Installation of a heat air pump. What is an air heat pump - device and capabilities. Heating with a heat pump: system cost and operating costs

Let's try to explain in the language of a simple layman what is " HEAT PUMP«:

Heat pump - This special device, which combines a boiler, a source of hot water supply and an air conditioner for cooling. The main difference heat pump from other heat sources is the possibility of using renewable low-grade energy taken from environment(land, water, air, Wastewater) to cover heat needs during heating season, heating water for hot water supply and cooling the house. Therefore, the heat pump provides a highly efficient energy supply without gas and other hydrocarbons.

Heat pump is a device that works like a reverse chiller, transferring heat from a low temperature source to a higher temperature environment, such as your home's heating system.

Each heat pump system has the following main components:

- primary circuit - closed circulation system, which serves to transfer heat from the ground, water or air to the heat pump.
- secondary circuit - closed system, which serves to transfer heat from the heat pump to the heating, hot water or ventilation system (inlet heating) in the house.

How a heat pump works similar to the operation of an ordinary refrigerator, only in reverse. Refrigerator extracts heat from food products and transfers it outside (to the radiator placed on its back wall). A heat pump, on the other hand, transfers the heat accumulated in the soil, earth, reservoir, groundwater or air into your home. Like a refrigerator, this energy-efficient heat generator has the following main elements:

- a condenser (a heat exchanger in which heat is transferred from the refrigerant to the elements of the room heating system: low-temperature radiators, fan coil units, warm floor, radiant heating/cooling panels);
- throttle (a device that serves to reduce pressure, temperature and, as a result, close the heating cycle in the heat pump);
- evaporator (heat exchanger in which heat is taken from a low-temperature source to a heat pump);
- compressor (a device in which the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant vapor increases).

Heat pump arranged in such a way as to make the heat move in different directions. For example, during the heating of a house, heat is taken from some cold external source (land, river, lake, outdoor air) and transferred to the house. For cooling (air conditioning) of the house, heat is taken from more than warm air in the house and transferred outside (discarded). In this respect, a heat pump is similar to a conventional hydraulic pump, which pumps liquid from the lower level to the upper level, while in ordinary conditions fluid always moves from top to bottom.

Today, the most common are vapor compression heat pumps. The principle of their action is based on two phenomena: firstly, the absorption and release of heat by the liquid when the state of aggregation changes - evaporation and condensation, respectively; secondly, the change in the temperature of evaporation (and condensation) with a change in pressure.

In the evaporator of a heat pump, there is a working fluid - a refrigerant that does not contain chlorine - it is under low pressure and boils at a low temperature, absorbing heat from a low-grade source (for example, soil). Then the working fluid is compressed in the compressor, which is driven by an electric or other motor, and enters the condenser, where high pressure condenses at more high temperature, giving off the heat of condensation to a heat receiver (for example, the heat carrier of the heating system). From the condenser, the working fluid through the throttle again enters the evaporator, where its pressure decreases, and the refrigerant boiling process begins anew.

Heat pump is able to take heat from various sources, for example, air, water, soil. Also, it can release heat into air, water or ground. A warmer environment that receives heat is called a heat sink.

Heat pump X/Y uses medium X as heat source and Y heat carrier. A distinction is made between pumps "air-to-water", "soil-to-water", "water-to-water", "air-to-air", "soil-to-air", "water-to-air".

Heat pump "ground-water":

Air-to-water heat pump:

The regulation of the heating system using heat pumps in most cases is carried out by turning it on and off at the signal of a temperature sensor that is installed in the receiver (when heating) or the source (when cooling) of heat. The heat pump is usually tuned by changing the cross section of the throttle (thermal expansion valve).

Like a refrigeration machine, a heat pump uses mechanical (electrical or other) energy to implement a thermodynamic cycle. This energy is used to drive the compressor (modern heat pumps up to 100 kW are equipped with highly efficient scroll compressors).

(transformation ratio or efficiency) of a heat pump is the ratio of the amount of thermal energy that the heat pump produces to the amount electrical energy that it consumes.

