How long will the water stay hot?

Question

I have no central heating in my council home and my water tank is very poorly insulated.

After realiseing that keeping the hot water turned on constantly was eating my electric (2.50 per day) i was advised ot only have it turned on for an hour before kids needed thier evening bath. If i do that, will i have hot water for the morning and provided i dont go wild with washing up or using the washing machine, will there still be sufficient hot water for the evening??

Just moved ot house and am not usesd to the differerent water heating system.

Many Thanks

Answer 1

Why not speak to the council and ask them to install a heating system? It's quite unusual nowadays for council houses to have no form of heating, if they go ahead with the installation then they'll more than likely install a combination boiler which will mean you'll have as much hot water as you need whenever you need it.

If they're not willing to install a heating system then ask them for a more efficient hot water cylinder, the vast majority of them now come from the factory with thick foam insulation and have considerably faster recovery times.

Answer 2

Why not get a water heater blanket?  Not expensive, or hard to install.

As for how long the water will stay hot - I think you'll have to experiment a little bit.  There are too many factors to make anything like an accurate prediction (water temperature, ambient temperature, etc).  Keep in mind that showers use less water than baths.

Answer 3

you answered your own question - if the tank is poorly insulated, it will not keep hot.

why do the kids need a bath every evening?  if you are britiash - we only bath once a week, making do with a good wash the rest of the week for which a kettle-full of water will suffice.

Answer 4

There are many factors which affect thermal loss. The size of the tank, the ambient temperature, how well the tank is insulated are factors. So a precise answer is unlikely, however a cup of boiling water in a room 75 degrees, loses 2.5 degrees every minute. Also I have had the pilot light go out during the night on my water heater and the morning shower was quite chilly. I believe that you will not have hot water in the morning unless you heat it during the night

Answer 5

After the kids have had a bath. Check if there is any hot water left by putting your hand on the TOP of ther tank. I would also suggest you buy a good insulating jacket for your tank. It will pay for itself in no time at all.Easy to fit, 20 minute job.

Answer 6

To answer this you need to look at the size of the tank and your bath! If you're filling the bath for the children's evening bath you will more than likely use all the available hot water - remember that as the hot water flows out, the cold feeds in to replace it, you can't have an empty tank! So I'd suggest putting it on for an hour before their bath and an hour after and you should have some left for the morning.

We have an old fashioned Baxi boiler and tank and put it on for 2 hours morning and evening and it's enough for us.