Heat Pumps, One for the engineers

[NewcastleFalcon]

Nissan were pioneers in the use of a heat pump cabin heater. EV's don't have access to the vast reservoir of waste heat produced by an internal combustion engine.

World's first EV power-saving cabin heater
A heat-pump cabin heater has been adopted for heating an electric vehicle (EV), using less power than conventional models. It greatly improves power consumption when the heater is being used. Nissan LEAF is the first mass-produced vehicle in the world to employ a heat-pump cabin heater.

https://www.nissan-global.com/EN/TECHNO ... eater.html

There is a little diagram courtesy of Nissan, always nice to have a few visuals



Regards Neil

PS Just dropping this link here to peruse it at my pleasure it is a bit more detail about the Nissan Leaf Heat Pump.
http://www.nissantechnicianinfo.mobi/ht ... ntrol.html

[NewcastleFalcon]

Audi's parent group VW are also heading the CO2 Heat Pump Way in their ev offerings.

https://r744.com/volkswagen-offering-r7 ... -vehicles/

German car maker Volkswagen said it has started offering a CO2 (R744) heat pump to supply heat and air conditioning in its electric vehicles, one of the first car makers to do so.

“All models of the new ID [Intelligent Design] like ID.3 and ID.4 are equipped with an R744 AC and heat pump,” said Christian Buhlmann, Head of Communications, Technology and Innovation, for the company.

In a heat pump providing both heat and AC in the fast-growing electric vehicles market, CO2’s thermodynamic properties offer a competitive advantage in terms of energy efficiency compared to other refrigerants. It is estimated to increase driving ranges of electric cars by up to 38%, according to Sanden International, which makes CO2 compressors for mobile air-conditioning systems.

Regards Neil

[NewcastleFalcon]

In the flesh Heat pumps. Group of Holiday Cottages Craster Harbour

Regards Neil

[Gibbo2286]

I wonder if once used for a while they'll become as horribly noisy as the air conditioners in some of the motels I've used in the USA.

[Dormouse]

The answer to that is yes. The better built units can be whisper quiet but inferior units with poor build quality and inferior specced parts all seem to end up rattley and noisy. Anyone who works on the top of buildings festooned with aircon cabinets will know exactly what I am talking about. I suspect that is why I was advised about noise levels when I enquired about installing air to air heat pumps at the local planning office.

[NewcastleFalcon]

They are as rare as leccy cars, so this thread can very well embrace I spy a Heat Pump before they get too popular

This if I am not mistaken is the lesser wall mounted variety

regards Neil

[Dormouse]

By pure chance I got this picture of a wall mounted heat pump on a pretty cottage between Arisaig and Mallaig

[NewcastleFalcon]

Steve gave this an airing on the energy matters thread but equally relevant to include it here. I've watched some of this chap's plumbing/building vids in the past, and he goes on a decent rant about Heat Pumps, and he does make some decent points.

Picks up on the points about noise mentioned above. New installations may be whisper quiet if they are of a decent quality, but he claimed eventually all fans get noisy...and potentially irritating for near neighbours.

Heat pumps got an airing on Newsnight as well last night.

Steve's posting is here

viewtopic.php?p=692637#p692637

and this is the vid



Regards Neil

[NewcastleFalcon]

Now, I think there are quite a few of us who find video presenters, and background music irritating. A fair bit is generated by content from over the pond.

Well this little video is about a heat pump solution, not in the easy well-insulated detached home but in several tower blocks in Roker and Monkwearmouth, which have been stripped of their gas boilers, and a ground source heat pump system installed.

It's an informative little presentation and will also be featured in episode 5/6 of Fully Charged new "Home Series" Videos currently being released this week.

..and what is the bonus you get with this little animation.....dulcet Ma'kem tones...



Regards Neil

[myglaren]

While I live in Makemland I'm still not altogether comfortable with it but Makem is still better than 'merikan.
At least she isn't shouty. Sounds like the one who used to answer the phones when I was renting from Gentoo.

I am flying in the face of environmental technology and having a new gas boiler fitted in three weeks - by a Gentoo heating engineer on his day off

[NewcastleFalcon]

Part of Fully Charged's Home Energy take on Heat Pumps, and the answer to todays pickled egg quiz question, with the video starting at the relevant bit.



REgards Neil

[Sloppysod]

According to this "FullyChargedPlus+" contribution, Heat pumps for homes are old hat and not efficient enough, and as for being environmentally friendly it depends on where your electricy from?

[NewcastleFalcon]

Very relevant to the last couple of posts on the Energy Matters Global and domestic thread Stu.

https://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/ ... 93#p699793

Interesting though and pricked my interest to find out more. If it works, and turns out to be simpler and cheaper than heat pumps, cheaper and simpler than gas boilers, and more effective, then the better mousetrap will have been made and paths will be beaten to the infra-red panel's door

You probably still have to have an immersion for hot water though

Regards Neil

[Dormouse]

A word of caution. We used infrared panels to heat the people not the volume of the Porch and there is 8" of insulation in the roof above them and Polystyrene sheets laid on Foamed Concrete in the floor. My typical overkill. The logs used for the walls are all 2" thick and every window and door is double glazed.
However, it is possible to sit in the Sitootery with the doors open in winter as long as there is no strong wind creating a draft. That is when all 3 need to be on - 2.1kw.
I did toy with electric floor heating (hence the foamed concrete) but the overhead panels worked out cheaper to buy and install.

The Porch is 2.1m x 4.0m and averages 2.3m height. Just under 20 cubic metres. We can get 20 - 23 degrees under the panels on the floor or chairs with outside temperatures around 3 degrees using one panel with doors mostly shut and no wind to speak of. Our floor is recycled tyre crumb made into tiles 20 mm thick, dark brown and so absorbs the infra red. Almost like a heated floor. When you are under the heaters you feel the warmth hitting you pleasantly - you don't feel like you are being baked.

The panels run at about 70-75 degrees and are not the glowing red heaters many people assume them to be.

[Datadogie]

I was a bit dubious, so I bought one 1200btu unit for my sitting room to replace my Storage heater. Two weeks in, I'm glad I did. I can now set optimum temperature for any time of the day or night. And also have a timer set up for morning and afternoon when I come home from work. My meter readings for last month and last month a year ago show 1/3rd of savings. I know not the best of comparisons, as I cannot remember the temperatures a year ago. I will now be buying two more units. Just a shame we need to use a f-gas engineer. If it was a Citroen or any car we can do the gas ourselves.