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Thursday, February 13, 2014
Are Air Source Heat Pumps a Threat to
Geothermal Heat Pump Suppliers?
Tom Konrad, Contributor
February 06, 2014 | 13 Comments
Last year, geothermal heat pump (GHP) manufacturers introduced new heat
pumps with break-through efficiency based on variable-speed compressor
technology. These manufacturers include Waterfurnace Renewable Energy
(TSX:WFI, OTC:WFIFF) and ClimateMaster, a division of LSB Industries
(NYSE:LXU).
Air Source and Ground Source
Variable speed compressor technology was not restricted to geothermal heat
pumps (also known as ground source heat pumps or geoexchange): It had
first found its way into what are often considered ground sources poor
cousins: air source heat pumps (ASHP).
Both types of heat pumps use a refrigeration cycle to draw heat from the
outside in winter to heat a building, and pull heat from the inside to cool it in
summer. GHPs use large loops of buried tubing to exchange heat with the
ground, while ASHPs use an above-ground fan and heat exchanger
assembly similar to the evaporator on a traditional whole house air
conditioner (see photo).
Before the advent of variable speed compressor technology, air source heat
pumps were only suitable in mild climates because heating performance fell
off rapidly at temperatures below 40F (see chart), while the near constant
temperature of the earth allowed GHPs to operate efficiently in any climate.
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Tom Konrad
Tom Konrad is a
private money
manager and
freelance writer focused on Peak Oil
and Climate Change as investment
themes. He manages portfolios for
individual clients and am co-
manager of the JPS Green
Economy Fund
(http://jpsgreeneconomyfund.com),...
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Now, the most efficient ASHP models only begin to lose significant heating
efficiency at 25F and still maintain significant heating capacity at 0F, a
change which has made them practical in most of the United States.
With variable speed technology, these units are now suitable for heating
climates where the temperature occasionally falls below 0F, although they
may require some form of back up heat. The improved technology has
meanwhile made the efficiency of the best air source heat pumps equivalent
to that of many GHPs, especially when used in less extreme climates.
Although even the best ASHPs are still much less efficient than the best
GHPs, the cost savings from dispensing with the ground loop and (in some
cases) air ducts mean that ASHPs are an economic option in many cases
where GHPs or conventional heating were previously the only viable options.
Air Source Heat Pumps In Practice
In a recent article, Marc Rosenbaum, director of engineering at South
Mountain Company on Marthas Vineyard in Massachusetts, says that nearly
every building he has worked on for the last several years has used ASHPs
almost exclusively.
There are caveats, of course. Rosenbaum works exclusively on very high
performance, super-insulated buildings. He also teaches a course on
designing net-zero energy buildings. And even with super-insulation, he
uses other heat sources in larger buildings.
Heating performance of a variable speed air-source heat pump (in this case
Mitsubishi hyper-heat) compared to traditional models. Source: Mitsubishi
Im in the process of my own retrofit of a 1930 farmhouse which I bought two
years ago. Ive spray-foamed the basement and attic as well as improved
the overall building envelope with air sealing, and expect to continue to make
envelope improvements going forward. I was able to have four Mitsubishi
ASHPs installed in the most important rooms without having to give up
interior space for ducting. This cost me about $12,000 after utility and tax
rebates and is saving me about $1,000 to $2,000 in annual energy costs. A
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comparable GHP system would have saved me $2,000 to $3,000 annually,
but would have cost about $30,000 after utility and tax rebates. The extra
$1,000 annual savings did not seem to me to justify the extra $20,000 in
cost, given that I expect to sell in less than ten years, and both systems
significantly boosted the homes value by adding air conditioning.
Alternative Energy Specialist Scott Lankhorst of Advanced Radiant Design in
Stone Ridge, New York, says that he does not see ASHPs and GHPs as
direct competitors. GHPs are typically only installed on homes of a
minimum square footage, with multiple rooms that need direct heat delivery.
This agrees with Rosenbaums finding that Compact superinsulated homes
in [many] climates can often be heated with a single zone unit in the
main space. As long as the doors to other rooms remain open, the
temperatures in those rooms will usually be within 2F of the [main space]."
Air Source Heat Pump Suppliers
Lankhorst says that the most efficient air source units are from Mitsubishi
(OTC:MSBHY) and Fujitsu. The latter are easier to install, but the Mitsubishi
systems can work with a Honeywell (NYSE:HON) wireless programmable
thermostat. This can be accessed via the web or mobile devices, which is
useful in a building with multiple units. After discovering the limited
programability of the factory controller for my Mitsubishi units, I installed the
Honeywell thermostats in addition to a thermostat for my boiler which I now
control them all through the same interface.
