Patent ID: 8175752

Claim:
A method for controlling a plurality of water heaters fluidly and operably connected in a network to meet a hot water demand, wherein each of said plurality of water heaters has a controller which communicates to other water heater controllers within said network via a communication bus and each controller maintains a list of usage planning data, comprising steps of: supplying power to said each water heater controller; configuring the controller of said each water heater to broadcast a message to said communication bus, wherein said message comprises an ID and usage planning data; configuring the controller of said each water heater to listen to and receive messages from other controllers on said communication bus; reconciling said list of usage planning data by removing expired usage planning data and adding new usage planning data and then sorting said list of usage planning data based on a predetermined key to produce a sort result; executing a function based on said sort result; and configuring the controller of said each water heater to update usage planning data, wherein said usage planning data comprises a relative remaining life component and said predetermined key is relative remaining life.