[Dorsey]

You did not indicate if you have a gas or electric water heater but I suspect it is electric. Most have two elements and one of yours may be bad. That is why you are getting hot water that runs out too quickly. Elements are cheap (~$30) and easy to replace, just be sure and turn the electricity off at the breaker. Another possibility is that your hot water heater (gas or electric) was undersized (you say it is only a year old) and that cold weather is now making that apparent. In other words, in the process of going through the house plumbing to the shower, you are using much of the hot water in the tank and the new water flowing into the tank to replace it is much colder than normal. That makes the water in the tank lukewarm and you run out of hot water. If your tank is 30 gallons or less and you live in a cold climate, I would suspect the tank is undersized. You may get some relief by turning the temerature on the tank higher, just be careful if you have small kids. If your faucets are newer and the mixers are set correctly, you shouldn't notice the difference at the faucet but the hot water will last longer. Remember to turn it back down in the warmer months to save energy.