All of the points mentioned in this thread are well taken. There are benefits to having a system with a dedicated return line and also to having an installation that uses the crossover pipe methodology. Also, depending on the size of your home and the location of your primary bathroom to the water heater, an argument could also be made for doing nothing.
When I built my home about a year ago, we were offered the option to have a system installed with a dedicated return line for a cost of about $8000. This was not a value proposition for me. Clearly, the system using the dedicated return line also uses a different, more expensive water heater. The cost between one that allows for water circulation and one that doesn’t only differs by about $600 in most cases and for that reason does not justify, in my opinion, the $8000 cost.
I opted to install my own system and purchased two crossover pipes that I installed in the master bathroom and in the second secondary bathroom of the home. I plumbed in a recirculating pump which cost me roughly $90. I also added an Alexa plug that allowed me to create a routine in Alexa to turn on the recirculation pump anytime I needed it. The routine is set to run for two minutes and 45 seconds, the approximate time it takes to get hot water to my bathroom. The pump automatically turns off after that time.
While this solution does not provide me with on-demand hot water or instant hot water, it does preclude my having to waste 6 to 7 gallons of water every time I want to take a shower while waiting for the water to heat up.
Obviously this is not the best solution but definitely a fair trade-off for not paying $8000.
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