then chances are you have or know of indirect water heaters.  These are more popular in that part of the country and may be better than any water heater out there.  Indirect water heaters use the least amount of energy and water for your home.  Although not that well known, you may want to consider changing to one.

Most water heaters heat the water that is stored inside of the tank.  This is a very traditional type and is found in most home.  It works well and most people never seem to complain about them.  However, they are the least efficient and cost the most money to operate.  The water inside eventually cools and the unit has to heat it up again.  Whether they are gas or electric, they use more energy.  The next best units are the tankless units that heat water as you need it.  Indirect heaters somewhat follow this concept.

Indirect heaters use your home’s heating supply to heat the water.  They are attached to a boiler or furnace.  When a faucet is turned on inside the home, water runs through the home’s heating system and then into a well-insulated tank.  Once the hot water is inside of this tank, it continually circulates so it does not lose temperature.  These tanks are made of stainless steel, are very well insulated, and can hold about 75-80 gallons of water.  This is plenty of water to get through any household routine such as showering.

These water heaters are very popular in the eastern part of the country and function best during the coldest months.  It would be very rare to find this unit in a home where the winter temperatures are not that drastic.  There are few companies manufacturing these water heaters simply because they are sold in an isolated area.  Some of the bigger companies that make them and would be a safe buy are Coliex, Amtrol and Heat Wave.  All of them make high-quality tanks out of stainless steel and have excellent warranties.

If you think that adding an indirect water heater to your home would be a good choice, then think about the benefits of having one.  A typical tank stores hot water and has to continuously re-heat it, and an indirect system creates and stores hot water only as you need it and use it.  If you live in a cold area and are looking for efficiency, then an indirect water heater is a great choice.

Repiping is a huge job that one does not want to redo. The best way to avoid repiping is to carefully plan the water usage during plumbing installation. It is necessary to estimate the flow of water in order to maintain the water pressure. For example, the number of bathroom faucets that will be in use and whether normal hot water heaters or tankless water heaters are used. Use of copper pipes prevents problems that occur due to rusting. Also, good maintenance measures such as video inspection plumbing will help fix problems early. Mike Counsil Plumbing will help with repipes and can be contacted at 650-965-2400.

There are various parameters to be taken into account while buying a new water heater. First one has to decide on the type of water heater. It can be electric or gas water heaters or on demand water heaters. Other factors include the size of the water heater, its volume and energy consumption. The water heater parts should be widely available in case of a repair. In order to get the best deal, it is wise to compare the water heater prices of different dealers before making the purchase. Mike Counsil Plumbing helps with buying, installing and maintaining hot water heaters and can be contacted at 510-739-1100.

Hot water heaters are a major source of energy consumption. Even the best water heaters undergo problems such as corrosion of the water tank and loss of heat from the tank. Electric tankless heaters completely avoid the water tank and are better than traditional water heaters. The instant water heater helps in saving energy and thus reduces the utility bill. 

Mike Counsil Plumbing offer installation and repair services for tankless heaters, including Bosch tankless water heaters. Their services can be requested from their website or by contacting them at 408-272-4900.

If you are looking to make use of solar energy, you may want to look for devices that come with their own energy generation panels. On the other hand, you may also want to try buying some devices that use less energy, as well as ones that can easily be adapted for use with portable solar power packs.

products that use less energy, as well as ones that can be used with your car’s cigarette lighter. If you are looking to make use of solar energy, you may want to try buying some devices that come with their own energy generation panels. On the other hand, you may want to try buying some devices that use less electricity than conventional devices. In particular, anything that runs on battery power can most likely be run on solar energy. This includes laptops, as well as any appliance that has an adapter that can be used with your car’s cigarette lighter.

If you do some research, you will be amazed at all the appliances that are available. Large Household Appliances Many people are would prefer to use with portable solar panels, as well as ones that can be used with your car’s cigarette lighter. If you do some research, you will be amazed at all the appliances that are available. Large Household Appliances Many people are would prefer to use with portable solar power packs. Regardless of the devices that come with their own energy generation panels.

