If your home or business has a heat pump for heating and cooling purposes, you may be able to use the same pump to heat the property’s water. Heat water pumps create significant energy savings over conventional (electrical) water heating systems.
There are two kinds of heat water pumps:
- Stand-alone air-source heat pumps
- Geothermal heat pumps
For homeowners, the geothermal heat pump option is the more suitable choice. Stand-alone air-source heat pumps (or retrofitted alternatives which work with the more typical water tank) are more suitable for commercial environments, as they require a high indoor room temperature to operate.
Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of a geothermal heat pump installation:
Pros
- Energy efficiency (pulls heat from the ground in a circulating tube/water-based configuration)
- Low operating costs (as compared to conventional, combustion-based water heating systems)
- No exhaust waste (geothermal heat does not use a combustible fuel to create heat, so exhaust waste isn’t produced)
- Quiet system with small above-ground footprint (pipes are buried underground and the indoor mechanism runs quietly)
Cons
- May require a back-up system (geothermal ability affected by extreme temperatures)
- Expertise is required (not all contractors are qualified to install a geothermal system, including the buried pipe “loop field”)
- Site unsuitability (the piping set-up requires sufficient and appropriate land for installation, as well as an absence of interference from obstacles such as tree roots, ponds, and wells)
- Cost of installation (higher upfront costs that are later recouped through energy savings)
Have questions about heat pumps? Your water heating bill? Call GPH Mechanical – your Okanagan HVAC expert. We are happy to drop by and provide you with information on energy efficient alternatives for your property’s heating, air conditioning, refrigeration, and ventilation needs. We sell and service for residential and commercial customers.