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Heat Pumps for Hot Water Heating
Heat Hot Water Efficiently and Economically
You probably know that a heat pump is the most efficient way to heat your home in winter; we can now provide a hot water heat pump that is the most efficient hot water heating method all year round. No need to change your lifestyle, no need to try and heat all your water at night – one hot water heat pump will easily supply all your hot water heating needs whatever the weather conditions.
- No backup required
- Operates at sub zero temperatures
- No panels or tubes on your roof
- Installed in a day
- No building consent needed
- Will fit any size or type of hot water cylinder
- Compare our prices
Did you know about 40% of an average home’s electricity use goes on water heating? For most families this converts to around $1,000.00 per year.
Using heat pump technology to heat your water is the new, low energy solution – costing much less than gas, diesel or straight electricity. One of our hot water heat pumps will save you hundreds of dollars a year.
How do they work?
A heat pump does not do any actual heating, it compresses a gas which makes it hot and this heat can be used to heat water, it is exactly the same principal that makes a bicycle pump hot when pumping up a tyre. For this reason a heat pump hot water system is far more efficient than conventional ways of heating water, in practice.
For every unit of electricity paid for you get another two or three free units, saving 65-80% of your hot water costs.
What will it save?
A hot water heat pump will cost from $3000 to install. If you use 4500kWh per year to heat water now, then the heat pump should save you around $500 per year (at 18 cents per kWh).
One study of a heat pump hot water system in Dunedin showed it produced nearly 2.5 times more heat than direct electric heating (saving 60% of the electricity). Manufacturers often claim heat pumps give three times the heat.
How is it fitted?
A hot water heat pump is available in three different ways:
By fitting to an existing hot water cylinder - by fitting an outdoor unit, a circulating pump and with some plumbing work this will provide the lowest priced hot water whatever the weather, from just $2999 fully installed. Suitable for all water pressures and cylinders up to 500 litres.
Fitting with a new hot water cylinder - from just $2395 (plus installation), (does not include a new cylinder)
For commercial or heavy usage with multiple cylinders, includes circulating water systems. Motels, hotels, bakeries, restaurants, schools, rest homes, laundries, dairy farms, hospitals, backpackers, camping grounds.
The potential for money and energy savings with hot water heat pumps are outstanding for large users. One system alone could save thousands of dollars a year yet cost less than $3500 to install
Compare a hot water heat pump to solar
Solar hot water is free, so how can a hot water heat pump compete? In actual fact solar hot water is anything but free, apart from the cost of supplying and installing the necessary equipment there are a considerable number of days in the year when backup is required - unless you like cold showers.
For almost any price between $4000 and $10000 solar hot water can be installed, if the property is suitable and subject to consent from the council (more cost), and frequently the roof panels can be unsightly. With a hot water heat pump it doesn't matter what size cylinder you have, it doesn't matter which way your roof is facing, it doesn't matter when you use hot water, it doesn't matter how much hot water you use, it mostly doesn't matter when you heat the water - you will save more money and energy than with an equivalent solar system.
Over a complete year the savings with solar will be anything from 30 to 80% of hot water costs, the actual figure will depend on various factors such as the size of collectors, number of users, your lifestyle and the volume of storage tanks - most people will save around 50-55% (according to government figures). A hot water heat pump will save 65-80% of hot water costs over a complete year, without any changes to your lifestyle, and invariably at considerably lower initial cost than solar. A heat pump system can be half the price of an equivalent solar system, and for most people a heat pump will actually save more energy and money.
Get quotes for solar systems, then give us a call for guaranteed savings, whatever the weather. Every size and type of hot water cylinder can be fitted with a heat pump, and it can easily be removed and refitted if you move house.