On the other hand, you may want to look for devices that you choose, the savings on your current electric bill just by changing the kinds of appliances that require more current. Technically, there are very few home solar energy products that include solar panels and batteries.

Causes Of No Heat From Power Vent Water Heaters

Is the control valve for the power vent hot water heater locked out?  At times, a power vent hot water heater can kick out for one reason or another.  Power vent hot water heaters are very sensitive to their environment.  If things like gas or certain vapors are sensed, the hot water heater might kick out.  Gas or air pressure can also cause a power vent hot water heater to kick out.  If the room the hot water heater is in has a negative pressure, the control will sense this and the heating unit may kick out and/or lock out.

Solutions For Water Heater Error Codes

If the power vent hot water heater is giving a lock out code turn the switch off then on, sometimes this will turn the heater back on.  If this doesn’t work, a plumber will need to be called to service the equipment.  Since the new hot water heaters are much more complicated than older models, our plumbing technicians at Roger Vadnais Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning have had specific training on the heating units from the hot water heater companies.  Therefore, our plumbers have the knowledge and parts needed to fix the hot water heater if need be.  While there, the plumber will clean the necessary parts of the hot water heater burner in order to ensure proper operation.

For any of your plumbing, heating, or air conditioning needs, contact us at (651) 429-3303 or visit our professional website at www.rogervadnais.com

A tankless water heater heats water as it flows in-line and does not use a separate tank to store and/or heat water. In effect it saves space and time and supplies hot water on demand. This on demand water heater has many advantages as compared to the traditional hot water heaters.

Mike Counsil Plumbing  does the installation and maintenance of all types of electric tankless water heaters. Based in San Jose, they undertake all kinds of plumbing services. They can be contacted at 408-272-4900 (Santa Clara County), 650-965-2400 (Los Altos) and 510-739-1100 (Fremont) for any enquiries

Technology developed through a collaboration between Oak Ridge National Laboratory and General Electric meets new a tough new Energy Star water heater program criteria. GE is set to be the first company to meet the new energy saving standard, and will also be creating hundreds of jobs in Louisville, Kentucky.

GE announced the heater the day after the new Energy Star heat pump hot water heater criteria was released, which required future heaters to be twice as efficient as an electric storage water heater. The new water heater criteria are expected to save American households approximately $780 million, per the DOE.

GE has targeted increasing concerns over utility costs as water heating “accounts for 12 percent of U.S. home energy consumption” making it one of the top contributors to household demand.The GE Hybrid Electric Water Heater is designed to produce equivalent performance to standard water heaters, except at half the operating cost, requiring 2300 kWh of electricity per year compared with 4800 kwH/year. The hybrid technology saves energy by absorbing heat in ambient air and transferring it into the water, which requires much less energy than it does to generate heat.

“It’ll give you as much hot water, it’ll have the same recovery time so you won’t run out of hot water, but it will use half the energy to do so,” said Patrick Hughes of ORNL. “Typical family of four would save about $250 to $300 per year and the device will qualify for the personal tax credits, it will pay for itself in about three years.”

The tax credits Hughes refers to are the Federal Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency, which can cover 30 percent of the cost for non-solar water heaters (up to $1,500). GE also manufactures solar water heaters, which are a small but growing market in the U.S., and energy-efficient tankless water heaters, which heat water on demand.

If current water heaters (44 million) were switched to GE’s heat pump water heater, annual energy savings could equate to the electric output of 176 coal-fired power plants per year and 12 million tons of carbon emissions reduction, per the 2007 Buildings Energy Data Book.

The Louisville plant is set to start producing water heaters in 2011. The planned manufacturing facility also has a potential to create 1,600 incremental green jobs over time.

Source:

 

GARNER, N.C. – Complications from installing an industrial, gas-fired water heater caused the deadly explosion at the Garner ConAgra plant last Tuesday, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s initial report.

Federal investigators said Thursday that the week before the explosion, outside contractors had installed the water heater and a new natural gas line for it.

The day of the explosion, crews were trying to get the new equipment working.

