Hot water immersion switches

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BobtheBillder
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Hot water immersion switches

Post by BobtheBillder »

I've been living in Cambodia 3 years and my last two apartments the hot water came from a plastic box on the shower wall.

I moved recently and now I'm in a place where there is a 20A immersion switch and it takes 5-10 minutes for the water to get hot after you turn it on.

How much do these cost to run at 1000 riel/kw? How much is each shower costing me and would it be cheaper to leave it on all the time rather than turning it off and on? I shower at least 3X every day and also prefer having warm water to wash my hands in a pandemic but that's not practical if I have to wait 10 minutes.
nerdlinger
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Re: Hot water immersion switches

Post by nerdlinger »

Struggling to see how it’d be cheaper to leave it on, but in principle they should be insulated enough for it not to be substantially more expensive. I suspect you’ll have less chance of contracting Legionnaires disease leaving in on, too.

Also I’m not sure 3 showers a day is good for your skin.


(Disclaimer: I’m neither a boiler technician nor a dermatologist)
Bluenose
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Re: Hot water immersion switches

Post by Bluenose »

I may be wrong, but I think volts multiplied by amps equals watts. So 230 x 20 = 4600 which is 4.6KW. So if your electricity is $0.25 per KW/H then it's $0.2875 for 15 minutes. How well can you get the tank insulated and does the thermostat work properly? Same disclaimer as above.
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timmydownawell
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Re: Hot water immersion switches

Post by timmydownawell »

Would probably work out cheaper to get it swapped out for an instant water heater. They start from about $50.
You must walk in traffic to cross the road - Cambodian proverb
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BobtheBillder
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Re: Hot water immersion switches

Post by BobtheBillder »

timmydownawell wrote: Sun Jan 16, 2022 8:27 am Would probably work out cheaper to get it swapped out for an instant water heater. They start from about $50.
Thanks I proposed that to the landlord but he was not receptive
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timmydownawell
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Re: Hot water immersion switches

Post by timmydownawell »

BobtheBillder wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 1:57 pm
timmydownawell wrote: Sun Jan 16, 2022 8:27 am Would probably work out cheaper to get it swapped out for an instant water heater. They start from about $50.
Thanks I proposed that to the landlord but he was not receptive
Yeah well if he's charging you 1000r/kWh, he'd lose money on your power bill if you got something more efficient.
You must walk in traffic to cross the road - Cambodian proverb
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