The Cove at Yarmouth, West Yarmouth, Mass., was throwing money down the drain with its former hot-water heaters. Within an eight- to 10-year period, the resort was replacing the old tanks at a rate of one to two water heaters per year. Eventually, the resort’s general manager, Michael Edwards, decided it was time to make a change.
When he contacted Murphy’s Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing in Cape Cod, Mass., the plumbing manager recommended a hybrid water heater, manufactured by Eternal, because of its dependability and energy efficiency.
The Cove at Yarmouth is a 13-acre resort that opened in 1986. Its 229 suites and townhouses create a high demand for hot water. Each accommodation features two full baths and a kitchen area. The resort’s restaurant, athletic facility with guest bathrooms, laundry rooms and other common area restrooms use hot water, as well. The buildings on the property occupy 212,000 square feet of space. Before its water-heater upgrade, the Cove at Yarmouth had 23 standard 100 gallon, 199,000 BTU hot-water tanks. The motivating factor for Edwards to replace the old units was the need for a hot water solution that was more energy efficient.
“The most significant thing is the energy savings. The hybrid water heaters equate to a 12 percent reduction in my energy bill,” Edwards says. He adds he is saving $1,400 a month. The Eternal installation included 21 GU195S water heaters and five storage tanks. One of the storage tanks is 80 gallons, and the other four are 120-gallon storage tanks. Designed for residential and commercial applications, the GU195S provides endless hot water, but unlike a tankless, it has a small reserve tank inside to maintain water pressure and avoid temperature fluctuation. With the GU195S, installers can use a single unit or multiple units with additional storage to accommodate large applications that have an unpredictable high demand for hot water.
“It was a seamless installation that went smoothly,” says Service Manager Richard Toma of Murphy’s Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing. To learn more about the product and the company, Toma attended an Eternal hybrid water heater training class. “I felt Eternal offered amazing tech support. From the reliability of the product to the support you get, it’s just great.”
The hybrid water heaters offer 98 percent efficiency, are lead free, have close to zero carbon emissions and exceed Energy Star standards.
Other green initiatives at the resort include the recycling of paper, plastic and aluminum, as well as the use of environmentally friendly cleaning products.