“The CSB is examining the possibility that gases inside the line were likely purged and vented directly into the pump room, in the interior of the building, leading to a flammable gas cloud and an explosion,” CSB Investigations Supervisor Don Holmstrom said.

Investigators would not name the company that installed the water heater and purged the gas line, but two people injured in the explosion have filed a lawsuit against Southern Industrial Contractors.

However, an attorney representing that company said at the time of the explosion, no Southern Industrial employees were working on gas lines or water heaters.

Meanwhile, ConAgra officials announced Thursday that the plant will resume production in August in the portion of the building that wasn’t damaged in the explosion.

The Chemical Safety Board said it will likely take nine months to a year for them to issue their final report.

North Carolina’s Occupational Safety and Health Division must complete its investigation within six months. Investigators said the area of the plant where the explosion occurred is still too dangerous for anyone to go inside.

Source:

It’s imperative to maintain your water heaters at least once a year. Proper maintenance on your water heater can extend its life. You should flush your water heaters at least once a year. This will remove the sediment from the water heater that is harmful to its proper operation. It is also recommended that you check all of the safety shut off valves and copper connections. Mike Counsil Plumbing, Inc. in San Jose offers maintenance agreements that can keep your water heater running and keep hot water flowing always. For water heater repairs or plumbing help for fixtures and replacement, contact Mike Counsil Plumbing, Inc. in San Jose for water heater installation according to City Code.

Plumbing Contractors-Mike Counsil

You may be thinking about either moving your existing water heater or upgrading to larger hot water heaters. No matter what you do a gas sizing of the system should be done. This is to insure that you have enough gas supply to run your water heater properly. You can get water heaters for your home in a variety of sizes and types. Most single family homes have a 40 gallon water heater. These hot water heaters may last 10 to 15 years. Plumbing contractors from Mike Counsil will help you choose the proper water heater or undertake water heater repairs to keep it running at its optimum performance level for your home. If you are a property owner, Mike Counsil would be happy to give you an estimate for repairing or replacing your water heaters. Volume pricing is available if you are the manager of an apartment complex or have a property with multiple water heaters that need replacing or maintaining.

To employ the services of plumbing contractors for water heater installation or plumbing help and fixtures, call 408.272.4900 to fix an appointment.  Visit their website at www.mcplumbing,com for more information on other services. They are available 24/7!

According to the GreenPlumbersTraining.com website, their new online training course in Solar Hot Water installation has just been released!

“After rigorous beta testing by master and journeyman plumbers, GreenPlumbers is pleased to release our first online training course in Solar Hot Water. The launch of our sustainable online training website, GreenPlumbersTraining.com, enables plumbers to remain competitive in their industry while helping our nation meet the growing demand for ‘green collar’ workers.

Benefits of online training:

Take the 4-hour Solar Hot Water course at your own pace – the online training system will automatically save your place after completing each lesson.

Course registration is $125, and there is no time limit on completing the course.

Receive an Accredited GreenPlumbers certificate in the mail upon passing the final exam with a grade of 70% or higher.

You will be added to the GreenPlumbers website on the List of Accredited GreenPlumbers upon receiving a passing grade.”

***********************

Plumbers, this is a chance to refine or upgrade your current knowledge base, and it’s all done from the comfort of your own home.

Energetically Yours,
Diane Tegarden

Plumbers in King County have it easy. Make no mistake; they’re hard-working, industrious and know their business. It’s easier for them because of the number of older homes in the area.

Plumbing that dates back nearly a century inevitably means leaky pipes. Some of those pipes are actually made of lead, which is toxic to living things who drink water from lead pipes.  Many are made of galvinized iron, a material that was never meant to last 100 years and can cause coloration in the water as well as leaking, etc.  Repair and replacement of old pipes is just one area of plumbing.

Ground water and wet basements means sump pumps — which need maintenance, repairs and replacements. While the annual rainfall here is less than that of the Pacific North-West (which is classified as a temperate rain forest), there’s still plenty of rain and groundwater to get into the foundations of houses.

Hot water heaters have a limited life span. When they go, they need replacement. Local plumbers can upgrade the quality of the replacement to be more energy efficient (including the new solar hot water solution).

