Has your electric hot water heater recently shown a significant change in temperature? Are you running out of hot water? Adjusting the hot water temperature can seem to be easy, it can be a more complex process than you think. It will have to be done properly. When you notice a dramatic surge, decline, or inconsistency in hot water temperature, it can be a sign of an issue with your electric hot water system. So, how do you handle this situation? Find out in this guide.
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Adjusting The Hot Water Heater Temperature
If you are constantly running out of hot water on your electric heater, you should consider turning up the temperature on it. It is important to know how much difference a change in temperature settings can make. There is only a slight change here. For example, turning up or down the temperature by 10°F should change your electricity usage by 3% to 5% up or down.
Electric water heater temperature settings allow you to set the comfort level. When it comes to changing the temperature on the system, you should consider whether you want to do it yourself or get the help of a Hot Water Specialist. If you are doing it yourself, it is recommended to follow these steps:
- Turn off the power. This should be done even before you remove any panels of the heater.
- Open the cover and look for power.
- Check for any signs of power in the element. If it is not found there, look for a plastic component on the top corner, remove it, and look for power in the top two screws.
- Next, check the thermostats. Your electric water heater must have 2 thermostats – the upper and lower ones.
- Take a small screwdriver that fits into the slot and turn it clockwise to turn the thermostat up and counter clockwise to turn it down. A click will confirm that it has been turned on.
This should complete the job for you.
Things To Know About The Thermostats
There are 2 thermostats in your electric water heater for a reason. It is important to know this before you set about to change the temperature. Once the top thermostat has heated the water to the desired temperature, the system will switch to the bottom thermostat to complete the heating process in the rest of the tank. The bottom element has a lower temperature by around 10°F on the thermostat. This is due to the process known as temperature stacking. It is a well-known phenomenon that heat rises up, so the water at the top is going to be slightly hotter than that at the bottom.
Interestingly, most people will forget about this point or may not even know about it. So, the lower element will typically have a lower setting than its upper counterpart. A single setting on a heater is around 10°F.
Setting Comfortable Temperatures
It is recommended to set the temperatures keeping in mind the following points:
- The thermostats will have numbers going up to 150°F
- Set the top thermostat at around 110°F to 115°F
- Set the bottom thermostat at around 105°F to 110°F
- Anything higher than 110°F can be harmful to the skin, especially if you have elderly or children in your home
It is recommended to keep the temperature around 110°F so that you will still have the time to move your hands out before the skin gets scourged.
If you find the above-mentioned steps to be too complex for you, it is recommended to get the help of a licensed Plumber Sydney to change the temperature on your electric hot water heater.
