Gas Water Heater efficiancy

[walshdad5]

I have a 40 gallon nat. gas water heater.It is in the mid-range of energy eff.,are there any suggestions to help save money on its use?At Home Depot,the salesman said to wrap it in a blanket and to turn down the temp.I have been told in the past that a Water Heater blanket does not make any diff. at all,and if I turn down the temp,which is not set high as it is,I don't get the amt. of hot water that I need.I have insulated all of my hot water pipes already.Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[HayZee518]

the layer of insulation you already have beneath the sheet metal skin of the heater should be good. if you touch the metal surface, do you feel any real change in the ambient temperature? if you feel heat and the need to wrap it - go ahead. there isn't THAT much radiated heat coming off the water heater. if your pipes are covered with open cell neoprene you'll still have some heat given off.

[596]

Insulating all exposed piping is the best you can do. Most of the energy loss of a water heater is up the flue, and you can't do anything about that except but a new power vent WH. The blanket is unlikely to do much. Especially if it is gas, because the most vulnerable area is the top, and you must not put any blanket up there at all. A setting of about 130º is fine. Any hotter is becoming a scald hazard, and it should not be much lower, as legionaires comes into play.