COP conversion factor depends on the temperature level in the evaporator and condenser of the heat pump. This value varies for various heat pump systems in the range from 2.5 to 7, that is, for 1 kW of electrical energy consumed, the heat pump generates from 2.5 to 7 kW of thermal energy, which is beyond the power of either a condensing gas boiler or any other generator heat.

Therefore, it can be argued that heat pumps produce heat using minimal amount expensive electrical energy.

The energy saving and efficient use of a heat pump primarily depends on from where you decide to draw low-temperature heat, secondly - from the method of heating your house (water or air) .

The fact is that the heat pump works as a “transshipment base” between two thermal circuits: one heating at the inlet (on the evaporator side) and the second heated at the outlet (condenser).

All types of heat pumps are characterized by a number of features that you need to remember when choosing a model:

Firstly, a heat pump justifies itself only in a well-insulated house. The more warm house, the greater the benefit when using this device. As you understand, it is not entirely reasonable to heat the street with a heat pump, collecting crumbs of heat from it.

Second, than more difference temperatures of heat carriers in the inlet and outlet circuits, the lower the heat conversion coefficient (COP), that is, the lower the saving of electrical energy. That is why more profitable connection of the heat pump to low-temperature heating systems. First of all, we are talking about heating with a water-heated floor or infrared water ceiling or wall panels. But the more hot water the heat pump prepares for the outlet circuit (radiators or shower), the less power it develops and the more electricity it consumes.

Thirdly, in order to achieve greater benefits, the operation of a heat pump with an additional heat generator is practiced (in such cases, one speaks of using bivalent heating scheme ).

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Heat pumps for home heating: pros and cons

1. Features of heat pumps
2. Types of heat pumps
3. Geothermal type heat pumps
4. Advantages and disadvantages of heat pumps

One of the highly efficient ways of heating a country house is the use of heat pumps.

The principle of operation of heat pumps is based on the extraction of thermal energy from the soil, reservoirs, groundwater, and air. Heat pumps for home heating do not have a harmful effect on the environment. How similar heating systems look like can be seen in the photo.

Such an organization of home heating and hot water supply has been possible for many years, but it has only recently begun to spread.

Features of heat pumps

The principle of operation of such devices is similar to refrigeration equipment.

Heat pumps take heat, accumulate it and enrich it, and then transfer it to the heat carrier. A condenser is used as a heat generating device, and an evaporator is used to recover low potential heat.

The constant increase in the cost of electricity and the presentation of stringent requirements for environmental protection is the reason for the search for alternative methods of obtaining heat for heating houses and heating water.

One of them is the use of heat pumps, since the amount of heat energy received is several times higher than the electricity consumed (for more details: “Economical heating with electricity: pros and cons”).

If we compare heating with gas, solid or liquid fuels, with heat pumps, then the latter will be more economical. However, the very arrangement of the heating system with such units is much more expensive.

Heat pumps consume the electricity needed to run the compressor. Therefore, this type of building heating is not suitable if there are frequent problems with power supply in the area.

Heating a private house with a heat pump can have different efficiency, its main indicator is the conversion of heat - the difference between the electricity consumed and the heat received.

The difference between the temperature of the evaporator and the condenser is always present.

The larger it is, the lower the efficiency of the device. For this reason, when using a heat pump, you need to have a considerable source of low potential heat. Based on this, it follows that the larger the size of the heat exchanger, the lower the energy consumption. But at the same time, devices with large dimensions have a much higher cost.

Heating with a heat pump is found in many developed countries.

Moreover, they are also used to heat multi-apartment and public buildings - this is much more economical than the usual heating system in our country.

Types of heat pumps

These devices can be used over a wide temperature range. Usually they work normally at temperatures from -30 to + 35 degrees.

The most popular are absorption and compression heat pumps.

The latter of them use mechanical and electrical energy to transfer heat. Absorption pumps are more complex, but they are able to transfer heat using the source itself, thereby significantly reducing energy costs.

