It’s a cold morning and you are eager to wash your face with warm water. Maybe you are looking forward to relaxing under a hot shower to unwind from tiredness after a long day.
You turn on the hot water side of the faucet and you wait. But hot water takes too long to reach faucet. You have to wait so long to get hot water for your use. This problem is common in many houses.
In this guide, I am going to show you how you can get hot water from the faucet without any delay. It will make your daily routine smooth and more efficient.
Why does Hot Water Take Too Long To Reach Faucet?
There are several reasons your hot water takes longer to reach the faucet. Among these reasons, you have any. When you know the actual reason, it becomes easy to fix the issue.
Distance Between Water Heater and Faucet
The distance between the hot water heater and the faucet is causing the hot water delay. If the distance is long, the water will travel longer to reach the faucet. Its result is that it will take more time.
Is your water heater in the basement, but your bathroom or kitchen is on another floor? If the hot water heater is far away from the faucet, both up and down and side-to-side. It will take a longer time for the hot water to get to the faucet.
Plumbing Layout
Your home’s plumbing layout plays an important role. It will decide how long the hot water will take to reach the faucet. If your pipes wind through a complex maze of twists and turns, it can slow down the flow of hot water.
In your plumbing layout, the size of pipes matters. Smaller pipes restrict the flow of water, leading to slower delivery. Because smaller pipes have less capacity to carry water. Imagine trying to pour a gallon of water through a narrow pipe compared to a wide hose.
Pipe Insulation
Proper pipe insulation is crucial in maintaining hot water temperature. It prevents heat loss as water travels from the heater to the faucet.
Uninsulated or poorly insulated hot water pipes allow heat to dissipate into the surrounding environment. The hot water, which has left the heater at the desired temperature, cools down as it moves through the pipes. In many houses, water often flows through cold areas such as basements or outside walls.
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Pipe Thickness
The thickness of your pipes is often called their “wall thickness”. It also impacts hot water delivery. Thin-walled pipes conduct heat more readily than thicker ones. It leads to heat loss as hot water travels from the water heater to the faucet.
Water Heater Performance
How fast you get hot water depends on how well your hot water heater works. Water heaters come in various types, including tankless, tank-style, and heat pump models. Each has its own flow rate and efficiency level.
Tankless water heaters provide hot water on demand. But may have limitations on the number of fixtures they can supply simultaneously. If your tankless water heater is too small for your household, it can cause delays in getting hot water.
Conventional tank-style water heaters store hot water. It can be advantageous for consistent hot water delivery. If the tank is too small, you may run out of hot water and the heater needs time to recover.
Efficiency matters, too. Older water heaters that don’t work well can make hot water take a long time to come out. Upgrading to a more energy-efficient model can improve hot water delivery. It also reduces energy consumption.
Mineral Buildup
Mineral or sediment buildup mainly happens in tank water heaters, which are often found in many homes. These water heaters store and heat a supply of water in a tank. Over time, minerals and debris in the water sink to the tank’s bottom. It often occurs due to hard water.
The sediment layer gets thicker. It acts like insulation between the heating element and the water. The insulation makes it harder for the heating element to efficiently heat the water and creates a hot water issue.
Seasonal Factors
The temperature of the incoming cold water varies with the seasons.
In colder weather, the water entering your water heater is colder. This means it takes more time and energy to heat it to the desired temperature.
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During the winter season, when the ground is colder, the delay in hot water delivery is high. On the other hand, during summer, when the water is warmer, heated water comes faster.
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How To Speed up Hot Water Delivery From The Faucet?
Reduce The Distance
If possible, move your water heater closer to the faucets you usually use. For this, you can move the water heater to a more central location in your home. So, all faucets come closer to the water heater.
Use a Tankless Water Heater
A tankless water heater, also called an on-demand water heater, provides hot water to your faucet quickly. It gives instant hot water.
Traditional water heaters store large amounts of hot water in their tank. But a tankless water heater provides instant hot water quickly and efficiently without storing it.
In my own home, the kitchen is on the opposite end of the house from our water heater. So, it can be quite irritating when all I want to do is wash my hands or quickly rinse dishes. The hot water took more than 1 minute to come out of the faucet. In this situation, the tankless water heater fixed my issue.
Tankless water heaters can supply a continuous flow of instant hot water. When you open a hot water faucet, cold water flows into a tankless water heater.
The heating elements or heat exchange quickly heat the water to the desired temperature. This process makes sure that you have a constant supply of hot water for as long as you need it.
Insulate Water Pipes
It is important to insulate hot water pipes to keep water hot as it moves through your plumbing.
Insulated water pipes keep heat from escaping, which can cause delays in heated water delivery. You can find water pipe insulation materials at most hardware stores. Its installation is typically straightforward.
Make sure that there are no gaps in the insulation, as even small openings can allow heat to escape. Properly sealed insulation helps maintain water temperature as it travels.
Optimize Water Heater Efficiency
A well-maintained and efficient water heater can significantly reduce wait times.
Schedule regular maintenance for your water heater. This involves removing sediment buildup, looking for leaks, and making sure everything works well.
If your water heater is old and inefficient, it might be time for a new water heater. Modern, energy-efficient electric water heaters can heat water faster and are more environmentally friendly.
Change Pipes
To fix the hot water delay, you can replace the hot water line between the heater and the faucet.
Install a 3/8″ PEX water line from your water heater directly to the kitchen sink. This offers several advantages. It can make hot water come faster and improve your experience.
To make heated water reach your kitchen sink, easily, install a separate PEX line. So, when you turn on the hot water tap, heated water is readily available, and you’ll spend far less time waiting for it to arrive.
One key benefit of using 3/8″ PEX is that it holds relatively little water. For example, a 30-foot tube that is not very wide can hold about 0.15 gallons of water. When you use a faucet that releases 1.5 gallons of water per minute, the hot water will come out in just 5-6 seconds.
PEX has the advantage of warming up more rapidly than metal or copper pipes. This means you’ll have hot water quickly and it will stay warm for a long time.
Consider a Recirculating System
Hot water recirculating systems are designed to continuously circulate hot water through the plumbing lines. They ensure hot water is always readily available at your hot water taps.
A hot water recirculation pump is installed in your plumbing system. It creates a water recirculation system. The system moves hot water from the heater to the faucets and back, keeping a steady supply in the hot water pipes.
Some systems have timers or sensors. They can circulate heated water at specific times or when it’s needed. This prevents energy waste during periods of low demand.
Final Thoughts
There are several effective solutions to address the delay in the hot water supply to the faucet. You can try the solutions in this guide based on your situation and preferences. Fixing the delay in hot water supply gives you quick access and saves energy bills.
James Lewis is a seasoned plumber and faucet enthusiast who shares his expertise on Faucetsavvy.com. With over 15 years of experience in the plumbing industry, he’s passionate about helping homeowners find the perfect faucet for their needs. He’s also dedicated to empowering DIY enthusiasts with the plumbing knowledge and skills needed to repair and maintain their faucets.