An article that inspired us in The Conversation, takes a three-prong approach to smart electric water heating. The first of these is a conventional resistance-water-heater, while the second uses gas. The third option heat pumps are steadily replacing both of these, because they use far less energy to source the heat directly from the air.
Unpacking Smart Electric Water Heating in More Detail
We include this technology among our range of explainer articles, because anything that stores energy is a ‘battery’, albeit of a different kind. And heat certainly is a form of energy, when we store it in our hot water systems.
Using gas to generate heat in our water boilers was all the rage a decade ago. Because back in 2010 this generated four times less emissions than electricity from burning coal. The balance is still in its favor, according to U.S. Department of Energy, but this is going to change in less than two decades.
This shift towards smart electric water heating will begin gradually, The Conversation’s explanation continues. However, it will accelerate as the transition to renewable energy rolls out. Once this process is complete, third-party emissions from electric heat pumps will be much lower than their gas and electric counterparts.
The Wheel Will Have Turned Back to Electricity
The process has to reverse out, to finally get rid of dirty fossil fuel. However, this time consumers will save money as well as help rescue their planet. Smart electric water heating will merge energy-efficient technology, and social awareness. Then finally, the earth should become our safer refuge.
The U.S. Department of Energy continues to investigate, and prove these many benefits time and again. Gas is likely to remain expensive, it says. While abundant renewables flooding in to replace it should finally see our energy bills coming down, and wouldn’t that be nice.
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