As for heat sources, these units are divided into the following types:

• air;
• geothermal;
• secondary heat.

Air source heat pumps for heating take heat from the surrounding air.

Geothermal heating systems use the thermal energy of the earth, underground and surface waters (for more details: "Geothermal heating: the principle of operation with examples"). Secondary heat pumps take energy from sewage, central heating - these devices are mainly used for heating industrial buildings.

This is especially beneficial if there are sources of heat that must be disposed of (read also: "Using the heat of the earth to heat the house").

Heat pumps are also classified according to the types of coolant, they can be air, soil, water, as well as their combinations.

Geothermal heat pumps

Heating systems that use heat pumps are divided into two types - open and closed. Open structures are designed to heat the water passing through the heat pump. After the coolant passes through the system, it is discharged back into the ground.

Such a system works ideally only if there is a significant amount of clean water, given the fact that its consumption will not harm the environment and will not conflict with current legislation. Therefore, before using a heating system that receives energy from groundwater, you should consult with the relevant organizations.

Closed systems are divided into several types:

1. Horizontal geothermal systems mean laying the collector in a trench below the freezing depth of the soil.

   This is approximately 1.5 meters. The collector is laid in rings in order to reduce the earthwork area to a minimum and provide a sufficient circuit in a small area (read: "Geothermal heat pumps for heating: the principle of the system design").

   This method is only suitable if there is a sufficient free area of ​​​​the site.

2. Geothermal structures with a vertical arrangement provide for the placement of a collector in a well up to 200 meters deep. This method is used when it is not possible to locate the heat exchanger over a large area, which is necessary for a horizontal well.

   Also, geothermal systems with vertical wells are made in the case of an uneven landscape of the site.

3. Geothermal water systems involve placing a collector in a reservoir at a depth below the freezing level. Laying is done in rings. Such systems cannot be used if the reservoir is small or not deep enough.

   It must be borne in mind that if the reservoir freezes at the level where the collector is located, the pump will not be able to work.

Heat pump air water - features, details on the video:

Advantages and disadvantages of heat pumps

Heating a country house with a heat pump has both positive and negative sides. One of the main advantages of heating systems is environmental friendliness.

Also, heat pumps are economical, unlike other heaters that consume electricity. Thus, the amount of generated thermal energy is several times greater than the consumed electricity.

Heat pumps are characterized by increased fire safety, they can be used without creating additional ventilation.

Since the system has a closed circuit, financial expenses during operation are minimized - you have to pay only for the consumed electricity.

The use of heat pumps also allows you to cool the room in the summer - this is possible due to the connection of fan coils to the collector and the "cold ceiling" system.

These devices are reliable, and the control of the work processes is fully automatic. Therefore, the operation of heat pumps does not require special skills.

The compact dimensions of the devices are also important.

The main disadvantage of heat pumps:

• high cost and significant installation costs. It is unlikely that you will be able to design heating with a heat pump with your own hands without special knowledge. It will take more than one year for the investment to pay off;
• the service life of the devices is approximately 20 years, after which it is highly likely that a major overhaul will be required.

  This, too, will cost dearly;

• the price of heat pumps is several times higher than the cost of gas, solid or liquid fuel boilers. A lot of money will have to be paid for drilling wells.

But on the other hand, heat pumps do not require regular maintenance, as is the case with many other heating appliances.

Despite all the advantages of heat pumps, they are still not widely used. This is due, first of all, to the high cost of the equipment itself and its installation. It will be possible to save money only if you create a system with a horizontal heat exchanger, if you dig trenches yourself, but this will take more than one day. As for the operation, the equipment is very profitable.

Heat pumps are an economical way to heat buildings without harming the environment.

They cannot be widely used due to the high cost, but this may change in the future. In developed countries, many owners of private houses use heat pumps - there the government encourages concern for the environment, and the cost of this type of heating is low.

