What is solar heat pump?
A solar heat pump is a water heating system, that uses sunlight and surrounding heat to heat water. It is basically a hybrid heating system. It is an amalgamation of a heat pump water heater and a solar water heater.
In this blog, we will cover the following topics:
- What is a solar heat pump?
- Why do you need a solar heat pump?
- How it works?
Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
What is a solar heat pump?
A solar heat pump is a water heater uses both sunlight and surrounding heat to make hot water. It combines a heat pump and a solar water heater. This heating system is eco-friendly and efficient, reducing energy use and helping the environment. By using solar energy and heat pump technology, it can work well even when there is little sunlight.
There can be different set ups of a solar assisted heat pumps, which will be discussed in detail later in this blog.
Why do you need a hybrid heat pump water heater?
The reason for coming up with a hybrid solar water heating system is because both heat pumps and solar water heaters have some drawbacks.
A heat pump will not work efficiently if there is a problem of electricity cutoffs in your area.
A solar water heater is highly dependent on sunlight. So, if you live in ana area where there is less sunlight, specially during the winters, it is inefficient. Also, a solar water heater gives only a fixed amount of hot water.
A hybrid heat pump water heater utilizes the merits of both the heating systems. By bringing these two systems, it diminishes the drawbacks of these water heating systems.
A heat pump system is installed in places where there is a need of hot water all the time. Here are some of the examples:
- Hotel Industry: Hot water should be available always for the guests. Hotel owners cannot say that it will take time to heat water. In this case, a hybrid water heater is very beneficial.
- Hostels: Specifically for those hostels which are premium. Hot water should be available all the time. In this case as well, a solar heat pump is required.
- Hospitals: Hospitals may require hot water anytime. There should be supply of hot water always. Therefore, a solar heat pump water heater is very beneficial in this case.
Apart from these, a hybrid heat pump water heater can also be helpful in residential houses as well. Families who require hot water anytime of the day, this system would be of use for them. If they want a water heating system which will be cheap in the long run, but require hot water anytime of the day, solar heat pump should be the ideal choice.
How a hybrid water heater works?
A hybrid heat pump water heater can be setup in two ways. They are:
- A full set of both heat pump and solar water heater. The two individual products are just merged.
- Unlike the first one, only one tank is there. Along with the tank, a solar panel and a compressor is attached.
Both the systems work in the same way.
A solar heat pump works as follows:
- The solar water heater starts working first. It uses sunlight to heat the water stored in the tank.
- This hot water will be supplied to the heat pump. If the water is already heated to the required temperature, the heat pump will send the water to your bathroom directly. Hence no electricity consumed in this process.
- If the temperature of the hot water produced by the solar water heater is less than it is required, the heat pump will start working. It will compress the heat to increase the temperature. This water will be supplied to your bathroom.
But which kind of hybrid heat pump is better?
Hybrid heat pump water heater installation a full set of both products can be costlier. But they have the capability to work individually, if the other one fails. On the other hand, if there is only on tank installed, and one system fails, the entire system will fail.
So, the hybrid heating system cost of two full sets may be costlier, but it is suggested that you opt for the first option, as it reduces the risk. There will always be supply of hot water, even if there is a failure in one of the systems.
Conclusion
Both heat pumps and solar water heaters have their pros and cons. By combining these two systems, the drawbacks reduce. Depending on your requirements, you need to decide whether you should invest in a solar heat pump or not.
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