The Honeywell smartphone app for controlling my four Mitsubishi ASHPs and
oil-fired boiler.
Conclusion
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Control Technology
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While variable speed air source heat pumps can be competitive with
geothermal heat pumps in retrofit situations and smaller, better insulated
buildings and less extreme climates, GHPs remain the most efficient way to
heat and cool a building.
If super-insulated, small buildings ever become the standard way to build a
home, geothermal heat pump manufacturers such as Waterfurnace and LSB
may have something to fear from air source heat pumps. Fortunately for
GHP manufacturers, but unfortunately for the rest of us, that day is still a
long way off.
DISCLOSURE: Long LXU, WFIFF
This article was first published on the author's Green Stocks blog on
Forbes.com on January 14th and AltEnergy Stocks and was republished with
permission.
DISCLAIMER: Past performance is not a guarantee or a reliable indicator of
future results. This article contains the current opinions of the author and
such opinions are subject to change without notice. This article has been
distributed for informational purposes only. Forecasts, estimates, and certain
information contained herein should not be considered as investment advice
or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment
product. Information contained herein has been obtained from sources
believed to be reliable, but not guaranteed.
Read More Geothermal Energy News Here
13 COMMENTS REGISTER TO COMMENT
DENNIS HOUGHTON
February 10, 2014
Back in the bad ole days, @40 years, an engineer might greatly
over-design a HVAC system just to guarantee it would work in
the absolute worst case conditions. Electrical power was cheap
(too cheap to meter) and equipment and skilled labor were
relatively inexpensive. Reputation was more important than
cost.
Conditions are very different today. Reputations are built upon
cost control through energy management.
Resistance heat is a wise substitute for gross over-design in
any installation, particularly at the residential level.
Resistance heating can be augmented or even replaced by
alternate heat sources.
Living "off-grid" with a dependency upon a large electrical
machine poses a small irony in any case.
WARREN MCKENNA
February 10, 2014
Bob--Thanks for coming clean on your resistance heat use.
Unless you are talking about commercial systems it is common
for residential systems to utilize the resistance heat for normal
operation. Once you set that demand the power company has
to have the capacity in place to serve you. Your transformer
size is larger, your service is larger, your service panel is larger,
and that is primarily due to the 15 kW to 20 kW of resistance
heat that might hit the electric system. The point i'm trying to
make is that if you had gas backup then the power company
and you wouldn't have to invest in the capacity to serve that
resistance load for the few times in a hard winter that it might
get used. Someone has to invest in the electric capacity to
serve that potential load. The newer heat-pumps that use gas
have less of an impact on the grid as does your GSHP and they
cost 1/2 as much to install. Try going off grid with your GSHP
and its resistance heat and you will soon find its not possible.
BOB FREESTON
February 9, 2014
Warren--I have a resistive element in my GSHP which
supplements in the coldest weather. It is on infrequently on long
heat runs. I have an old farm house (150 years old) added on
to a number of times. I've upgraded insulation from poor to
mediocre. A modern building with reasonable insulation should
hardly use the supplement at all. It should still be included for
emergency back up. My electric is roughly 40% grid hydro and
most of the rest is wind I pay extra for. I also have a small solar
system on site. There are numerous solutions available, with
more to come.
WARREN MCKENNA
February 8, 2014
I might add Bob that these are Iowa winters. I wish it weren't
true but it is and it is by design.
These systems do little to discourage the building of new coal
and nuclear plants. In fact they may increase the need. "The
Red Queen Dilemma"
WARREN MCKENNA
February 8, 2014
@Bob, I'm not talking about poorly designed systems. We
meter over 30+ residential systems, including demand and
kWhr energy readings for every day. They all at some point
during the winter months utilize their resistance heat elements.
Some of this depends on consumer use of the thermostat. The
fact is, to be cost competitive designers and installers rely on
the resistive heat not only as backup but as part of the system
performance. If you don't believe me then every system you
install should have the resistive coils un-hooked and you might
find how your systems are designed.
BOB FREESTON
February 7, 2014
Ground Source Heat Pumps can use either closed or open
loops. Warren's comment about a closed loop loosing
effectiveness late in winter indicates a poorly designed system.
Also this would not occur in an open loop system. A standing
column should also avoid this. Florida and data center systems
need extra closed loop lengths because of the heavy
domination of cooling loads. Installation costs are sometimes
lowered by using existing wells, my system is based on this, or
ponds or lakes. Desuperheaters in the system now can supply
year round hot water on a separate compressor loop. The
water is almost free in the summer because it's being removed
from the house. In this region (upstate N Y) new houses are
going in as net zero with super insulation, PV on the roof driving
small GSHP loads. A 9 house development I'm familiar with
used insulated concrete forms on basement, first floor and up
second floor gable ends then blown cellulose or foam (I forget
which) for an R50 roof. The PV drives a Water Furnace 3 ton
system (their smallest) around 2 tons on variable speed.