A thermal ground or geothermal pump is one of the most energy efficient alternative energy systems. Its operation does not depend on the time of year and ambient temperature, as for an air-to-air pump, it is not limited by the presence of a reservoir or a well with groundwater near the house, like a water-to-water system.

The ground-to-water heat pump, which uses the heat taken from the soil to heat the coolant in the heating system, has the highest and constant efficiency, as well as the energy conversion coefficient (COP).

Its value is 1:3.5-5, that is, each kilowatt of electricity spent on the operation of the pump is returned by 3.5-5 kilowatts of thermal energy. Thus, the heating power of a soil pump makes it possible to use it as the only source of heat even in a house with a large area, of course, when installing a unit of appropriate power.

A submersible soil pump requires equipment of a soil circuit with a circulating coolant to extract the heat from the earth.

There are two options for its placement: a horizontal soil collector (a system of pipes at a shallow depth, but a residually large area) and a vertical probe placed in a well from 50 to 200 m deep.

The efficiency of heat exchange with the soil significantly depends on what kind of soil lies - moisture-filled soil gives off much more heat than, for example, sandy soil.

The most common are pumps operating on the principle of ground-water, in which the coolant stores the energy of the soil and, as a result of passing through the compressor and heat exchanger, transfers it to water as a heat carrier in the heating system. Prices for soil pumps of this type correspond to their high efficiency and performance.

Submersible Soil Pump

Any complex high-tech units, such as GRAT ground pumps, as well as ground source heat pumps, require the attention of professionals.

Heat pump

We offer a full range of services for the implementation, installation and maintenance of heating and hot water systems based on heat pumps.

To date, European countries and China are especially popular among the producing countries of such units on the market.

The most famous models of heat pumps: Nibe, Stiebel Eltron, Mitsubishi Zubadan, Waterkotte. The domestic ground heat pump is no less in demand.

Our company prefers to work only with equipment from reliable European manufacturers: Viessmann and Nibe.

The heat pump extracts the accumulated energy from various sources - ground, artesian and thermal waters - waters of rivers, lakes, seas; purified industrial and domestic wastewater; ventilation emissions and flue gases; soil and the earth's interior - transfers and converts into energy at higher temperatures.

Heat pump – highly economical, environmentally friendly technology for heating and comfort

Thermal energy exists all around us, the problem is how to extract it without spending significant energy resources.

Heat pumps extract the accumulated energy from various sources - ground, artesian and thermal waters - waters of rivers, lakes, seas; purified industrial and domestic wastewater; ventilation emissions and flue gases; soil and the earth's interior - transfers and converts into energy at higher temperatures.

The choice of the optimal heat source depends on many factors: the size of the energy needs of your home, the installed heating system, the natural conditions of the region where you live.

The device and principle of operation of the heat pump

The heat pump functions like a refrigerator - just the other way around.

The refrigerator transfers heat from the inside to the outside.

The heat pump transfers the heat stored in the air, soil, subsoil or water into your home.

The heat pump consists of 4 main units:

Evaporator,

Capacitor,

Expansion valve (discharge valve-
throttle, lowers pressure),

Compressor (increases pressure).

These units are connected by a closed pipeline.

The piping system circulates a refrigerant that is a liquid in one part of the cycle and a gas in the other.

Earth's interior as a deep heat source

The earth's interior is a free heat source that maintains the same temperature all year round. The use of the heat of the earth's interior is an environmentally friendly, reliable and safe technology for providing heat and hot water to all types of buildings, large and small, public and private. The level of investment is quite high, but in return you will receive a safe to operate, with minimal maintenance requirements, an alternative heating system with the longest possible service life. Heat conversion coefficient (see. page 6) is high, reaches 3. The installation does not require much space and can be implemented on a small plot of land. The volume of restoration work after drilling is insignificant, the impact of the drilled well on the environment is minimal. There is no impact on the groundwater level as groundwater is not consumed. Thermal energy is transferred to the convection water heating system and used for hot water supply.

Ground heat - nearby energy

Heat accumulates in the surface layer of the earth during the summer.

