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Off-peak water heater ideas and How to wire off-peak water heater thermostats

Homeowners should check with plumber before altering water heater wiring
Off-peak air conditioner/ reduce run time of air conditioner during peak electric
Eventually all peak pricing will be variable since electric demand changes to find the best price... which changes when the peak times can exist ...
The advent of solar and wind add another layer of complexity. Natural disaster add another layer, expecially for generation and transmission companies.
There might be apps that notify when the peak prices are expected, but full accuracy would probably be unreliable.
Another option is letting the electric provider add hardware, but reliablility and longevity is an issue with all equipment.
Upper and lower thermostats
Buy residential upper and lower thermostats
Thermostats are interchangeable/ each works with your water heater
Range 90-100° to 150-160°F
ECO trip 170-180°
89T is discontinued/ replace with Apcom or Therm-o-disc
Buy
Rheem UV11698
Rheem SP11698
Camco 08163
Aprom / 110-160°
Water heater thermostats at Amazon
Camco thermostats at Amazon
More thermostats
Back of thermostat Thermostat must sit flat against tank wall so temperature reading is accurate and water heater is protected from overheating

Access doors and insulation must be put back over thermostat to avoid higher water temperatures than desired set point, which leads to overheating, which will trip ECO reset.
Resource:
Read how electric water heater works

ECO energy cut off turns off power to residential water heater when temperature reaches 170°
Resource:Read troubleshooting steps
Off-peak option 1:
Ordinary timer
box timers Timer turns water heater OFF during peak times
Resource:

Compare box timers features and wiring
Off-peak option 2:
toggle water heater between 240 volt and 120 volt
How to wire T106 timer
Larger image
Toggle water heater between 240 and 120 Volt using timer or switch

Wires inside water heater are NOT changed.
Requires Neutral wire from any nearby outlet or from breaker box.
Reduce electric consumption by heating water more slowly.
Water heater will not 'recover' as quickly. Instead of heating 20-30 gallons hot water per hour, tank will heat about 5-15 gallons per hour.
Elements and thermostats will work with 120Volt or 240Volt

Element watt consumption drops when voltage drops
No need to change breaker.
Just run additional neutral wire to timer.
Element rated for 4500 watts @ 240Volt, will consume 25% or 1125 watts @ 120Volt



T106R / outdoor metal box/ 240 Volt
40 amp/ NO NC
Buy
T106R outdoor at Amazon

Resources:
How to wire water heater for 240 volt
How to wire T106 timer
How to wire transfer switch
Off-peak option 3:
Rewire thermostats for off-peak operation
Off-peak thermostat wiring

240 Volt potential exists between L3 yellow wire and each L1 black wire

Purpose of off-peak ... save energy during peak electric prices.  
> Upper thermostat operates normally to keep top 2/3 tank hot.
> Lower thermostat heats bottom 1/3 of tank only when off-peak meter or timer is ON.

Off-peak water heater

1. Lower thermostat replaced with ECO-protected thermostat identical to upper thermostat. ECO safety red reset cuts off power when water in tank reaches dangerously high 150-180°F

2. Upper thermostat: Red wire is moved L4 to T4. Color of wires can be different.

3. Black wire from lower thermostat does not connect to upper thermostat T4 screw

4. Black wire from lower thermostat runs to top of water heater for connection to off-peak meter, or off-peak timer

5. 240 Volt potential exists between L3 yellow wire and each L1 black wire at top of water heater

Buy
36" drill bits


Resources:
How to connect timer to off peak water heater
See Off-peak operation sequence
How to wire thermostats
AO Smith wiring diagrams
See all electric water heater thermostat wiring diagrams
Timer wiring for OFF peak
 Lower thermostat receives power only when timer is ON
Upper thermostat receives power full time

30 amp digital timer with Nema1 indoor enclosure
6 programs/ SPDT timer
Buy:
EH40 at Amazon
30 amp timers
EH40 timer

Resources:
Compare box-type water heater timers



Resource:

EH40 off-peak water heater timer
Tork DTU timer Off peak operation
Larger image
Timer wiring for OFF peak
Heavy duty 40 amp mechanical timer with Nema3R indoor-outdoor enclosure
Up to 12 programs per 24-hour day


T106R / outdoor metal box/ 240 Volt
40 amp/ NO NC
Buy
T106R outdoor at Amazon


Resources:
How to wire T106 timer
Tork DTU timer Off peak operationDPDT Timer wiring for OFF peak
DPDT timers can be wired to toggle water heater between peak and off-peak operation.
40 amp digital and mechanical timers with Nema3R indoor-outdoor enclosure