Day/night electricity
The principle of charging lower prices for electricity at night is to spread transmission loadings out over 24 hours. No energy is saved (in actual fact energy is often wasted with thermostats set too high) and for many people the actual monetary savings are quite small (some people end up paying more). There are two ways it is provided:
Single meter - For the privilege of having cheaper electricity at night the cost of the day rate is increased substantially. If you use half day rates and half night rates the savings are 10%. Install a hot water heat pump system, save over 30% and enjoy the convenience of single rate electricity so you can use low price hot water any time
Two meters - With two meters the item connected to the night rate can only be used at night, hence if your hot water is connected like this and you run out during the day, it will be a long wait until it's hot again. A hot water heat pump system will save a lot more money and provide much more flexibility and convenience.
With a Hot Water Heat Pump you can heat your water at a time most cost efficient to you and the heat retention of the cylinder is optimised. This differs from the night rate where you are locked into heating at night when the temperatures are lowest and therefore heating is less efficient.
How long will a hot water heat pump last?
We anticipate that the outdoor unit will last fifteen to twenty years, (a five year guarantee is provided as standard).
Hot water temperature and Legionella
The New Zealand Building Code G12 - 6.14.3 states:
“Irrespective of whether a mixing device is installed, the storage water heater control thermostat shall be set at a temperature of not less than 60°C to prevent the growth of Legionella bacteria.”
Legionella bacterium is naturally occurring in water and is dormant below 20°C. In this state no hazard is present as the amounts are of no consequence. The bacterium will multiply between 20°C and 43°C (peaking at 36°), and appears to be killed by copper, such as pipes or a cylinder.
In order to actually infect any person, quantities of the bacteria have to be inhaled via water droplets, such as a shower or cooling tower, and invariably only certain groups can inhale enough to catch the disease (the young, the elderly and smokers).
Laboratory tests have shown that legionella survives only a matter of hours in 50°C water, a matter of minutes in 60°C water, and a matter of seconds in 70°C water. Hence in a domestic situation with a heat pump as a water heater and a daily turnover of water in the cylinder, the chances of enough legionella bacteria multiplying during the short time the water in the cylinder is between 20°C and 43°C; and it not being killed and enough getting through to a shower and actually infecting someone who is susceptible, are negligible.
Perhaps one reason why 60°C is suggested as the minimum thermostat temperature is because standard thermostats can be inaccurate, perhaps with a spread of actual temperature plus or minus 5°C. So a thermostat set at 60°C could be storing water anywhere between 55 and 65. The thermostat fitted to a hot water heat pump is much more accurate, being within a degree or two of the set temperature.
for more information on the Legionella debate
We have:
Fully tested the product, visited the manufacturers and can offer all these features:
- Savings of 65-80% of hot water costs.
- Fully complies with all New Zealand building codes.
- Low cost hot water all day and every day.
- Low cost installation.
- Operates down to -15°C.
- Very quiet outdoor units.
- Ozone friendly refrigerant.
- Control panel displaying water temperature.
- Five year warranty.
- Quick recovery times
- Zero consent costs.
- Can be fitted to any size hot water cylinder.
- Operates with low, medium or mains pressure supplies.
- Can be combined with wetback.
- No unsightly roof panels.
- Easily removed and transferred to another property.
- Zero emissions.
Hot Water Heat Pump |
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| Model | Recommendations |
Capacity | Price |
| HWHP Sova |
Outdoor Unit / Heat Exchanger /Pump |
6.0kW | $2495.00 |
| HWHP Sova | 8.0kW | $2695.00 | |
| HWHP G12 (Phoenix) |
Double walled Heat Exchanger, inbuilt circulating pump |
5.0kW | $2995.00 |
| Thermass 250 |
250 Litre hot water cylinder with inbuilt hot water heat pump |
6.0kW | $3500.00 |
| Thermass 300 |
300 Litre hot water cylinder with inbuilt hot water heat pump
|
6.0kw | $3750.00 |
|
Hydros |
Commercial/ underfloor hot water heat pump,(single phase) | 11.9kw | $4995.00 |
If you want to know how best to heat hot water for your new or existing home, our knowledgeable and friendly staff are reading and waiting to discuss your hot water heating needs, and any other ideas or questions you have. For advice on hot water heat pumps give us a call today!