EcoRenovator  

Go Back   EcoRenovator > Improvements > Geothermal & Heat Pumps
Advanced Search
 


Blog 60+ Home Energy Saving Tips Recent Posts


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-18-10, 07:35 PM   #1
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default Hybrid Water Heater

I decided to go ahead and get a hybrid water and install it before the tax rebate (30%) runs out at the end of this year.

I went with the Rheem from Home Depot.Rheem EcoSense 50 gal. Hybrid Electric Water Heater with Heat Pump technology - HP50ES at The Home Depot

I ordered it online and they delivered it to my house for free. It took about 5 days to get here. According to the EPA sticker it only uses $284 worth of electricity per year, which is about half the average. So payback should be about 4 years (after the tax rebate). That beats the heck out of anything I could do with a wind turbine or solar PV.

I had also looked at the GE offering from Lowes, but decided against it because it requires 7" of space behind it and I just don't have that kind of room to install it. Shop GE 50-Gallon GeoSpring™ Hybrid Water Heater at Lowes.com

The GE does have a better Coefficient Of Performance (2.35) than the Rheem (2.0). Also, the Rheem has unconventional water pipe connections that will require me to redo some of the plumbing. But the GE requires more space overhead to remove the air filter.

So now my garage will be cooler in the summer (good) and colder in the winter (bad). But I don't do much in the garage in the winter time.

Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-18-10, 10:27 PM   #2
strider3700
Master EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Vancouver Island BC
Posts: 745
Thanks: 23
Thanked 37 Times in 30 Posts
Default

interesting, I've never heard of a hybrid HW setup before. They aren't in the local home depot or rona at least. My electric tank is effectively silent but my heat pump is anything but. How does one of these compare noise wise?
strider3700 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-19-10, 08:31 AM   #3
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by strider3700 View Post
interesting, I've never heard of a hybrid HW setup before. They aren't in the local home depot or rona at least. My electric tank is effectively silent but my heat pump is anything but. How does one of these compare noise wise?
I'm not sure on the noise. The static displays in the stores here weren't hooked up so they were silent. I haven't hooked mine up yet, but plan to in the next few days. I'll report back. My current electric element heater is silent though, so I would imagine there will be some increase in noise from the new unit.
Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-19-10, 08:39 AM   #4
Daox
Administrator
 
Daox's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Germantown, WI
Posts: 5,525
Thanks: 1,162
Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts
Default

Very interesting. I know a few forum members have looked into these and will be interested to hear your results with it!
__________________
Current project -
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
&
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Daox is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-10, 08:25 AM   #5
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default

I got it hooked up. It does make some noise when the compressor is running. It's louder than my refrigerator, but quieter than my central air conditioner. It has a circulation pump that's almost silent when it is running. Since the heater is in my garage, I can't hear it at all when I'm in the house. If it were mounted in an alcove inside a home you might be able to hear it, but if the alcove had a door on it I doubt you would notice it. The unit is really quite sophisticated - it has computer controls to maximize energy efficiency and protect the compressor. I'll try to take some pictures and post them up later today.

PS - I was amazed at how small the power wires were inside the unit. I'd say they were maybe 18 gauge, 16 gauge at the most. Way smaller than the wires in the old heater.

Last edited by Patrick; 10-22-10 at 08:30 AM..
Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-10, 06:36 PM   #6
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default

Here are some pix of the heater.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	P1010065.jpg
Views:	1345
Size:	91.4 KB
ID:	989   Click image for larger version

Name:	P1010066.jpg
Views:	1252
Size:	94.9 KB
ID:	990   Click image for larger version

Name:	P1010067.jpg
Views:	1471
Size:	87.2 KB
ID:	991   Click image for larger version

Name:	P1010081.jpg
Views:	1264
Size:	92.6 KB
ID:	994   Click image for larger version

Name:	P1010084.jpg
Views:	1218
Size:	86.8 KB
ID:	995  

Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-10, 07:07 PM   #7
NiHaoMike
Supreme EcoRenovator
 
NiHaoMike's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 1,154
Thanks: 14
Thanked 257 Times in 241 Posts
Default

I find it interesting that it uses R-410a even in a high temperature application.
__________________
To my surprise, shortly after Naomi Wu gave me a bit of fame for making good use of solar power, Allie Moore got really jealous of her...
NiHaoMike is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-10, 09:22 PM   #8
RobertSmalls
Journeyman EcoRenovator
 
RobertSmalls's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Buffalo, NY
Posts: 344
Thanks: 3
Thanked 17 Times in 15 Posts
Default

What does the "energy saver" mode do?

Where is its cold sink, and does this thing blow out cold air?
RobertSmalls is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-10, 09:32 PM   #9
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by RobertSmalls View Post
What does the "energy saver" mode do?

Where is its cold sink, and does this thing blow out cold air?
Energy Saver just uses the heat pump. Normal uses the heat pump with resistive heating element backup.

The heat source is the air in the garage. It blows out cold air and transfers the heat from the air into the water in the tank.
Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-10, 09:51 PM   #10
Patrick
Apprentice EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: East Coast of Florida, USA
Posts: 149
Thanks: 2
Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts
Default

Here are some more pics:

Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	AIR FILTER.jpg
Views:	1625
Size:	91.0 KB
ID:	1008   Click image for larger version

Name:	COLD WATER INLET.jpg
Views:	1338
Size:	89.4 KB
ID:	1009   Click image for larger version

Name:	MAIN AND SECONDARY CONDENSATE DRAINS.jpg
Views:	1871
Size:	94.2 KB
ID:	1010   Click image for larger version

Name:	POWER, HOT WATER OUT, AND T&P VALVE.jpg
Views:	2104
Size:	90.6 KB
ID:	1011  
Patrick is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Tags
heat pump, water heater


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:03 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Ad Management by RedTyger
Inactive Reminders By Icora Web Design