JOHN DANGELO
February 7, 2014
Do you realize that many people are offering these heat pumps
coupled with solar modules?
Typically these system heat about 600 sq feet. This is a game
changer. You can install a heat pump that cools and heat a
space all run off solar energy. In many parts of the country this
will work quite well and not need a back up heat source,
especially with super insulated homes which should become
standard in the industry anyways! One company is coupling the
system to a battery bank which will provide power during a
power outage and yet still draw from the utility when needed.
Yes we do need to get off fossil fuels. Install a wood pellet stove
or a wood stove as a back up for the weather extremes. Cost
per MMBTU is generally my top consideration for heating and
cooling. Also when people talk GWHP they fail to mention that
the lactic bills god sup and the natural gas bill goes down. But
on balance a GWHP is at best an energy efficient measure but
at the end of the day for the money spend really does not save
as much as GWHP people claim.
I had a quote a few years back for a GWHP for my 1600 sq foot
house and it was about $30,000. I installed a solar hot water
heating system and I use a wood pellet stove as my back up.
The savings form the solar pays for the pellets so I truly heat
for free.
WARREN MCKENNA
February 7, 2014
The problem with current residential GSHP's is the electric heat
used to supplement and/or backup the units. Near the end of a
hard winter, due to ground saturation, they may be running
almost entirely on the electric resistance a majority of the time.
This contributes to peak demand and decreases utility load
factors. The best of both worlds would be a GSHP with Gas for
the supplemental and backup heat. I have done the research
however I wonder if the newer HP with Gas actually offers a
lower overall carbon footprint than a GSHP with resistance
elements would.
V. BRUCE STENSWICK
February 7, 2014
In response to Mr. Kelly, I am not certain that GSHPs are any
more efficient. You would have to monitor the temperature of
the incoming fluid, not the ground temperature. The ground
temperature is more likely 50, but the incoming fluid after
several minutes of run time is considerably higher. I have
monitored it on my system, but I do not remember the incoming
temperature, I think it was in the 80's, maybe 90's. You also
have to factor in the extra electricity to run the pumps for the
loop field. That being said, I still believe they are the best
solution to get off of fossil fuels in cold climates. I live in a
Minneapolis suburb.
V. BRUCE STENSWICK
February 7, 2014
First, ground source heat pumps should be less expensive than
they are. There is a shortage of installers and bore hole drillers
such that prices are a bit high. When my GSHP was installed in
20001, vertical bore holes were $1000 each. The last time I
checked a few years ago, they were $2500 each. Second, if
you live in a cold climate and you work on the assumption that
we have to get off of fossil fuels completely, GSHP's are still the
best choice for home heating. In cold climates air source heat
pumps are often used in conjunction with high efficiency
furnaces, with the ASHP handling the heating load when it is 25
or above outside and the furnace taking over when it is colder.
This is not a path to get off of fossil fuels. Also, any
comparisons to fossil fuels should be ignored if the person
evaluating the systems understands climate change. It would
not matter if the fossil fuel companies were giving away natural
gas, we have to quit burning it. Conservation and energy
efficiency are important, but in cold climates, you have to have
a heat source.
ANGUS CAMPBELL
February 7, 2014
Dennis: I like your way of thinking. Efficiency and conservation
should and must take precedent over all other developments.
This is the only way renewables will overtake fossil fuel based
energy systems.
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DENNIS HOUGHTON
February 6, 2014
A decade ago, electric motors consumed almost 60% of all the
electrical power produced in the world. The efficiencies
introduced by rapid improvement and drop in cost in Variable
Frequency Drives (VFD) have reduced that number to less than
50% today. Datacenters have taken up some of that lost
consumption and the utilities are grateful.
Variable Motor applications such as fans, pumps and
compressors can operate properly with as much as a 50% drop
in power consumption. Twenty years ago the energy would
have been wasted with valves and dampers, now it is simply
not used. System performance was usually improved,
especially in HVAC and water pumping systems. Ground
source heat pumps benefit from the same VFD technology so it
is not really a competitive edge for air source systems. Total
system cost remains the air source systems competitive edge.
JEFF KELLY
February 6, 2014
Yea, but what about summer? The real efficiency of GSHP is
being able to reject heat to a 70F ground temperature rather
than a 100F air temperature.
Perhaps the general point of this article is that improvements in
ASHP's have taken some of the thrunder away from GSHP's.
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