Water Heating - Overview

Improve water heating energy efficiency by up to 56%

Audits have shown that around 24% of the total energy used on a dairy farm goes into heating water for washing the milking equipment and milk vats.

Immediate savings on energy consumption can be realised by following these simple but effective energy savings tips:

• Insulate all hot water cylinders and pipes (5 to 10% savings).
• Repair any leaks and/or dripping taps.
• Regularly check thermostat settings to ensure you're not over-heating the water; generally the thermostat is set around 85°C.
• Check the amount of hot water used for plant and vat wash. The Food and Safety Authority recommends 2% of the vat volumes (with a minimum of 120L) and 10 litres per set of cups.
• Modern washing methods and quality of detergent allows most of the farms to proceed to only one hot wash per day. This can offer good saving opportunities and should be explored only if the low batteries count is maintained.

To make a significant reduction to your long-term operating costs, the best opportunities include*:

• Installing a heat recovery system - either a de-superheater or a Mahana Blue™. Note that de-superheater can be found on the market under the name "heatPro Hot Water Recovery Unit".
• Installing heat pump water heating system.
• Installing solar water heating system.
• Better control of the hot water cylinder electric element i.e. time clock control.

• *Genesis Energy does not make any warranties about the products referred to. Any product queries should be directed to the appliance supplier.