The use of this energy for heating is advisable for buildings with high energy costs. The greatest amount of energy is extracted from soil with a high moisture content.

Ground source heat pump

Water heat sources

The sun heats water in the seas, lakes and other water sources.

Solar energy accumulates in water and bottom layers. Rarely the temperature drops below +4 °C. The closer to the surface, the more the temperature varies throughout the year, while at depth it is relatively stable.

Heat pump with water heat source

The heat transfer hose is laid on the bottom or in the bottom soil, where the temperature is still slightly higher,
than water temperature.

It is important that the hose be fitted with a weight to prevent
hose rises to the surface. The lower it lies, the lower the risk of damage.

The water source as a heat source is very efficient for buildings with relatively high heat demand.

Groundwater heat

Even groundwater can be used to heat buildings.

This requires a drilled well, from where water is pumped into the heat pump.

When using ground water, high demands are placed on its quality.

Ground water heat pump as heat source

After passing through the heat pump, water can be transported to a drainage channel or a well. Such a solution may lead to an undesirable decrease in the groundwater level, as well as reduce the operational reliability of the installation and have a negative impact on nearby wells.

Now this method is used less and less.

Groundwater can also be returned to the ground also through partial or complete infiltration.

Such a good heat pump

Heat conversion coefficient The higher the efficiency of the heat pump, the more profitable it is. Efficiency is determined by the so-called heat conversion coefficient or thermal transformation coefficient, which is the ratio of the amount of energy generated by the heat pump to the amount of energy spent on the heat transfer process. For example: The temperature transformation coefficient is 3. This means that the heat pump delivers 3 times more energy than it consumes. In other words, 2/3 is received "for free" from the heat source. How to make a heat pump for home heating with your own hands: the principle of operation and schemes The higher the energy demand of your home, the more money you save. Note The value of the temperature transformation coefficient is affected by the presence/ignorance in the calculations of the parameters of additional equipment (circulation pumps), as well as various temperature conditions. The lower the temperature distribution, the higher the temperature transformation coefficient becomes, heat pumps are most efficient in heating systems with low temperature characteristics.

When selecting a heat pump for your heating system, it is unprofitable to orient power indicators of the heat pump for the maximum power requirements (to cover the energy consumption in the heating circuit on the coldest day of the year). Experience shows that the heat pump should generate about 50-70% of this maximum, the heat pump should cover 70-90% (depending on the heat source) of the total annual energy demand for heating and hot water supply. At low external temperatures, the heat pump is used with the available boiler equipment or the peak closer, which the heat pump is equipped with.

Comparison of the costs of installing a heating system for an individual house based on a heat pump and a liquid fuel boiler.

For analysis, let's take a house with an area of ​​​​150-200 sq.m.

The most common variant of a modern country house for permanent use today.
The use of modern building materials and technologies ensures the amount of heat loss of the building at the level of 55 W/sq.m of floor.
To cover the total needs for thermal energy spent on heating and hot water supply of such a house, it is necessary to install a heat pump or boiler with a thermal output of approximately 12 kW / h.
The cost of the heat pump itself or the oil-fired boiler is only a fraction of the costs that must be incurred to commission the heating system as a whole.

The following is a far from complete list of the main associated costs for the installation of a turnkey heating system based on an oil-fired boiler, which are absent in the case of a heat pump:

air vent filter, fixed package, safety group, burner, boiler piping system, weather-compensated automatic control panel, emergency electric boiler, fuel tank, chimney, boiler.

All this in total is at least 8000-9000 euros. Taking into account the need to arrange the boiler room itself, the cost of which, taking into account all the requirements of the supervisory authorities, is several thousand euros, we come to a conclusion that is paradoxical at first glance, namely, the practical comparability of the initial capital costs when installing a turnkey heating system based on a heat pump and a liquid fuel boiler.

In both cases, the cost is close to 15 thousand euros.

