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More Home Energy Audit Results
By Solar energy | October 22, 2008
More Home Energy Audit Results
After checking our air conditioning and heating system, our energy auditor checked out the hot water heater.
The serial number told him the water heater is 12 years old. Not bad for our area. Hard water deposits can reduce the life-span of a typical hot water heater to 10 years.
Next, the auditor checked the heating element with a gadget from his tool bag. I don’t know what the numbers measure, but the verdict is our element indeed heats the water. If hard water deposits—calcium in our case—builds up on the element, the calcium build-up insulates the heating element and the water will not get hot.
Hot water heater tip: To protect the heating element from calcium build-up, drain about a quart of water out of it every month. My husband, being the handyman he is, drains our water heater periodically. Not monthly, just when he thinks about it. But even his sporadic diligence has protected our water heater.
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