A. O. Smith’s New 120V Warmth Pump Water Heater Permits You To Plug It Into A Customary Outlet

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A. O. Smith simply launched a 120V plug-in warmth pump water heater (HPWH), which is the second mannequin to reach on the mass market (the primary to market, Rheem, I reviewed right here). It’s an thrilling product with some progressive designs that enables many households to extra simply substitute their gasoline water heaters with warmth pumps. It makes use of nifty know-how to offer a lot of scorching water whereas nonetheless (miraculously) solely plugging into the identical commonplace 120-volt outlet the place you cost your cellphone.

How The 120V Model was Born

The thought for the 120V plug-in HPWH was born 5 years in the past. Producers and a big group of stakeholders got here collectively at a convention in California to dream up the concept of a HPWH that might plug into a typical outlet. That dream has now turn into actuality. The 120-volt warmth pump water heater is designed for same-day gasoline water heater replacements. A water heater that plugs into a typical outlet avoids having to run a brand new 240-volt line from {an electrical} panel to the water heater location, which might save a variety of money and time throughout set up.

However for the almost half of American houses which have an electrical water heater, this product shouldn’t be for you. Your own home already has 240 volts of electrical energy powering your water heater, so the 240-volt HPWH (that has been in the marketplace since 2009), is a greater possibility as a result of it has backup electrical resistance parts that may get better quicker in periods of excessive demand.

After the preliminary stakeholder and trade assembly 5 years in the past, A. O. Smith went to the drafting board to create a 120V HPWH. The corporate went by means of a protracted and rigorous product improvement course of and researched how folks use their water heaters and what they count on from them. A key job was to create a water heater that wouldn’t disappoint prospects by not producing sufficient scorching water, whereas on the identical time drawing solely as a lot vitality as a typical plug may present. One other problem was to create a water heater that was environment friendly sufficient it will save households cash even in areas the place electrical energy is dear and gasoline is affordable.

4 Similarities With The 240V HWPH

A. O. Smith’s 120-volt product improvement coincided with the following era of 240-volt HPWHs they have been constructing referred to as the Voltex AL (which I reviewed right here). The 120V model makes use of lots of the identical elements and has lots of the identical options of the Voltex AL which embody:

1) High water connections (which make it simple to switch a typical gasoline water heater)

2) Extraordinarily quiet operation at 45 decibels as a result of the water heater makes use of a blower relatively than a fan

3) Solely requiring 450 cubic toes of air to run effectively

4) Sensible connectivity and a straightforward to make use of app the place you may set your water heater to run throughout instances of cheaper electrical energy.

7 Variations From The 240V HWPH

However A. O. Smith designed its plug-in water heater with further options that enable it to perform on solely 120 volts of electrical energy. These embody:

1) Built-in sensible valve: A. O. Smith’s 120-volt HPWH has a sensible mixing valve that’s built-in into and contained in the water heater (which is totally different from Rheem’s which is on the skin with a canopy on it). This sensible valve is essential as a result of it permits the water heater to retailer water at a a lot larger temperature, normally twenty levels hotter than what’s going to really come out at your faucet. Storing water hotter means you’ll have extra scorching water (an estimated 32% extra for water 20 levels hotter), which is necessary if the water heater recovers extra slowly (which the 120-volt naturally does). Thus in the event you purchase a 50-gallon HPWH and warmth it to 140 levels (with an externally put in mixing valve), it may present as a lot scorching water as a 65-gallon water heater heated to the usual 120 levels. A. O. Smith’s sensible valve does this mechanically, so that you set the water temp you need and the water heater will warmth the water hotter after which combine all the way down to the setpoint temperature earlier than sending it to the house.

2) Steerage to upsize the tank two sizes: Warmth pumps warmth water slower than gasoline water heaters, so sizing is necessary. A. O. Smith (together with different producers) recommends that householders upsize their tank two sizes when going from a gasoline to a 120-volt HPWH. Similar to the blending valve, a much bigger tank will retailer way more scorching water lowering the chance {that a} family will ever run out (or in trade lingo “have a chilly water occasion”).  A. O. Smith has a helpful chart to indicate what upsizing seems to be like — a 30- to 40-gallon gasoline water heater must be upsized to a 66-gallon warmth pump, whereas a 50-gallon gasoline water heater must be upsized to an 80-gallon warmth pump. Consider, extra tank capability will imply you’ll be putting in a water heater that’s bigger than the one it’s changing. The 120-volt HPWHs are normally 6 toes tall (as a substitute of the usual 5 toes) and 24 inches (as a substitute of the usual 22 inches). I changed a 40-gallon gasoline with a 50-gallon 120-volt HPWH that I preserve at 140 levels and this has labored fantastic in my expertise. However the residence additionally has just one bathe with a really environment friendly showerhead.