Given the following undeniable advantages of a heat pump, such as:
Profitability. With the cost of 1 kW of electricity 1 ruble 40 kopecks, 1 kW of thermal power will cost us no more than 30-45 kopecks, while 1 kW of thermal energy from the boiler will cost 1 ruble 70 kopecks (with the price of diesel fuel 17 rubles / l);
Ecology. Environmentally friendly heating method for both the environment and people in the room;
Safety. There is no open flame, no exhaust, no soot, no smell of diesel fuel, no gas leakage, no fuel oil spill.

There are no fire hazardous storages for coal, firewood, fuel oil or diesel fuel;

Reliability. A minimum of moving parts with a high resource of work. Independence from the supply of furnace material and its quality. Virtually maintenance free. The service life of the heat pump is 15 - 25 years;
Comfort. The heat pump operates silently (no louder than a refrigerator);
Flexibility. The heat pump is compatible with any circulating heating system, and the modern design allows it to be installed in any room;

An increasing number of owners of individual houses choose a heat pump for heating both in new construction and when upgrading an existing heating system.

Heat pump device

The near-surface technology of using low-potential thermal energy with the help of a heat pump can be considered as some kind of technical and economic phenomenon or a real revolution in the heat supply system.

Heat pump device. The main elements of a heat pump are the evaporator, compressor, condenser and flow regulator connected by a pipeline - a choke, expander or swirl tube (Fig. 16).

Schematically, a heat pump can be represented as a system of three closed circuits: in the first, external, a heat sink circulates (a heat carrier that collects the heat of the environment), in the second - a refrigerant (a substance that evaporates, taking away the heat of the heat sink, and condenses, giving off heat to the heat sink) , in the third - a heat sink (water in the heating and hot water supply systems of the building).

16. Heat pump device

The external circuit (collector) is a pipeline laid in the ground or in water, in which an antifreeze liquid circulates. It should be noted that both natural heat (outside air; heat of ground, artesian and thermal waters; waters of rivers, lakes, seas and other non-freezing natural reservoirs) and technogenic origin (industrial discharges, treatment facilities, heat from power transformers and any other waste heat).

The temperature required for the operation of the pump is usually 5-15 .

The second circuit, where the refrigerant circulates, has built-in heat exchangers - an evaporator and a condenser, as well as devices that change the pressure of the refrigerant - a throttle spraying it in the liquid phase (a narrow calibrated hole) and a compressor compressing it already in the gaseous state.

Working cycle. The liquid refrigerant is forced through the throttle, its pressure drops, and it enters the evaporator, where it boils, taking away the heat supplied by the collector from the environment.

Further, the gas into which the refrigerant has turned is sucked into the compressor, compressed and, heated, is pushed into the condenser. The condenser is the heat dissipating unit of the heat pump: here the heat is received by the water in the heating circuit system. The gas is then cooled and condensed in order to be again depressurized in the expansion valve and returned to the evaporator. After that, the work cycle is repeated.

In order for the compressor to work (maintain high pressure and circulation), it must be connected to electricity.

But for every kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed, the heat pump produces 2.5-5 kilowatt-hours of thermal energy.

Heat pump for heating: principle of operation and advantages of use

This ratio is called the transformation ratio (or heat conversion ratio) and serves as an indicator of the efficiency of the heat pump.

The value of this value depends on the difference between the temperature levels in the evaporator and the condenser: the greater the difference, the smaller it is. For this reason, the heat pump should use as much of the low-grade heat source as possible without trying to cool it down too much.

Types of heat pumps.

Heat pumps come in two main types - closed and open circuit.

Open circuit pumps they use water from underground sources as a heat source - it is pumped through a drilled well into a heat pump, where heat exchange takes place, and the cooled water is discharged back into the underwater horizon through another well.

This type of pump is beneficial in that groundwater maintains a stable and fairly high temperature all year round.

Closed circuit pumps there are several types: vertical and g horizontal(Fig.17).

Pumps with a horizontal heat exchanger have a closed external circuit, the main part of which is dug horizontally into the ground, or laid along the bottom of a nearby lake or pond.