Wire water heater so lower part of tank is OFF during peak price times.
Less hot water is available.
Tank will probably not run during peak times unless hot is drawn from tap

GE 15136 timerBuy:
GE 15136/ 7 day/ 7 programs /
GM40AV       120-208-240-277V
GM40AVQ       w/ back-up battery
GE 15135 24-hour mechanical

Resources:
How to wire DPDT timers
How to wire thermostats
How electric water heaters work
off-delay-water-heater
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Off peak Home automation  OFF peak
Use any zwave, wifi, insteon, or programmable timer rated for inductive load. Connect to DTST 30-40 amp open frame power relay.
Or use on-delay timer, off delay timer, cycle timer, twin timer etc.


Magnecraft relay with NO NC terminals 120 volt coil or 24 volt coil
Buy from my affiliate links
Magnecraft box and cover
magnecraft w199 relays at Amazon
Siemens power relays at Amazon
Programmable timers
Zwave contactor
WiFi contactor

Resources:
Programmable timers
How to reverse motor with switch
Timer for 2-speed pump
On-off-delay timer
Off peak sequence of operation
Off peak water heater sequence
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Off-peak option 4:
Add another water heater to store hot water

 ...so more hot water available at usage time
Add timer to either water heater -or- both water heaters
Two water heaters Install tanks in series:
Cold water enters heater #1 and then feeds into heater #2.

Wiring goes in reverse order:
Wire from circuit breaker arrives at heater #2, and then goes to heater #1 (as shown diagrams below)

IF WATER HEATER HAS FOAM INSULATION the wiring may not be possible without drilling hole to drop additional wire into lower part of tank.
This action will void water heater warranty.
Remember, for water heater to work correctly, the thermostats and element must be covered with insulation or thermostat will misread temperature.
Reduntant thermostats - two water heatersLarger image
Add timer to either water heater or both water heaters

Redundant thermostats control 2 water heaters
Set upper thermostats at lower temperature than lower thermostats

Purpose:
Add additional tank so more hot water available at peak times, without adding additional wiring from breaker.

Heater #1 must be satisfied before power is sent to heater #2.
Heater #2 may not fully heat before heater #1 needs to turn ON again. This will happen IF water heater is poorly insulated or cold water is drawn from heater #1 or incoming water is very cold.

Sequence:
1) Power  from circuit breaker arrives at ECO-protected upper thermostat on heater #1
2) ECO protection required on upper part of tank to prevent overheating event since heat rises
3) Typical lower thermostat on heater #1 is replaced with ECO thermostat so power can be transferred to heater #2 when heater #1 thermostats are satisfied.
4) Once heater #1 is satisfied, power goes to heater #2.

Either heater can be wired for redundant or typical non-simultaneous operation.
The key is adding ECO-protected thermostat to lower part of heater #1, and adding wire from lower thermostat so power can be transferred to heater #2.

Water heaters with foam insulation may require long drill bit from home center or fry's to bring wire to top of tank. Be sure insulation and covers are put over thermostats so thermostat not exposed to cool temperatures and cause temperature misread.
Resource:
Read about two water heaters
Two water heaters Non-simultaneous thermostats control 2 water heaters
Simultaneous wiring will heat top of tank first.
Redundant will turn ON as soon as cold water enters tank. How electric water heater works

Purpose:
Add additional tank so more hot water available at peak times, without adding additional wiring.

Heater #1 must be satisfied before power is sent to heater #2.
Heater #2 may not fully heat before heater #1 needs to turn ON again. This will happen IF water heater is poorly insulated or cold water is drawn from heater #1 or incoming water is very cold.

Sequence is generally same as above.

Water heaters with foam insulation may require long drill bit from home center or fry's to bring wire to top of tank. Be sure insulation and covers are put over thermostats so thermostat not exposed to cool temperatures and cause temperature misread.
Resource:
Read about two water heaters

Add timer to either water heater or both water heaters
Why does this work?
240volt water heaters have two hot wires from breaker. Each element is permanently connected to one hot wire, and will always test hot for 120Volt to ground.
Thermostat opens and closes second hot wire to element. This action turns element ON-OFF
Resource:
Basic water heater circuit
Thermostat is either Hot on T2 or Hot on T4, but never both.
Some ECO thermostats are numbered 2 and 4.
So the lower thermostat on water heater #1 will either send power to lower element on heater #1, or it will send power to heater #2.
Water heater #2 will not turn ON unless water heater #1 is OFF
When water heater #1 turns OFF, then heater #2 has 240V power available.

