Water Consumption

• Conserving water is a concern for anyone interested in doing his part to save the planet. Long showers and other excessive uses of water mount up before you realize it. To help curtail your use of water without making too much of a sacrifice, install low-flow faucets that mix air with the water to make a little water go a long way, or a model that pulses water -- like a massaging shower head -- but saves significant amounts of water during the low end of the pulse. These devices can cut down on water consumption by as much as 50 percent and therefore lower water bills, according to the Earth Easy website.
  
  

Determining Need

• Not every household necessarily needs a low-flow faucet installation. In fact, many newer faucets and shower heads are being built as low-flow devices. If you aren't sure whether you need to replace your faucet for a low-flow version or not, use a simple rule of thumb. Check your faucet label. If it is rated at 2.75 gallons per minute or more, then you need to change to a low-flow faucet or attach an aerator to reduce the flow.
  
  If there is no visible label, test it yourself. Showers are the easiest to test, simply set a two-quart pan in the floor of the shower where the water hits and turn it on. If it fills in less than 12 seconds, switch to a low-flow shower head.
  
  

How On-Demand Heaters Work

• On-demand water heaters heat the water for your home without using a storage tank. This tankless water heater uses an electric element or gas burner to heat water instantly as cold water travels through a pipe near the heat source. These devices deliver a constant supply of hot water. They are generally efficient in delivering 2 to 5 gallons of hot water per minute. In some instances they do have a low flow rate. Gas heaters generally produce a higher flow, according to the U.S. Department of Energy website.
  
  

Energy Conservation

• On-demand water heaters eliminate the lost energy that occurs when hot water sits in a storage tank. Because of the way the heaters work, less energy is consumed when hot water is not in use in the home. To maintain the temperature, traditional storage tank water heaters must use electricity or gas to continuously reheat the water when it cools down in the tank. The on-demand system only uses energy when the water is being used.