Heating bathtub water

Here is a link to instructions on how to clean out your water heater. Anybody ever done it?

Seems like it would be a good idea to do this before you replace the elements.

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/how...a-water-heater

LOL And just who comes around every year to check that you still have the same water heater?
I suppose with laws like that you must have hot water heater bootleggers.

The water heater in our soon-to-be-defunct mobile home died, and since we're in the process of building we weren't about to replace it.

We use an electric kettle for all of our hot water. It reaches a boil in a couple of minutes. For bathing, we boil 3 kettles-full, pour into a bucket/tub and dilute with cold. There's plenty of hot water for a good "shower". We stand in the tub, soap up, and use a small pitcher to pour over and rinse.

It's not exactly a spa experience, but it does the job quite well.

Small portable hot tub.....like a small Softub!

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Ooooh, I like this idea!

SusanneB, I tried the hot water kettle last time the heat element broke. It was great for small tasks, like washing hair or a sink of dishes, but I have a serious tub-full-of-piping-hot-water addiction. I don't have to have a hot bath every day, but a couple of times a week. It does wonders for me, really changes my outlook and mood and attitude, makes me feel great.

With this thingie I'm using, I can heat 5 gallons of water to very, very hot, hot enough that it retains good heat while I'm heating the next bucket of water. I haven't yet completely filled the bathtub this way, but I can easily fill it enough that I *feel* like I've taken a boiling hot bath.

So I'm happy!

About how many gallons are you using per bath? And how long does it take to heat up each bucket?

Not that much water! 2 to 2 1/2 buckets full, 12 quart bucket, so somewhere between 6-8 gallons of water.

It takes a while to heat it up, but I let it get *very* hot so it doesn't lose all its heat when I put it in the tub. I also run a little water beforehand---about 2 inches---so I don't throw it into a completely empty tub and suffer splashback.

I haven't timed it yet, but I can tell you I get a lot of chores done while I'm preparing the bath. It really isn't something you can do in 15-20 minutes, but I know that, so it hasn't proved to be a problem, as I just plan in advance. My nightly baths are no more. Now, it's every night before I teach (Sunday night, Tuesday night, Thursday night) as you really want to be at your best in front of students. If I get home from work around 5:30 to 6:30 pm, I can usually be out of the tub by 8, if that's any measure.

I'm also trying something new tonight---using the water kettle, too. Not sure how much that will help, as my kettle is smallish, but we'll see.

Haven't gotten a water bill yet, but I'm interested to see if there's any change there. My electric bill, however, has plummeted. I'm now among the exclusive few considered the most energy efficient. Woah!

This might work better for you.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SHOWER-HEAD-...item45fef25d6f

This sort of thing might also have promise.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1x-Fast-Heat...item51bd9a0cf7

If it were me I probably wouldn't be looking for a temporary solution. There are new tankless water heater units available at eBay that are perfectly acceptable for a small home in the $100 to $150 range. They're available for propane, natural gas, and electric in that price range. Typically a tankless heater will use 30% less power and last twice as long as a conventional tank heater. For a purchase price of $125 or so, just get it and be done with it. Here's the kind of thing I'm talking about (this one needs a 30a 240v service, 10 gauge wire for a short run or 8 for a longer run).

http://www.ebay.com/itm/0-5-GPM-6-5-...item3ce7f548fe

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That's great! I bet your water bill will drop too. And the time to heat up sounds very reasonable. Glad this is working so well for you.

Those electric shower heads are pretty handy for a quick convenient shower, too. I didn't know they were available in 120 Volt. They're very common in a lot of less developed countries. Usually in those places the installation is scary looking...and I did manage to shock myself on one, but that was because I was stupid. The ones I've used only gave lukewarm water unless you turn the flow way down to almost a trickle.

The costs of those start to add up if you need a plumber and an electrician to install them, though. You need a more powerful one for a decent shower, too. Half a gallon per minute is not enough. The average water-saving shower head is probably about 2 GPM on the low side.

Boy that is for sure. I take off and or drill the opening larger in shower heads I WANT as much water as I can possibly get to take a nice Hot Shower.

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It won't work that well during the winter, but I have used the 100 ft. black pipe idea before There was enough water for a shower. Also when I was in the army we would fill up 5 gallon OD colored Jerry cans full of water in the morning and it would be hot enough for a shower by late afternoon.

And that is why I haven't gone tankless yet! My house is old and, while much of it has been rewired, not all of it has been.

I'm very tempted by the water faucet heaters, though, and showed them to a friend who wants to "experiment" with them at my house. He'd do the wiring, too. Not sure if this would be a good or a bad thing, lol, but I'm contemplating it. Won't make a decision til I read lots of reviews, though.

The only thing I know right now is my conventional water heater days are over. Too expensive and take up way too much space.

My suggestion was a temporary solution just for heating bath water, which was the specific question posed. That little unit wouldn't be satisfactory for a shower, and certainly not satisfactory for whole house use.

For a permanent solution for a whole house, electricity is not really a good way to go. A house with only one bathroom will need a 3 gpm model. For an electric unit, that's going to require a 100 amp 240V circuit. That wouldn't be practical for me, since the load center for my entire house is 100 amps. I would need to install a whole new load center.

