Developing an Energy-Smart Retrofit to Less-Efficient Commercial Water Heaters

This paper is summarizing a pilot study to investigate the impact of retrofitting installed commercial water heaters with an energy smart capability. The theme of the retrofit applies algorithms to enable gas-fired commercial water heaters to adjust heating cycles based on detecting and continuously monitoring and learning the habits of end users and variations in the frequency of demand on hot water. The proposed pilot analysis is guided by US Department of Energy efficiency guidelines. The method to achieve the proposed energy smart retrofit is described in this paper as well as a pilot estimates of the impact of the retrofit on appliance efficiency is presented. Some basic and initial economic analysis is also presented including cost estimates of mass producing the proposed retrofit. .