Heat pump hot water
January 18, 2018 4:50 AM Subscribe
I have a heat pump compressor unit (air source) that's meant to be piped into two air output units. Can I use one of the outputs to run a hot water tank?
So, more rambling details.
The compressor unit is designed to run two pretty big air conditioner units.
It has two separate refrigerant lines (two in, two out).
What info would I need to know to figure if / how I can have a air output and a hot water tank output.
I have a bunch of extra info I can provide if it would help figure this out.
So, more rambling details.
The compressor unit is designed to run two pretty big air conditioner units.
It has two separate refrigerant lines (two in, two out).
What info would I need to know to figure if / how I can have a air output and a hot water tank output.
I have a bunch of extra info I can provide if it would help figure this out.
Besides what doomsey is saying (IE: no hot water in summer) you may find that the output of the heat pump may not give you anything but lukewarm water. You'd have to take a look at the specs for the particular unit to see if it supports output temperatures high enough for hot water.
You'll also need to confirm that the unit can be set to run each loop independently; other wise you'll run into a problem when the air coil is calling for heat but your hot water is already at 140 degrees.
posted by Mitheral at 12:58 PM on January 18, 2018
You'll also need to confirm that the unit can be set to run each loop independently; other wise you'll run into a problem when the air coil is calling for heat but your hot water is already at 140 degrees.
posted by Mitheral at 12:58 PM on January 18, 2018
Response by poster: Handy thoughts, thanks.
The external unit can't heat and cool at the same time, it's one or the other. That said we live in a very temperate climate and don't need that much hot water, so heating up a tankful in the morning and evening might not be a problem.
Secondly, the two air units we have can be set to different temperatures so long as they're both moving heat in the same direction. So that bodes well.
I've seen tanks with a heat pump coil in them, but no indication of how the control for that works.
I can't imagine that you could just throw the pipe in and it'd work. How would it know how much heat to send?
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 9:20 AM on January 23, 2018
The external unit can't heat and cool at the same time, it's one or the other. That said we live in a very temperate climate and don't need that much hot water, so heating up a tankful in the morning and evening might not be a problem.
Secondly, the two air units we have can be set to different temperatures so long as they're both moving heat in the same direction. So that bodes well.
I've seen tanks with a heat pump coil in them, but no indication of how the control for that works.
I can't imagine that you could just throw the pipe in and it'd work. How would it know how much heat to send?
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 9:20 AM on January 23, 2018
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posted by doomsey at 9:16 AM on January 18, 2018