3) Costlier: The added options and (at the moment) low manufacturing quantity make 120-volt HPWHs costlier (for instance the 50-gallon prices $2,159, the 66-gallon prices $2,594, and the 80-gallon prices $3,251 at Lowes) than the 240-volt HPWH (which generally prices between $1,600 and $1,900). This additional expense could possibly be effectively value it although, particularly if it permits you to do a same-day gas-to-heat-pump set up and saves you from having to run {an electrical} wire or upsize {an electrical} panel. All of A. O. Smith’s HPWHs additionally qualify for the 30% federal tax credit score and native utility rebates.

4) Decrease world warming potential (GWP) refrigerant: If the refrigerant in warmth pumps (and vehicles and fridges) escapes, it may contribute to world warming as present refrigerants entice way more warmth than CO2. However refrigerant GWP ranges are enhancing, and A. O. Smith has turn into the primary main water heater producer to make use of low GWP refrigerant utilizing the refrigerant R-513A on this 120-volt plug in warmth pump water heater. Kudos to the corporate for doing that.

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5) Electrical parts are smaller: Electrical water heaters warmth water like toasters warmth toast, with what are referred to as electrical resistance parts. 240-volt HPWHs have massive electrical resistance parts however don’t use them a lot, normally counting on their environment friendly warmth pumps to warmth water. The A. O. Smith 120-volt  HWPH has small 900-watt electrical resistance parts, in contrast to the Rheem 120-volt which doesn’t include parts. These 900-watt parts can’t present very a lot warmth and gained’t ever activate in regular operation. However they’re there for emergencies, like when temperatures are exterior of the warmth pump’s working vary of 37 – 120 levels or if for some motive the warmth pump have been to interrupt.

6) Appropriate for chilly climates: The truth that A. O. Smith’s 120-volt mannequin has small electrical parts means the corporate is making this product accessible all over the place, together with colder climates. Rheem, then again, hasn’t marketed its 120-volt HPWH in chilly climates as a result of it doesn’t have an electrical resistance backup. As you go additional north within the U.S., it’s extra possible that the water heater is put in within the residence in a utility closet or basement, so temperatures are unlikely to drop under the warmth pump’s working vary and in my humble opinion, you’re in all probability fantastic both with or with out parts. However these small parts add an additional peace of thoughts that the 120-volt will present scorching water even in excessive circumstances.

7) Decrease effectivity: Storing water at a warmer temperature (to ensure houses have sufficient of it) means the 120-volt HPWH is normally 20-25% much less environment friendly than its 240-volt counterpart (for the water heater nerds, the 120-volt has a 3.0 UEF whereas the 240-volt has a 3.8 or larger UEF). However 120-volt HPWHs are nonetheless 3X extra environment friendly than electrical resistance water heaters and 5X extra environment friendly than gasoline water heaters. So whereas it has barely decrease effectivity than one of the best HPWHs, the 120-volt continues to be a gamechanger in saving vitality and carbon emissions. A. O. Smith additionally believes the 120-volt will save on utility payments over gasoline in just about each a part of the nation, and this squares with the findings from the primary 120-volt subject examine performed by the Superior Water Heating Initiative (full disclosure — I work on this initiative), which discovered that 72% of houses saved on their utility payments in California which has a number of the highest electrical energy charges within the nation.

What does all this add as much as? A plug-in water heater that may work effectively in nearly any residence and local weather. A. O. Smith’s 120-volt HPWH, whereas not low-cost, is a testomony to good engineering and design that does the close to not possible; it produces and shops a lot of scorching water whereas utilizing hardly any vitality and solely plugging into a typical outlet. For the half of the U.S. trying to save cash on utility payments and 1 ton of CO2 emissions per 12 months, this product permits you to take action shortly and simply and in just about any local weather.