instant Hot Water
 

We love our new home in The Villages, but not a big fan of how long it takes the hot water to get from the water heater to the faucets. Does anyone have a recommendation for instant hot water?

There was an article a while ago on installing a recirculation pump at the furthest hot water faucet. I would get in touch with a local plumber unless your very handy. Several articles and videos on the net.

There have been a few threads on this topic, along with a reference to a detailed article on total cost. I am not going to comment, just suggesting that you do some research before installing the recirculating system. Our shower takes exactly 30 seconds to get hot water, and about 2 gallons of water.

We added a recirculation pump about 6 months ago and while the HW is not "instant" it is many times faster to all faucets. I bought the pump at Lowes (around $200) and installed it myself since plastic pipe is easy to work with and there was an electrical outlet near the HWH but there are "handymen" around who will do it or you can pay a plumber. You also need to install a small "mixer" under the furthest sink from the HWH. The only other way is to run another line (return line) from HWH to furthest sink which is pretty much impossible around here. The only downside is when you turn on the COLD water you get a couple seconds of WARM water through the cold side.

This kind of explains how it works: Quicker Hot Water With a Hot Water Recirculating System

Before I added our pump it was about 40 seconds for the water to get WARM and another few to get HOT in our shower. With the recirc pump it's 10-15 seconds until full HOT in same shower. Kitchen is just about instant now but was close to 30 sec before for HOT. Other problem was washer, when set to hot using the "hi efficiency" (minimal water) mode it never got hot since so little water was used. We would have to remember to run water FIRST in a nearby sink which was A PITA. Besides saving a little water it was just so annoying having to always wait for hot water. Never was used to that because we had tankless HWH up north (gas) and HW was virtually instant anywhere.

Thank you for an actual review of a system you actually installed and use. I too am considering adding one to our home, and appreciate a real report rather than speculation and referrals.

Just a thought, I understand the newer homes have "instant/infinite hot water heaters' not the traditional 40 or 50 gallon hot water heater. I think that the recirculating system will work with the instant water heaters. It would be a good idea to check on this before installing.

It doesn't seem to be worth the effort to me, just to save a little time. I turn on the shower while I am brushing my teeth.

I think this is the detailed cost article referred to.

Ask Pablo: Will a "Water-Saving" Hot Water Recirculation Pump Really Save Me Money? | TreeHugger

I installed the Watts pump. It worked great for about 1 1/2 years then just quit. The pump cost me $200 at Lowes. I installed it myself, so no cost there. It was only warrantied for 1 year. I have never replaced it because I feel it costs less to just pay for the water.

If my calculation is correct, after paying the mandatory base cost for water and sewer, you can use a gallon of potable water for about 0.70 cents. That is less than a penny a gallon.

Huh? (I never was good at math...)

If your shower head is legal, it can only put out 2.5 gallons per minute. So, running it for 30 seconds to get hot will only increase your water bill by about a penny.

instant Hot Water
 

It's not always for the few pennies (if any) cost savings of the water, or for saving the environment, for me it's simply for the convenience. We all do things that aren't REALLY necessary just for the "convenience factor" then rationalize it as being for the greater good of our planet. :) Nope, for me it was simply the convenience of not having to wait 40 seconds for hot water. :) :)

Did the pump actually quit? Often (I have read, not yet experienced ) its just the mixer attached to the sink which is $10 on eBay.