Re-Circ Pumps

The average household wastes a lot of water unnecessarily. Waiting to get hot water at a fixture is one of the biggest culprits. Many people wait between 30 seconds to 2 minutes to get hot water at a fixture and those wasted gallons add up. The answer is to install a re circulation pump. There are many different options out there but one of the cheapest and easiest systems to install is a Grundfos Comfort series. The basic system consists of a pump controlled by a timer and a comfort valve. The pump is installed above your water heater and plugged into a nearby power outlet. The valve is placed under a sink in the room of the house that is taking the longest to get hot water to. The valve is temperature sensitive and opens when the temperature drops. The pump pumps water from the water heater to the valve, through the valve and into the cold side, effectively creating a loop between the fixture and the water heater. When the valve gets up to temperature is closes again. The result is instant hot water at that fixture. Depending on the plumbing layout other fixtures around the house may be picked up or sometimes more valves need to be installed in different areas of the house. These systems can be installed in about an hour with out having to modify any plumbing inside the walls. Rio Rancho city also offers a $100 rebate for installation of one of these systems by a licensed plumber.