Then there are the inevitable clogs, leaky faucets, sewer problems and the like. Bathtubs and sinks eventually wear out and need to be fixed or replaced. All the normal plumbing chores that need attention just add to the ease with which Scranton plumbers get more and more work.

The trick for Seattle, Bellevue, and King County residents is to find the right plumber for the particular job that needs doing. A pipe-fitter or steam-fitter is not a plumber. Neither is a “helpful” neighbor with a smattering of plumbing knowledge (who recently screwed up the installation of a float in a toilet). Check out King County Plumbers for a reliable, hard-working plumber.

Plumbers in Tacoma have it easy. Make no mistake; they’re hard-working, industrious and know their business. It’s easier for them because of the number of older homes in the area.

Plumbing that dates back nearly a century inevitably means leaky pipes. Some of those pipes are actually made of lead, which is toxic to living things who drink water from lead pipes.  Many are made of galvinized iron, a material that was never meant to last 100 years and can cause coloration in the water as well as leaking, etc.  Repair and replacement of old pipes is just one area of plumbing.

Ground water and wet basements means sump pumps — which need maintenance, repairs and replacements. While the annual rainfall here is less than that of the Pacific North-West (which is classified as a temperate rain forest), there’s still plenty of rain and groundwater to get into the foundations of houses.

Hot water heaters have a limited life span. When they go, they need replacement. Local plumbers can upgrade the quality of the replacement to be more energy efficient (including the new solar hot water solution).

Then there are the inevitable clogs, leaky faucets, sewer problems and the like. Bathtubs and sinks eventually wear out and need to be fixed or replaced. All the normal plumbing chores that need attention just add to the ease with which Scranton plumbers get more and more work.

The trick for Tacomans is to find the right plumber for the particular job that needs doing. A pipe-fitter or steam-fitter is not a plumber. Neither is a “helpful” neighbor with a smattering of plumbing knowledge (who recently screwed up the installation of a float in a toilet). Check out Tacoma Plumbers for a reliable, hard-working plumber at http://tacomafocus.com/tacoma/plumbers/.

This is pretty cool.

So I talked about my hot water heater and how I thought it was weird that the company had been around since 1881. Well, I guess Bradford White has people scouring the internet  for mentions of their name in case they need to defend themselves or something. So anyway, I got a reply from a guy directly at Bradford White telling me all about the history of the company and how a company that makes hot water heaters could have been around since 1881. Pretty cool, huh? Here it is:

“Good morning: The history of Bradford White Corporations does in fact go back to 1881. Originally Pennsylvania Range Boiler, then Pennsylvania Bradford, the company became Bradford White with the merger of Pennsylvania Bradford and White Product in Michigan in the early 1960’s.

We are very proud of our history and heritage. We are also proud that our products are produced in the USA, unlike our competitors who have moved some of their production to Mexico. We have earned a reputation for producing the best water heaters in the industry.

Thank you for purchasing our product. We are not lying.”

Sweet!

Stockton california has and is till one of the oldest gold rush towns in the nation. Stockton is filled with old victorian homes as well as brand new track homes. That means that there’s a variety of plumbing needs, both for residences, buildings, new and old industrial plants. There may not be any lead pipes left that deliver water — but I wouldn’t bet on it! In fact, some of the older homes and buildings in the area have been neglected for decades. This means that there may still be the potential for a buyer to discover that tearing out the old pipes and replacing them with copper piping will be a necessary cost to include in the purchase. Refurbishing kitchens, bathrooms, bathtubs, sinks and showers is also a vibrant business. Those homes that date back to the Roaring ’20’s now have leaky pipes and faucets, inefficient shower heads, toilets that consume more gallons of water than needed and the need for a host of other plumbing repairs. Fortunately, there are skilled plumbing contractors ready to assist the homeowner or building owner with whatever needs to be done. Just take a look at Stockton Plumbers for the best plumbers in stockton

Whilst doing some dishes in my sink, my friend Teresa was commenting about how hot my hot water was and that in her house she can’t get her bath hot enough. How hot should our water be? This brings up questions we’ll need to consider. In my house, I love to take a hot bath and do not want to run out of hot water or deprive someone else of a hot shower, either, so we keep our setting high. 

