Water Heater For Laundry
One of my rentals has the washer and dryer in a shed behind the house. My renter just pointed out that only good water runs to the shed and she wants to use the washer with warm water. What are my options for adding warm water?
I was thinking of just getting an apartment size water heater for the shed. Would that be sufficient?
By "good" water in your post, I assume some auto-correct software mangled that from what should be read as "cold" - correct?
You first need to identify fuel / energy sources already in place, or that can readily be installed for your budget. Then ask if the structure is adequately insulated to prevent freezing of the plumbing in there.
There are "on demand" tankless water heaters that might do the job. And an apartment sized tank heater should also be adequate.
To follow-on to @Steve Babiak, there are several models of front-load, high-efficiency washing machines on the market which have built-in, in-line water heaters, which may be able to provide sufficient heat if your source water temperature is not too cold. You would need to check the specs on the washing machine and see how much {temperature} lift capacity the on-board heater has or what range of input water temperature it requires [Note: some just boost the heat on your tap hot water for things like a sanitary cycle].
In the worst case, you could run a hot water line from the house (ensuring that it is buried sufficiently deep ... and probably should insulate it) and the heater in the washer could deal with any heat loss in the water during it's journey.
Sorry, dang phone always corrects me. I meant cold water.
Originally posted by @Ryan Haase:
Sorry, dang phone always corrects me. I meant cold water.
I know that feeling very well; I might mis-type something by one letter, and the phone mangles by auto-correct to some word completely different. Not really your or my fault ;)
Anyway, you have a couple of suggestions to think about.
Because I get a vote for this thread today, I'll update on what I did.
I bought a Bosch ES4 Point-of-Use Mini-Tank Water Heater, 4-Gallon (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C9X1X0M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). I got this one because it runs off 110v and it was super easy to set up. All I had to do was get a set of washer hoses and 2 brass fittings from Home Depot (1/2" female 3/4" male) and hook it up. 4 gallons is enough for a load of laundry.
That must be an awfully small washer if 4 gallons of hot water is enough.
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