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Thread: Air Conditioning question

  1. #1
    AzDon
    Havasu got a 22% electric rate increase this year and because the summer A/C season is coming up, I've got some questions about availability of devices that I believe would boost efficiency of my home a/c unit and cut electricity usage.
    I'm wondering if liquid-to-liquid heat exchangers exist for a/c retrofit that either replace the a/c's condenser and fan or work in tandem with it. I think I could run a loop with 2 of these. The first unit would pre-heat the cold water going to my water heater. The second would have my pool water circulated thru it. If anyone knows availability and cost on such a system, I'm interested!

  2. #2
    Sleek-Jet
    I know there are some companies that sell Heat Pump/AC combo units. The heat pump cools the air before it goes to the AC, therefore making the AC work less. Works the other way in the winter, cuts down on heating costs as well.

  3. #3
    Mandelon
    Check with TPC, that's his specialty.

  4. #4
    rrrr
    Don, you are looking for a "ground source heat pump" It uses water as a heat rejection medium instead of air. They have a domestic water preheater, and the condenser water loop is buried underground. The loop piping is a serpentine affair to get maximum exposure to the ground heat sink.
    If you ran the thing to your pool it could be used in the winter only. Heck, my pool gets so hot in the summer I have been thinking about installing a heat pump with a water exchanger evaporator so I could cool it in the summer and heat it in the winter.
    They cost around $4K, plus the installation costs of burying the condenser piping.
    I can build one for a lot cheaper, but it'll have to wait until I retire....
    Trane website (http://www.trane.com/Residential/Pro...SourcePage.asp)

  5. #5
    spectratoad
    I just put one of the ground source heat pumps in one our armories here in Reno. It is a much larger scale than a house but works the same.
    The cost of our power savings have dropped I am told. I have not seen past use compared to now.
    It is a pretty cool system. Out loops are installed vertically in 300 foot deep wells. There are 19 of them. You can find alot of info on the net about it.

  6. #6
    AzDon
    I'm picturing something FAR simpler and more compact! Visualize a 55 gallon drum with the cooler water going thru it and containing freon coils. First drum would be cold water feed for my water heater, and the second drum would have pool water circulated past the second stage of coils. I'm thinking the freon would be so cool after these loops that the condenser would actually ADD heat if it was after this loop!

  7. #7
    rrrr
    Originally posted by AzDon
    I'm picturing something FAR simpler and more compact! Visualize a 55 gallon drum with the cooler water going thru it and containing freon coils. First drum would be cold water feed for my water heater, and the second drum would have pool water circulated past the second stage of coils. I'm thinking the freon would be so cool after these loops that the condenser would actually ADD heat if it was after this loop!
    Yeah, you could do that. The compressor discharge (hot gas line) would go to the heat exchangers, and then back to the condenser coil in the outdoor unit.

  8. #8
    summerlove
    For chrissake Don, you can't post something rationale like this!
    Send Dave Kahn (Kahn Job (has many v-drives) an email at Dkahnjob@aol.com That's his business and he'll be happy to help. Tell him I sent you! Good luck.
    Now a question I have - in the summer, I turn off the water heater and the water still comes out so HOT it's almost unbearable. Any way to make that cooler????

  9. #9
    RiverRatMike
    I live here in Havasu and my electric bill never changed. Are you sure about that increase?

  10. #10
    TrojanDan
    Originally posted by RiverRatMike
    I live here in Havasu and my electric bill never changed. Are you sure about that increase?
    I was just about to post the same thing. I think the 22% increase went through late Spring/early Summer last year and was connected to the sale of the electric utility company.

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