According to Wisegeek.com there are a few important issues to consider: Setting a lower temperature can help avoid serious burns. Temperatures above 125 degrees can seriously burn a child. The suggested safe temperature for hot water setting is 120 degrees. Dropping the water temperature setting by ten degrees typically saves approximately 4% on one’s cost to heat water each year.

It seems that the factory setting for water heaters is 120 degrees. Asktooltalk.com says: “120 degrees seems low for a family of four, so I recommend setting the temperature between 130 and 140 degrees. This will make the water hot enough so you are forced to mix it with cold water to achieve a comfortable temperature. Mixing it with cold water will also help make the hot water last longer.”

Natural Handyman.com has some interesting ideas on energy saving, including turning off your water heater when you go away and yet points out that to really disinfect with your dishwasher you’ll want the water to be as hot as 140 degrees. “Lowering the temperature too much can have unintended consequences as you will need to use more heated water to obtain the same temperature at the faucet or shower.  Thus, if your tank currently gives your family three showers in the morning, you might find the last person screaming!!” This site does give good step by step directions to determine your tap temperature and how to adjust your gas, oil or electric water heater.

Tankless water heaters are a wonderful energy saver as are solar panels-and that is another post as is water conservation and the therapeutic nature of hot baths for women.

As we move the construction possess along, one of the discussions that came up is the type of water heater that we will use. Water heating is one of the top users of energy in the home, second only to the central heat/AC system. In the past, when we built homes, the decision was a simple choice between an electric or gas water heater. Today there are more choices. Here are some that we considered:

Tank Water Heater
1) Electric resistance heat
The electric resistance water heater has heating elements, similar to toaster coils, immersed in the water. The elements keep 20 – 120 gallons of water hot at all times. This type of water heater is cheaper to install compared to a gas system, because it does not need a fuel line, an exhaust flue, and combustion air for the burner. However, electric resistance water heaters cost more to operate because electricity is more expensive than natural gas.

In the city of Austin a recent change has been made to the building code: “In all one and two family units in excess of 500 square feet, the primary source of hot water may not be electric resistance. An electric resistance system is permitted if piped in series with (another type of) primary system.” So, in the city of Austin, electric resistance water heaters are no longer permitted in new homes. They are not a green alternative.

2) Gas heat (natural gas or propane)
In our previous homes we have had natural gas water heaters. In our current home, natural gas is not available, so we used propane. We have noticed that the cost of propane has gone up substantially during the past three years. As gasoline prices have gone up, so has propane. It is on a par with electricity, and may be higher in the future. For the house we are building on Taylor Road, natural gas is not available, and we would like to avoid propane.

3) Electric Heat with Heat pump

One alternative for our situation is an electric water heater with an added heat pump appliance, sometimes called a heat recovery or heat transfer unit. The cost is higher than a simple electric heat water, but the energy cost to run is lower. The heat pump appliance reduces energy use by capturing heat from the air and transferring it to the water tank.

This type of water heater works well with our floor plan, which has the laundry room outside the air conditioned area. We wanted to keep the clothes dryer out of the heated and cooled area because dryers pull a lot of air from the house (and vent it to the outside) while they are running. The water heater will be in the non air-conditioned laundry room space. It will take heat from the air in the laundry room and transfer it to the hot water tank. So the water heater will heat water, and will serve as an air conditioner for the laundry room space.

4) Solar Assisted
These were popular in the 1970-1980’s. They are designed to serve as pre-heaters for tank water heaters. Because the initial cost is high, we did not choose to go this route.

5) Desuperheater

This system combines the AC system for the house with the water heating system. Heat that is removed from the living space by the air conditioning system is moved to the water heater tank. During cold months, the water heater will use electricity or gas to heat water.

