Hot Water Now

If your morning routine includes a walk to the bathroom to turn on the shower before heading to the kitchen to make breakfast while you wait for the shower water to get hot, you're not alone. Most conventionally plumbed houses have lethargic hot-water delivery systems that waste your time, your water, and your money. The good news is that the solution is simple for new houses or old. Hot-water recirculation is not new technology; it has been used for decades in commercial buildings. The concept is easy to understand: Hot water circulates through the plumbing so that it is there when you need it. The details, however, are a little more complicated. In this article, contributing editor Scott Gibson explains the basics of hot-water recirculation for new and existing homes and discusses some of the details that make some systems more convenient and energy-efficient than others.