Why does it take so much longer for hot water to enter a faucet than cold, vice versa?
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Depending on the system installed, the hot water is held in a tank somewhere else. In a standard American home, normally this is in the garage.
The hot water pipe from the faucet is connected to the tank, but the pipe runs a distance from the main hot water tank. The water is just sitting in the pipe when not in use, and loses temperature to the air. The time between the tap opening and hot water flowing from it is the time it takes for the water in the pipe between the water heater and the tap to flow out and be replaced with hot water.
There are newer systems to prevent this like systems that keep the water constantly recirculating in the pipes but there are downsides that there is now a constant flow of warm water warming the house. Though they can be insulated.
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