What Temperature Should A Hot Water Heater Be Set At

Whether it’s a traditional storage tank or an instantaneous system, a hot water heater delivers hot water to the faucets and showerheads in your home or office.

An experienced hot water plumber will ensure that your hot water heater is set to the right temperature, and they’ll also help you to better understand hot water safety in the home or workplace.

Hot water safety

Hot tap water can cause real harm in everyday households – especially to small children and elderly people – if not managed carefully.

Something as simple as washing your hands or unexpectedly stepping into a scalding hot shower can cause painful burns and lasting damage to your skin if the water temperature is too hot.

Legally, the temperature of hot water coming out of any tap or showerhead in Victoria (unless specifically required) can’t be more than 50°C. This temperature is considered warm enough to heat up your baths and showers, but not so hot as to cause severe burns.

There are some exemptions to the 50°C rule, including childcare centres, schools and nursing homes, where – for safety reasons – the hot water coming out of any faucet must be capped at a maximum temperature of 45°C.

Maintaining a safe water temperature

To prevent harmful bacteria from growing, the water in hot water heaters needs to be stored at a temperature higher than 60°C.

However, if the storage temp (60°C) is higher than the legal outlet temp (50°C), then how does the temperature cool down that additional 10°C before reaching the tap?

As your handy hot water plumber will tell you, a tempering valve (for traditional hot water tanks) or remote temperature control (for instantaneous systems) will reduce the temperature of hot water before it comes out of the faucet.

So long as your hot water system has a remote temperature control or tempering valve installed and activated, you won’t have to worry about scalding hot water coming out of taps or showerheads in your home.

Set your hot water heater at a safe temperature

With the help of your local hot water plumber, preventing hot water burns is easy. Talk to one of our experienced plumbers today to ensure that your hot water heater is set at a safe temperature for your home or workplace.