Should You Insulate Your Water Pipes?
Most homeowners face a relatively straightforward choice when determining whether or not to insulate the hot water pipes in their homes. When excellent insulating pipe sleeves can be acquired for a few feet for only one dollar, it is impossible to say no to the straightforward energy savings that will pay for themselves over the years. However, not all homeowners know this easy method for increasing energy efficiency, nor are they aware of why it may be beneficial to insulate your cold water pipes and why it may be beneficial to protect your hot water pipes. Both of these things are important to keep in mind.
Some Like It Hot
To begin with, the most apparent benefit of insulating the pipes that carry hot water will assist in maintaining the temperature of the hot water in your home, which is one of the benefits of insulating the pipes that carry hot water. When you use a traditional water heater with a tank to store hot water, you are already incurring costs to maintain a constant hot water supply. These costs can be reduced by switching to a tankless water heater. Because your pipes are insulated, the temperature change of the warm water as it travels through them will be more gradual.
Insulating your pipes is an investment that is well worth making if you place a high value on having water at an exceptionally high temperature when you shower or wash the dishes. This is because water at a lower temperature will take longer to heat up. If you have good insulation in your home, you can raise the actual temperature of the water in your home by a few degrees. This will reduce the time it takes for the water dispensed from your fixtures to reach the temperature that you want it to be, which is another way that this helps save water.
In addition, if you turn on your hot water and hear a loud pounding sound, this could be because the metal pipes in your home are expanding due to the flow of hot water. This could happen if you hear the sound after turning on your hot water. Putting pipe insulation in place could help quiet things down for homeowners who feel the clanking noise is irritating.
What About Cold Water Pipes?
Because your cold water pipes do not contain any heat that needs to be preserved, it might not seem immediately sensible to insulate them. However, if you are already going through the trouble of protecting your hot water pipes, adding insulation to their cold water compatriots should only add a few bucks in materials to the ordinary house. Additionally, there are some practical benefits to doing so.
Suppose your home does not have temperature control in any part of the house, such as an unfinished basement or a portion of pipe that is exposed to the elements. In that case, you risk having frozen pipes during winter if your cold water pipes pass through that part of the house. This may result in a significant mess and a substantial increase in the cost of repairs. Insulation, on the other hand, can assist prevent this issue at a low cost and with little effort.
During the warm summer months, certain portions of the pipe may be exposed to the heat of the outdoors, which may cause your cold water supply to become compromised. Insulating your pipes is also a good idea unless you want your cold water tap to dispense warm or hot water during summer.
Insulating your cold water pipes will help prevent condensation, which is yet another advantage of doing so. Condensation will form inside metal pipes filled with cold water if the surrounding environment has a high humidity. These droplets, as they accumulate, will eventually fall upon whatever is beneath them. There is a risk of damage caused by moisture if you keep valuable heirlooms or other keepsakes in the basement of your home, especially if the water pipes in that area are not insulated.
