{"id":2324,"date":"2024-05-01T11:09:51","date_gmt":"2024-05-01T15:09:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pirg.org\/rhodeisland\/edfund\/articles\/efficient-water-heaters-will-cut-pollution-save-money-save-lives\/"},"modified":"2024-05-01T11:24:42","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T15:24:42","slug":"efficient-water-heaters-will-cut-pollution-save-money-save-lives","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/pirg.org\/rhodeisland\/edfund\/articles\/efficient-water-heaters-will-cut-pollution-save-money-save-lives\/","title":{"rendered":"Efficient water heaters will cut pollution, save money, save lives"},"featured_media":52512,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":false,"_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":""},"campaign_tax":[133],"display_option":[],"issue_tax":[],"person_tax":[],"region_tax":[],"state":[2],"topic_tax":[112,103,105,109,128],"class_list":["post-2324","article","type-article","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":{"details":{"helper_taxonomies":{"topics":[103,109,112,128,105],"collection":false,"press_type":false,"person_type":false,"resource_type":false,"event_type":false,"campaigns":133,"department":false,"level":false,"states":[2],"act_option":false,"display_option":false,"primary":{"topic":105}},"featured_image":52512,"caption_override":"","excerpt":"Many households will save more than $170 each year in energy costs thanks to new water heater efficiency standards.\r\n","updated_on":null,"sidebar_action":[],"hide_hero_image":false,"sidebar_action_query_string":""},"helper_people_group":{"title":"Authors","entities":[{"type":"dynamic","dynamic_person":{"site":15,"people":"112"},"information":{"name":"","image":null,"role":"","biography":"","contact":{"twitter":"","facebook":"","email":"","phone":""}}},{"type":"dynamic","dynamic_person":{"site":4,"people":"241"},"information":{"name":"","image":null,"role":"","biography":"","contact":{"twitter":"","facebook":"","email":"","phone":""}}}]},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_wysiwyg":{"content":"On April 30th, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) finalized<\/a> a new water heater energy efficiency standard that <\/span>will <\/span>reduce pollution, lower utility bills and save lives<\/b>. According to the agency, this rule saves more energy than any single previous DOE efficiency standard.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

Why are efficient water heaters a big deal?\u00a0<\/span><\/h1>\r\nRapid access to hot water is a hallmark of modern society and has made life a whole lot easier. With the turn of a knob, we can take a hot shower, wash our dishes, clean our clothes, and more.<\/span>\r\n\r\nHeating water requires energy. Tucked away in some corner of our homes is a machine whose job it is to do just that. In most households, water heating is the second-biggest use of energy.<\/span>\r\n\r\nThe Department of Energy estimates that the efficiency standards for water heaters that they finalized today will save more than 17 quadrillion Btu (\u201cquads\u201d) of energy over 30 years. To give you a sense of perspective, the entire U.S. economy consumes about 100 quads of energy per year.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nThe biggest energy saving impact of this new rule is that it requires the most common-sized electric water heaters sold in America to use efficient heat pump technology starting in 2029.\u00a0<\/span>","":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_quote","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_quote":{"quote":"The cleanest energy is the energy we never need to use. ","image":46161,"attribution":{"name":"Johanna Neumann","role":"Senior Director, Campaign for 100% Renewable Energy, Environment America Research & Policy Center"}}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_large_image","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_large_image":{"width":"narrow","image":52514,"caption_override":"Environment America and U.S. PIRG staff outside the U.S. Department of Energy to show support for strong water heater efficiency standards (Photo credit: Athel Rogers)"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_wysiwyg":{"content":"

What are the impacts of making water heaters more energy efficient?<\/span><\/h1>\r\nRequiring water heaters to be more energy efficient will save consumers money, reduce pollution and save lives.<\/span>\r\n

How do consumers benefit from more efficient water heaters?\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\r\nThe Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that American families will save <\/span>$124 billion on energy bills over 30 years <\/b>thanks to the new water heater efficiency standards. Many households can expect to save more than <\/span>$170 each year<\/b>. These savings are largely attributable to the greater energy efficiency of heat pumps compared to the old outdated technology found in many water heaters today.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

What are the environmental benefits of more efficient water heaters?<\/span><\/h2>\r\nThe Department of Energy estimates that, over 30 years, their updated water heater efficiency standard will prevent:<\/span>\r\n