Can you insulate a gas water heater

If you are a homeowner in Harrisburg or Carlisle , you have probably thought about doing some insulating in the walls and roof of your home. You can also save money by insulating your hot water tank. Here are some reasons why this can help save on your energy bills in the long run.

Using insulation in your walls and your roof can help you save money when it comes to your heating costs. It is also possible to save money if you insulate your hot water heater, and it can also help you avoid potential problems. This will help to lower your energy costs. It is a simple and inexpensive project to help you improve your energy efficiency. If you have an older model, you will want to see if it already has insulation that includes an R-value of more than Insulation can also help with the cold weather of the Central Pennsylvania winters when low temperatures can potentially freeze pipes.

Prior to adding insulation to an older unit, you should make sure that your tank is not leaking. If it is, you will likely need a new water heater altogether.

At the time that I noticed more of these water heaters in homes, I saw suggestions that you could insulate gas water heaters, but the instructions were not clear. I n the above photograph, we see insulation on a gas water heater, but there is a problem. If you have a burner compartment which is sealed, you can insulate closer to that opening.

If your water heater has a burner compartment that can be accessed by moving plates, you will want to keep the insulation away from this opening. The problem in the photograph is different. I am showing insulation around the vent area, which you do not want to do.

There are two reasons: 1 again concern over flammable materials being close to an ignition source; and 2 air flow. The vent at the top of the gas water heater has an opening to allow air to flow into the vent to help with combustion air escape the home. The vent is a tube from the burner compartment going through the water tank. There is a possibility of flames coming through this vent. The other problem is that heat from the vent can cause a flammable material, like insulation, to ignite.

For this reason, you want to keep insulation a safe distance from this vent. Another reason is not too obvious, and that is concerning air flow. Some energy efficiency experts studying the problem, have found that insulation could effect air flow, which means that maybe combustion gas is not exiting your home as intended. With both of these reasons, the suggestion is not to insulate the top of your gas water heater. W hile we are on the topic of insulation and water heaters, we should touch upon one more idea to save energy.

In the second photograph, you see the hot water line. This line consists of the metal line and the red PEX line.

You do see some insulation on the line, but it is not on properly. Usually, we like to see the first six feet of the hot water line insulated.

For ease of installation, position the blanket so that the ends do not come together over the access panels in the side of the tank. Some tanks have only one access panel. Electric water heaters have two panels on the side of the tank. Also, mark the area where the pressure relief valve and pipe are. This will be a pipe that sticks out of the side of the water heater.

Be careful to line up the cut out areas and then tape it in permanently in place. Some utilities even install these at a low or no cost.