On Sat, 23 Jun 2012 16:11:00 -0700, mike wrote:

On 6/23/2012 1:16 PM, Winston wrote:

(...)

I wonder where all that extra gas is going? :/

It's a combination of thermodynamics and placebo effect. I found my
energy usage went down for whatever I was measuring.

Did the power company agree with your measurements?
Were they on placebo as well?

Temperature affects two types of loss. System losses thru the pipes and
heater are proportional to temperature. Your clothes washer probably
works on weight, so there's proportional savings there.

We always use cold water for laundry. It works just fine.

But when you shower, you turn the knob to the temperature you want and
use more of that lower-temperature hot water.

After I adjusted the water heater, it was equilibrated at 7 F
lower than before I adjusted the water heater.

For two *months* afterward, I used significantly less gas.
At month three, I was using slightly *more* gas than before
adjusting the thermostat.
Are you saying it took me three *months* to decide I needed
to shower longer? Doesn't sound reasonable to me.
If that effect were in play, I should not have seen any
savings in the first couple months because I would have started
using more hot water immediately.

--Winston