Note that these basements aren’t really cold. The study didn’t measure the long-term effect on basement temperature over the course of a whole winter, but that would be interesting to see. After a four-hour recovery period, the average basement temperature was 0.1 ☏ lower than it was before the cycle. For the 9 homes overall, the average temperature drop during a cycle was 2.3 ☏. Then the temperature recovers pretty quickly.
In terms of the effect on basement temperature, the data above show a drop of about 4 ☏ near the floor as the heat pump water heat operates. Changes in air temperature near heat pump water heater (Fig. The ceiling sensor shows the furnace cycles most clearly-the choppiness of the curve, especially between about 1 am and 6 pm. The floor sensor shows the water heater cycles most clearly-the big dips coincident with the water heater cycles. One interesting feature of the temperature data is what they show about the cycling of the water heater and the furnace. The lower part shows the air temperature in the basement at the four temperature sensors. In this case, there were three cycles during that 28 hour period. The graph below shows the cycles of the heat pump water heater at the top. There’s a lot in it! Effect on basement temperature in the field studyįirst, the field study monitored the basement temperature at four heights at a distance of 5 to 10 feet from the heat pump water heater.
I encourage you to download and read the whole study if you’re interested in this topic (link below). Customer satisfaction: Survey on experience and satisfaction with installation and performance.Space heating impacts: Quantify changes in basement temperature and estimate HPWH’s impact on space heating and cooling operation.Economics: Calculate cost and energy savings compared to an electric resistance water heater.HPWH Performance: Characterize measured energy factor and effective capacity at different operating modes.The Slipstream researchers monitored water temperature (hot and cold), water flow rates, electricity consumption, inlet air temperature, and indoor and outdoor temperatures.
All of the water heaters were 50 gallon models from Bradford White, Rheem, and AO Smith.
Seven were in the main part of the basement two were in a separate room. The heat pump water heaters were all in partially conditioned basements. The 9 homes in the field study were in rural Michigan.
The other part was a survey that included the 9 field study homes plus another 72 homes, for 81 total. The homes in the studyįirst, note that I’m going to show data below from two different parts of the study. I’m going to discuss only one here: the effect on air temperature. Titled Installed Performance of Heat Pump Water Heaters in a Cold Climate, the paper covers many facets of heat pump water use. A new paper by Slipstream is just out with some results that may interest you. Are you considering replacing your current water heater with a heat pump water heater but worried that it’ll freeze your basement in winter? Well, enough homes have this new technology that we now have some data on this topic.