This type of system makes a lot of sense for our warm climate because it uses waste heat from the AC unit. On the AC side, it unloads the extra heat that is removed from the home without the need for an electric powered fan. On the water heater side, the water tank serves as an efficient transfer point for the AC waste heat, and water is heated without electricity or gas.

We would like to use this system. However, after talking with contractors and considering the installation cost, we decided that the technology is not developed enough for us to reasonably use at this time. So far as we know, there is not an AC package that offers the water heater combined with the AC equipment.

Tankless Water Heater
1) Electric
In all tank systems, there is some standby heat loss from the tank and from the pipes as water is pumped to the kitchen and bathrooms. The tankless water heater does not maintain hot water in a storage tank. It heats water as is passes through the water heater on it way to the fixture. The drawback of this system is the flash pull of electricity needed to heat water instantaneously. The load on the electrical panel is substantial. Tankless electric water heaters are not allowed in Austin Energy’s service area because of the high electric demand while they are operating.

2) Gas
Gas powered tankless systems provides better hot water flow rates than the electric models. A medium sized unit will raise water temperature about 45 degrees at a rate of 4 gallons per minute. Water temperatures in Austin range from 50 – 85 degrees.  This is the system we have chosen to go with.  We felt that it was the best alternative, in spite of having to use propane.

The tankless system, whether powered by electricity or gas, makes sense for bathrooms that are used only occasionally. Why keep a tank of water heated 24-7 for a guest bathroom? Another positive aspect of this system it that is does not require as much room as a tank system. The water heater can be placed near the point of use, reducing the loss of heat from piping water long distances.

Circulating pump system:

A continuous circulation system can be used with both tank and tankless water heaters. It moves hot water through pipes at all times. The positive aspect of this system is that it reduces water loss from waiting for hot water to arrive at the fixture.

We currently have this system in our home now, and do not recommend it. We can feel the warm pipes in the slab while walking on our concrete floor. While this is pleasant in winter, it works against the air conditioning in our mostly hot climate. And, there is a lot of heat loss from water constantly circulating through pipes. For the home that we are building, we will not have a continuous circulation system. We plan to use an “on demand” circulating system. This requires you to flip a switch to start the circulating system before drawing hot water. This will offset the heat loss from long piping needed to get hot water to all points of use.

Conclusion:
In choosing a water heating system for our house on Taylor Road, we looked for a balance between installation cost and operating cost. We found that the electric heat pump system was the best choice since we do not have natural gas available. The water heater can also serve to cool the laundry room, which is outside the air conditioned part of the house. An “on demand” circulation system will reduce water loss from waiting for hot water, as well as heat loss from hot water pipes.

Austin Texas Real Estate Guide 

Blogs:

Green Building Project

Real Estate Market

Austin Energy Upgrades

The city of Scranton began as Slocum’s Hollow, back in the late 1700’s. Isaac Tripp, the first settler, built his house in 1778 — which still stands today. I can guarantee you one thing: the plumbing in that house isn’t 100% original!

Unlike newer areas in the US, the construction here in Scranton runs the gamut from post-Revolutionary to pre-fab homes that date to this year. That means that there’s a variety of plumbing needs, both for residences, buildings and industrial plants. Add to that the effects of mine subsidence, legacy sewer systems and old municipal cold water pipes and you have a ripe market for the full spectrum of plumbing services.

There may not be any lead pipes left that deliver water — but I wouldn’t bet on it! In fact, some of the older homes and buildings in the area have been neglected for decades. This means that there may still be the potential for a buyer to discover that tearing out the old pipes and replacing them with copper piping will be a necessary cost to include in the purchase.

Refurbishing kitchens, bathrooms, bathtubs, sinks and showers is also a vibrant business. Those homes that date back to the Roaring ’20’s now have leaky pipes and faucets, inefficient shower heads, toilets that consume more gallons of water than needed and the need for a host of other plumbing repairs.

Fortunately, there are skilled plumbing contractors ready to assist the homeowner or building owner with whatever needs to be done. Just take a look at Scranton Plumbers in The Scranton Front Door Pages for the best plumbers in Scranton here: http://vincerunza.com/scranton/plumbers.