Reservoir raises $8M to make water heaters that people — and the grid — will actually want
Startup Reservoir has raised $8 million to develop smart, energy-efficient water heaters that help stabilize the power grid. By predicting hot water demand, these devices can heat water when electricity prices are low, offering a more efficient alternative to traditional appliances.
Why it matters
Optimizing residential energy consumption through smart appliances is a critical step in managing grid strain and reducing household carbon footprints.
It’s hard to imagine a home appliance more forgotten — yet more consequential — than the water heater. Most people only think of water heaters when their shower runs cold, but they represent about 18% of a household’s total energy budget and are one of the main causes of residential water damage.
To Luke Winston-Almanzar, water heaters are in clear need of an upgrade. “The typical water heater is devoid of intelligence, it’s using a god-awful amount of energy, and my air fryer is smarter than it,” he told TechCrunch. “I was using more energy to heat my water than it takes to drive my electric car.”
So Winston-Almanzar, who was previously chief business officer at 3D printing startup Formlabs , co-founded Reservoir along with Gabriel Parisi-Amon and Jake Felser to make a water heater that they would want to buy.
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