Water heating accounts for 14 to 25% of residential energy consumption and the majority of water heaters sold each year are unplanned purchases due to failure of the old heater. Most are sold through retail outlets with little to no consumer education.

Heartland has developed a relationship with Marathon water heaters, the most efficient, longest lasting water heaters available, to provide incentives to Customers for selling Marathons at their utilities. Offering Marathons through the city utility gives Customers the opportunity to promote an efficient product which will save their customers money while retaining or obtaining the non-seasonal water heating load. The cost, efficiency and environmental benefits of the Marathon are immeasurable.

With a lifetime warranty on the tank, a Marathon is the last water heater a consumer will have to buy, locking in the load for the utility. The thick Envirofoam® insulation allows for only a five degree stand-by heat loss in a 24-hour period, saving consumers energy and money. The high efficiency also makes Marathons ideal for load management systems as the consumer won’t notice the heater is being controlled.

According to John Richards, region manager with Marathon, “Water Heaters are the number one energy using appliances in the home. We are working with Heartland Consumers Power District to provide energy efficiency solutions to this service area.”

Ten Heartland Customers currently manage a Marathon program for their customers. The city of Volga began the program in 2004 and has sold 197 heaters. Akron, IA partnered with Marathon in 2001 and has sold 250 heaters. Parker began in 2006 and has sold 70, with 32 of those in 2009. In 2004, Arlington began the program and has sold 125 heaters, selling 20 this past year. Howard began selling Marathons in late 2008 and has sold 29 heaters.

In 2009, with the help of a $2,500 incentive from Heartland, five more Customers got on board with the program. Four South Dakota cities including Wessington Springs, Colman, Hecla and White, along with Truman, MN are using the incentive to offer rebates to customers purchasing the Marathons. They’ve all seen great success with the program, most generating a list of customers wanting the Marathons before the utility placed the order.

According to Gary Horton, director of public works for Akron, IA, most of the heaters they’ve sold have been either new installations or conversions from gas to electric. “Those who have purchased the Marathons have been extremely happy with them, especially the lifetime warranty on the tank,” said Horton. “One customer shut the power off to the heater on Friday morning when they left for the weekend and when they returned Sunday evening, the water was still hot enough to take a shower.”

Customers who implemented the Marathon program before 2009 also received the $2,500 incentive to implement other energy efficiency programs. The cities of Volga and Parker are utilizing the incentive to perform energy audits while Arlington is giving away LED light bulbs to customers and Akron is providing rebates for energy efficient heat pumps.

“Increasing energy efficiency is key to keeping home owners’ costs down and living standards up,” Richards added. “We are pleased to be ‘part of the solution’ to the energy challenges we see coming our way.”

Visit www.marathonheaters.com to learn more about Marathon water heaters or contact Ann Hyland at Heartland at (605) 256-6536 or ahyland@hcpd.com.