In short, you need to use gas for a whole house tankless water heater. Either propane or natural gas will work fine, but you really need gas. Here are the considerations you need to be concerned about.

HEATER SIZE: Multiply the number of bathrooms (with showers or tubs) times 3 gallons/minute. If you wish to run a washing machine while showering, add another 3 GPM. Multiple tankless heaters can be used together, sometimes in series and sometimes in parallel depending on your application. Size is important, since the only way a tankless heater can maintain temperature is by limiting flow. You don't want your hot water to slow down to a trickle in the winter when the inlet water gets cold.

GAS LINE SIZE: The existing gas line used on your tank heater may not be enough. Tank heaters have lots of time to recover after hot water draw so the actual heater element is small, but tankless heaters need to generate hot water as it's used. Therefore, tankless heaters draw a lot more gas than conventional tank heaters. A 3 GPM tankless heater needs a 80,000 btu/hour gas supply, while a conventional gas heater only requires about 30,000 btu/hour. It's not unusual to have to upgrade the gas line to a larger diameter gas pipe. To determine if your gas line is sufficient you'll need to measure your existing gas line, then add 5 feet for each 90 degree fitting. Look at the following table to see if your gas line will deliver enough gas for the tankless heater you need.

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/na...ing-d_826.html

MODULATED OR NON_MODULATED: If 120v power isn't available near your heater, and it's impractical to get power to the heater, then you'll have to use a non-modulated heater. Non-modulated models use 2 D-size batteries for flame ignition. But modulated heaters should be used wherever possible. You can easily tell what kind it is by the power cord, since modulated heaters have them while non-modulated heaters don't. Modulated heaters have forced draft burners for more heating power, can monitor inlet & outlet temperatures to analyze conditions, and can regulate flow to maintain desired temperatures. In short, modulated heaters are a lot smarter and work a lot better, and they don't cost any more than non-modulated models.

CONDENSING OR NON-CONDENSING: Condensing refers to models that operate at 95%+ efficiency and have cool exhaust, so water vapor in the combustion gas condenses. Exhaust gas in condensing heaters is normally under 150 F so standard schedule 40 PVC pipe can be used to vent exhaust gases. Condensing tankless heaters are nice, but pricey. Expect to pay $900 and up for condensing tankless heaters. I have a condensing furnace in my home, but decided it wasn't worth it for my tankless heater. My non-condensing model was under $150 delivered.

INSTALLATION: If you're thinking of doing this yourself you need to accept that it's going to be a big job compared to replacing your existing heater. You need to be familiar with working with hot & cold water pipes, as well as gas pipes. As mentioned above, the project might involve replacing your old gas pipe. It might also involve running 120v power to the water heater closet, since conventional gas water heaters don't require 120v power. A modulated tankess heater can't use your old flue pipe and must be installed on an outside wall. You'll need to make at least a 4" hole to the outside and code will probably require you to install a "thimble" in the wall. You can expect a hefty plumbing bill if you hire someone to do it all for you. While I consider the transition from a conventional heater to a tankless heater to be an advanced project, a homesteader should be able to handle it.

SPECIFIC PURCHASE ADVICE: Don't buy a tankless heater locally or through a contractor. You'll pay at least $500 at Home Depot and Lowes. That being the case, you might want to plan a transition ahead of time by ordering a tankless heater online, in anticipation of your tank heater failing before long (when your existing heater is 6 years old or so). That way you can have the heater on hand when your tank goes out and you won't have to wait a week to have an affordable heater shipped to you.

Look for a modulated model that includes the flue kit. If you order a model without a flue kit then it will cost you another $50 for the flue pipe. Here's what I ordered for my house.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BESTER-12L-N...E:L:OC:US:3160

You might also order an isolation valve kit. You'll need it for the install and you don't want to pay $80 for it at Home Depot.

It turns out that there's a lot to know about these things. On the upside, they last 20 to 25 years while conventional tank heaters only last 6 to 8 years. This should be the last water heater I buy for the rest of my life.

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Yes that huge draw on the 220v side has stopped me from putting in one of those on demeaned heaters as well for my shower. No way could I draw that much power just to hear water. I will stick to a regular water heater, and suck it up as far as the electric bill goes. LOL

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"Yes that huge draw on the 220v side has stopped me from putting in one of those on demeaned heaters as well for my shower. No way could I draw that much power just to hear water. I will stick to a regular water heater, and suck it up as far as the electric bill goes. LOL"

Gotta love automatic spell check. Goinna have to look for one of them there demeaned heaters. ("BAD heater! BAD heater!" "Whimper whimper gurgle...")

Ah yes that is so true I really have to LOOK at what the spellcheck has tried to figure what I wanted. LOL

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In any case, the temporary solution she already has seems to be working well for much less cost.

Just use propane or natural gas. If you can't use gas then forget tankless water heaters.

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To put my $500 tankless heater in cost me about $500.
To support its 200,000 BTU I had to replumb everything from the propane tank to it. Then re did the hot and cold water lines....GRRR