WATER HEATER: Return on Investment (ROI) on Tankless Water Heaters

A payback analysis for a tankless water heater is something that every energy conscious consumer should consider…

There are a lot of tankless water heater manufactures claiming a wide range of savings on your next water heating bill. A quick search on the web will show you a percent reduction of up 80%.   However the question still exists: how much would you really save on your water heating bill using a tankless water heater?

Most importantly what is the payback or ROI of the average tankless water heater and how does it compare to a traditional tank hot water system? Let us try to answer these questions:

Annual costs associated with water heaters of any type are divided into (3) categories:

1. Energy costs to heat the water from its incoming temperature to the desired temperature.
2. Standby energy costs: in the case of traditional tank heaters, standby cost is the cost of the energy to keep the water hot in the tank all day. For a tankless water heater standby cost is the cost of energy when the tankless water heater is running Read more

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WE GOT GREEN: Homeowners Jim & Hanmi tell their remodel story

We are Jim and Hanmi Meyer, and will each be contributing to the blog.  We are both in our mid 30?s and were married in 2006.  Our family consists of two dogs, four hens, and our housemate Bobby. 

Jim works as a software engineer in downtown Portland and regularly commutes by bicycle.  Hanmi is a freelance photographer and industrial designer who recently gave up commuting to a corporate design job in the ?burbs and now works out of small office in our home.  Though each of us owned a house prior to meeting, this is our first home together. 

Our house, located in the Hawthorne District of Portland, is a 2-story 1400 sq. ft. Craftsman-style bungalow on a 3500 sq. ft lot, built in Read more

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WE GOT GREEN: Erin uses water-based polyurethane on hardwood floors

Water-Based polyurethane for Hardwood Floors

After ripping out the carpet in our master bedroom we sanded the very nice, but 50 year old oak flooring underneath.  As part of my  requirements for redesigning our home I always want to start by  looking into environmentally friendly products.  So in an effort to work with materials we already have, and not consume unnecessary laminate flooring I took a trip to Southern Lumber in San Jose and talked to someone there about the difference between water-based vs  oil-based stains, and water-based vs oil polyurethanes.  The professional at southern lumber right away discouraged me from using water based Read more

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