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Best temperature for water heater?
Which temperature is best for water heater?

Upper and lower thermostats
Buy 90-150 degree F for residential tank:
All therm-o-disc products
Rheem UV11698
Rheem SP11698
Camco 08163
Aprom / 110-160°
Water heater thermostats at Amazon
Camco thermostats at Amazon
More thermostats
3 phase water heater thermostat 120-180° F
Upper thermostat
Rheem SP8293 thermostat 110° to 170°
Camco 120°F to 180°F

Lower thermostat
Rheem SP8295 lower 110° to 170°
Camco 120° to 180°F lower



Should you lower the temperature? This means you will probably save money, decrease strain on tank, eliminate scalding hazard.
Or should you raise the temperature so each shower uses less hot water. (The tank yeilds more hot water since more cold would be mixed with the hot)
Typical bath/shower is 104°F.

To save money and energy in a home that has small to normal usage,
Then lower temperature is better because water heater has less standby loss, resulting in reduced energy consumption. BUT...
.... there are too many factors to make a reliable estimate that applies to everyone.
The theory behind this:
All hot water that is consumed is replaced by cold water that must be heated to the set point, and then kept hot until next usage.
Lowering temperature means less energy consumption duning the standby hours when tank is keeping water hot.

If you have home-or-apartment with high consumption:
Then higher temperature setting might be better so occupants don't run out of hot water.

The conclusion is:
The temperature-setting issue boils down to standby loss vs consumption.
And that's where the issue becomes behavioral, and then it becomes impossible to weigh all the factors needed for reliable scientific data that covers everyone.

Logically however, if you use less hot water, then the temperature setting can be lower.
This would apply except maybe laundry-day when you might want 135 degree water to kill bacteria when washing clothes.
Or you you might wash clothes in cold water because it's better to co-existing with bacteria, unless you work at a hospital or your immune system is compromised by disease?

My experience: Over the past 2 years, I accidentally discovered real-world proof that behavior is the most important factor in hot water cost.
I put a meter on my electric water heater. And then my timer is run some months, and the timer is turned off on other months to watch what happens.
Does a water heater timer save energy? Yes, but not exactly the way you expect. When using a timer, the hot water is rationed and occupants (myself and my wife) know when hot water is available. As a result, our consumption of hot water declines with shorter showers, and hands washed with cold water instead of waiting for hot.
When the timer is off, and hot water is available any time, then consumption increases. And the difference shows on the meter. Gradually over time, more and more hot water is used after the timer gets turned off: proving that behavior is a major factor, at least at our home.

Meter on water heater
The Kwh meter is din rail mounted inside enclosure.
Records billable power usage in Kwh. Multiply by rate you pay per Kwh to get monthly/ yearly cost of running electric water heater.

Buy
Bomain power meter
Ketotek power meter
240 volt pass through Kwh  meter
2T2502GA beige plastic enclosure
2T2500GA grey plastic enclosure
din rails

Resource:
Enclosures
Figure volts amp watts for water heater
House-design-with-low-cost-energy.pdf
Carbon-footprint-PDF.pdf


gas meter on gas water heaterInstall meter on Gas water heater
Record exact usage of BTU of gas appliances.
3/4" pipe thread connections. Use yellow teflon tape or gas-approved sealant.
No excess tape or sealant inside pipe. Use black pipe or yellow flex line. Keep pipes clean during assembly.
Install in vertical position with inlets pointing up as illustrated.
12.2" Tall x 8.5" Wide x 11.2" Deep
No power source required
Digital readout in cubic feet
Remote Readable option (pulse output) using EKM-25IDS

Buy:
EKM gas meter
Approved gas pipe sealant
Yellow gas line

EKM gas meter

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