| Did you know water heating is the second most | | | | the effects are dramatic. In a typical home, the |
| costly energy demand in homes, accounting for | | | | DWHR unit can easily raise the cold water |
| 20% to 30% of total household energy | | | | temperature from 50° F to 77° F (10° C to |
| consumption? Or, that 90% of the energy used | | | | 25° C) – thus saving you energy, time and |
| to heat water goes down the shower drain? | | | | money. |
| Good news: By installing a Drain Water Heat | | | | Other general highlights of non-storage DWHR |
| Recovery (DWHR) system at home, you can | | | | systems may include: |
| recycle about 60% of the energy that would | | | | - Easy to install or retrofit in almost any home by |
| otherwise be wasted, and reduce your water | | | | most “Do-It-Yourselfers” or plumbers |
| heating bills by 25% to 40% – and that's | | | | - May be used with tank, tankless, or solar water |
| without forcing you to alter your lifestyle! | | | | heaters |
| (NOTE: There are two main types of DWHR | | | | - Prevents hot water from running out |
| systems: storage-type and non-storage type. This | | | | - Causes no noticeable water pressure loss |
| article discusses the merits of non-storage DWHR | | | | - Provides perfectly save to drink water |
| units.) | | | | - Requires little to no maintenance, and comes |
| Non-storage DWHR units (e.g., copper heat | | | | with long-term warranty |
| exchangers made up of two or more copper coils | | | | - May be used to harness the energy from cold |
| tightly wrapped around an inner copper pipe), for | | | | to “pre-cool” water or other liquids in |
| example, work by replacing part of your existing | | | | industrial, commercial, or institutional settings |
| vertical shower drainage pipe. As you take a | | | | DWHR material and installation costs may vary |
| shower, the heat from the outgoing drain water | | | | depending on the size and length you need. Some |
| clings to the inner copper pipe wall and transfers | | | | DWHR units, for example, cost between $600 |
| its heat to the incoming cold, freshwater in the | | | | and $1,000. Given the return on investment is |
| outer copper coils (i.e., “pre-heating” the | | | | 15% to 50% per year (i.e., 2- to 5-year payback |
| water supply for the water heater). | | | | period), however, that is a relatively small |
| Since copper is an excellent conductor of heat, | | | | investment for 20+ years of savings. |