Heat pump, Good Idea?

DrJohnZoidberg said:
I saw those, I'm just very weary of brands I'm not familiar with - the fact that it has an integrated heat pump in the unit also makes me worry a bit about servicing it.
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You would have to phone them to ask about details for servicing. The site says they have been around for 14 years if that means anything.
 
denmendez65 said:
2x150 litre geyser tanks with instal = some 12k.
Heat pump like Lupus = 25k.
Total cost = 37k

300 litre tank with integrated heat pump with installation = 36 to 40k
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with that 300 IHP COP it would be 21k or so for a 3.6kw heat pump. So it would be a tad cheaper.
 
Lupus said:
300l with that COP, hmmm that would take some time to warm up, cause that would essentially be equivalent to a 2kw element.
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I guess so, but even with 3/4 people bathing one after the other I dont think you will finish 300 litres so should have plenty of hot water. It will heat it when not in use.
 
denmendez65 said:
2x150 litre geyser tanks with instal = some 12k.
Heat pump like Lupus = 25k.
Total cost = 37k

300 litre tank with integrated heat pump with installation = 36 to 40k
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What is the value of still having hot water from one geyser when the 300 L integrated setup packs up and the one guy who knows how to work on it is booked till next month?
 
denmendez65 said:
I guess so, but even with 3/4 people bathing one after the other I dont think you will finish 300 litres so should have plenty of hot water. It will heat it when not in use.
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That would finish 300l of water, average baths are about 75l of hot water, even a 5 minute shower can be 20l high flow showerheads make that even higher.
 
Tomtomtom said:
What is the value of still having hot water from one geyser when the 300 L integrated setup packs up and the one guy who knows how to work on it is booked till next month?
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Would have to phone them as I said. The man wanted ideas around heat pumps. I just offered him something that I was curious about when I was looking for solutions. The heatpump is on top of the tank so it's probably a cover off and you have access to everything and there is quite a few companies selling this stuff, so the install base should be quite large and fixers plenty.
 
denmendez65 said:
Would have to phone them as I said. The man wanted ideas around heat pumps. I just offered him something that I was curious about when I was looking for solutions. The heatpump is on top of the tank so it's probably a cover off and you have access to everything and there is quite a few companies selling this stuff, so the install base should be quite large and fixers plenty.
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Plus it does have the 2kw element as a backup, so if the heat pump side failed, use the element.
 
Lupus said:
That would finish 300l of water, average baths are about 75l of hot water, even a 5 minute shower can be 20l high flow showerheads make that even higher.
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Damn! Do people bath in damns and under victoria falls? This weekend my wifes friends came to sleep over (I had 3 ladies in the house) and 2 of them took baths and my wife a shower and the water was still hot for her. 150 litre geyser.

And this was morning bathing with the geyser not run at all the whole night. I guess it goes with individual habits but surely if 3 women could not defeat a 150 litre geyser they cant beat a 300 litre one :ROFL: .

I did delay bathing though, water was cold for me:(
 
DrJohnZoidberg said:
I currently have a Geyserwise system which has very good integration with my Home Assistant setup but I'm decommissioning the old evacuated tube system that came with the house as it's essentially useless when you have PV (not effective in winter and in summer I have plenty of excess PV). I want a heat pump system as it's just way more efficient and easier on the inverter and batteries.
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So in the vein of figuring out why you're asking about heat pumps in the first place - are you aware there are PV Geyserwise systems? Basically an MPPT and a combined DC/AC element. No evacuated tubes. The DC side does not load your inverter, but you can use excess AC from your inverter if need be (at 2 kW). Total available heating power is ~3 kW.

Also, it makes no sense to put geyser loads onto batteries under any circumstances. A geyser is a thermal battery, it should be fed directly from an MPPT (whether the excess from the one in your inverter, or via a dedicated unit.)

DrJohnZoidberg said:
The energy savings on heat pump units is wild compared to regular resistive elements.
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You don't need energy savings when you have excess solar, which you do (in the sunny season) as soon as you have 2 panels dedicated to a 150 L geyser, nevermind 4.

Panels are cheap and extremely low maintenance. Heat pumps are the opposite.
 
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DrJohnZoidberg said:
The energy savings on heat pump units is wild compared to regular resistive elements.
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Yes, but you also need to look into the initial outlay. Will your savings have a decent ROI, or will turning off the geyser until needed achieve the same?
 
Lupus said:
True, your water is basically hot from the cold tap :-P. Not like you can use it anyway with all that ecoli floating around.
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Theres no ecoli in the drakensberg. You get your water from the Vaal where all sorts of stuff flows into it.
 
denmendez65 said:
Damn! Do people bath in damns and under victoria falls? This weekend my wifes friends came to sleep over (I had 3 ladies in the house) and 2 of them took baths and my wife a shower and the water was still hot for her. 150 litre geyser.

And this was morning bathing with the geyser not run at all the whole night. I guess it goes with individual habits but surely if 3 women could not defeat a 150 litre geyser they cant beat a 300 litre one :ROFL: .

I did delay bathing though, water was cold for me:(
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Well if the average bathtub holds 100 to 150l itself, ours is about 175l or so and for some reason people seem to like filling it up. A 5m shower can be 20 to 40l of water, give a decent mix of hot and cold it's 10 to 20l used, some people don't even add cold, they're lizards.
 
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