Resource:
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How thermostats work
How to wire thermostats
Take apart thermostats If water heater has foam insulation, then replacing lower thermostat with ECO protected thermostat may not be easy.
Take apart most upper thermostats and make new lower thermostat that will work for the specific two-water heater diagrams shown above.

When not to use:
Do not remove ECO protection on upper part of tank.
On simultaneous and single-tank off-peak water heaters, the ECO is require for lower thermostat operation.
ECO protects you in case of overheating and is required for safe operation of water heaters.
If you cannot rewire water heater:
  WHQ water heater timer WHQ4 Water heater timerIf you cannot rewire water heater because of foam insulation or other factor such as warranty:

Re-plumb water heaters in series, and run additional 30 amp circuit to additional heater. Then put both water heater on a GM series timer
Buy:
GM40AV       120-208-240-277V
GM40AVQ       w/ back-up battery

Resources
How to wire GM40 series timers
See basic water heater circuit

Water heater timer for two water heaters
Both water heaters have same schedule & turn on-off at same time

More box-type water heater timers
Control 2 water heaters Control 2 water heaters

Each water heater can have different 7-day schedule

10 gauge wire and 30 amp breaker run cooler.
30 amp circuit breaker and 10 gauge wire for water heater runs cooler with less energy loss. Breaker box lasts longer.

Different wiring:
For two 4500 watt water heaters, you can use one 40 amp breaker and 8 gauge wire to bring power from breaker box to the first timer.

For two 5500 watt water heaters, you can use 50 amp breaker and 8 gauge wire
Buy 240 volt/ 7-day:
Intermatic EH40 timer
30 amp water heater timers
Resources:
Water heater timers
EH40 water heater timer
Things you can do to increase amount of hot water

9 ways to save with water heater

Change water heater temperature using timer
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Change water heater temperature using DPDT timer
Lower themostat receives power at all times
Upper thermostat receives power when timer is ON
Applies to Intermatic GM series, GE series, and Tork series 40 amp DPDT timers.
Also use Magnecraft 30 amp open frame relay shown on this page.
GM40 timerBuy:
GM40AV       120-208-240-277V
GM40AVQ       w/ back-up battery

Resources
How to wire GM40 series timers
How to wire DPDT timers

GE 15136 timer
Aube CT241 phone controller Control appliances/ water heater over the phone.
Aube CT241
Uses old fashioned plug-in phone cord
Buy:
At Amazon

Resource:
Manual
Contactors
Adding home energy system is more expensive option.
Automated home energy system can regulate all appliances during peak pricing. Basically same as adding programmable timer to each appliance.
Difference is more control tweaks available with home energy system. For example, instead of turning heat OFF and water heater OFF, the system can decide to run one or the other so both do not operate at same time.
Example system: Brayden Energy Sentry
    Water heater element Change elements to lower wattage for slower heating
Good for homes with lower consumption and homes with peak electric pricing

Resource:
How to replace element
3-element tank from Giant Water Heater & Hydro-Quebec
Manual & specs
Product manual
Elk remote control contactor Elk remote control contactor (relay)

Works on 120Volt.
Plug into outlet.
Relay works with automated hardware.
Rated up to 60 amps.
Buy:
Elk relay contactor at Amazon

Resource:
Elk-9200 manual
Intermatic CA3750
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Control water heater or pool pump with telephone or computer

How to wire Intermatic CA3750

Control water heater with Z-wave

Intermatic CA3750 contactor module
Contactor controlled by remote Z wave
5-year warranty/ 30 amp

Buy:
WiFi and Zwave contactors at Amazon
zwave hub at Amazon

Resource:
How to wire and set up CA3750
How to wire wifi contactor
More contactors
Support the economy:
Buy water heaters from my associate links:

50 gallon Gas water heaters at Amazon
40 gallon gas water heaters at Amazon
50 gallon Electric water heaters at Amazon
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Hybrid / heat pump/ water heaters at Amazon

Resources:
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How to install electric water heater
Troubleshoot gas water heater
Troubleshoot electric water heater
Point of use water heaters
Resources:
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Icon gas valve

How to replace water heater element Waste King disposal
How to wire tankless electric

How to install tankless recirculation


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Titan tankless

Contactors/ relays
Install and troubleshoot garbage disposal Waste King disposal
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Woods timers
surge protection
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box timers Resource:
Compare box timers
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Control water heater w/ Z-wave
Intermatic control centers Resource:
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programmable timer Resource:
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