Do you leave your water heater switched on all the time you are away or do you only switch it on when you need it. I usually leave mine on all the time but have been told it's better to switch it off.
I am not sure if there is a right or wrong answer to this one Robin, but we usually switch ours off at night and back on first thing in the morning, and if we are going to be away all day then, yes, we do switch it off.
But as Enoch has said, your thermostat should look after things. 👍😀
We also switch ours off overnight and if we are going to be out all day. As ours is an older van it is gas-only, so it seems a waste to leave it on when we are not likely to need it. It heats up quite quickly anyway.
Leaving the water heater switched on is contributing to the amount of power being consumed which is limiting the amount of other electrical appliances that can be used simultaneously therefore we switch ours on in the morning and then switch it off about two hours later. We then switch the water heater on again at around tea time to heat the water for washing up and a bit longer if one of us are going to use the shower. If you are on metered electric supply then it may be wise to switch the heater on and off as required.
I switch our on as soon as I wake up in the morning. Turn it off before we go out and the switch it on when we come back or if I don't need hot water I but it on just before we start cooking our evening meal.
Just leave ours on all the time. It doesn't seem to limit the power available on 10A supply. The thermostat switches it off when hot so even if we draw a bit it will only be back on for a few minutes until it heats up again.
We have just brought our first van and whilst playing with all the bits and testing them the other day we tested the hot water and it took about an hour to get warm so presumed would have to leave it now all the time. It is an old van so probably not the best system.
Thanks folks it seems about an even split both ways. I can't imagine it uses any more electric to keep it hot all the time than heating it up from cold all the time. I will probably revert back to switching it off when I go out. Thanks again for your answers.
Quote: Originally posted by Plj scriver on 03/10/2017
We have just brought our first van and whilst playing with all the bits and testing them the other day we tested the hot water and it took about an hour to get warm so presumed would have to leave it now all the time. It is an old van so probably not the best system.
Is yours gas-only like ours? If it has gas and electric like some of the more modern vans, I think some people put both on at once to heat up quicker. An hour seems like a long time to me. Ours is warm within about 10 minutes, and hot within half an hour.
I think if we had electric water heating I may consider leaving it on all the time, as we are paying for EHU anyway, but as we are paying for gas used, I see little point in wasting it while we are out or asleep.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Leaving water heater on.