The depth of the pipes underground in such installations is up to a meter. This method of obtaining geothermal energy is the cheapest, but its use requires a number of technical conditions that are not always available in the developed area.

The main one is that the pipes should be laid so as not to interfere with the growth of trees, agricultural work, so that there is a low probability of damage to underwater pipes during agricultural or other activities.

Rice. 17. Surface geothermal system with heat exchange

Pumps with vertical heat exchanger include an external contour dug deep into the ground - 50-200 m.

This is the most efficient type of pump and produces the cheapest heat, but it is much more expensive to install than the previous types. The benefit in this case is due to the fact that at a depth of more than 20 meters, the temperature of the earth is stable all year round and is 15-20 degrees, and it only grows with increasing depth.

Air conditioning with heat pumps. One of the important qualities of heat pumps is the ability to switch from heating mode in winter to air conditioning mode in summer: only fan coil units are used instead of radiators.

A fancoil is an indoor unit into which a heat or coolant is supplied and air driven by a fan, which, depending on the water temperature, is either heated or cooled.

Includes: heat exchanger, fan, air filter and control panel.

Since fan coil units can operate both for heating and for cooling, several piping options are possible:
- S2 - pipe - when water plays the role of heat and coolant and their mixing is allowed (and, as an option, a device with an electric heater and a heat exchanger that works only for cooling);
- S4 - pipe - when the coolant (for example, ethylene glycol) cannot be mixed with the coolant (water).

The power of fan coil units for cold ranges from 0.5 to 8.5 kW, and for heat - from 1.0 to 20.5 kW.

They are equipped with low-noise (from 12 to 45 dB) fans with up to 7 rotation speeds.

Perspectives. The widespread use of heat pumps is hampered by insufficient public awareness. Potential buyers are frightened by rather high initial costs: the cost of the pump and installation of the system is $ 300-1200 per 1 kW of required heating power. But a competent calculation convincingly proves the economic feasibility of using these installations: investments pay off, according to rough estimates, in 4-9 years, and heat pumps serve for 15-20 years before major repairs.

This autumn, there has been an aggravation in the network about heat pumps and their use for heating country houses and summer cottages. In a country house that I built with my own hands, such a heat pump has been installed since 2013. This is a semi-industrial air conditioner that can effectively work for heating at outdoor temperatures down to -25 degrees Celsius. It is the main and only heating device in a one-story country house with a total area of ​​72 square meters.

2. Briefly recall the background. Four years ago, a plot of 6 acres was bought in a garden partnership, on which, with my own hands, without involving hired labor, I built a modern energy-efficient country house. The purpose of the house is the second apartment, located in nature. Year-round, but not permanent operation. Required maximum autonomy in conjunction with simple engineering. In the area where the SNT is located, there is no main gas and you should not count on it. There remains imported solid or liquid fuel, but all these systems require complex infrastructure, the cost of construction and maintenance of which is comparable to direct heating with electricity. Thus, the choice was already partly predetermined - electric heating. But here a second, no less important point arises: the limitation of electrical capacities in the garden partnership, as well as rather high electricity tariffs (at that time - not a “rural” tariff). In fact, 5 kW of electric power has been allocated to the site. The only way out in this situation is to use a heat pump, which will save on heating by about 2.5-3 times, compared with the direct conversion of electrical energy into heat.

So let's move on to heat pumps. They differ in where they take heat from and where they give it away. An important point, known from the laws of thermodynamics (8th grade of high school) - a heat pump does not produce heat, it transfers it. That is why its COP (energy conversion factor) is always greater than 1 (that is, the heat pump always gives off more heat than it consumes from the network).

The classification of heat pumps is as follows: "water - water", "water - air", "air - air", "air - water". Under the "water" indicated in the formula on the left is meant the removal of heat from the liquid circulating coolant passing through pipes located in the ground or a reservoir. The efficiency of such systems practically does not depend on the season and ambient temperature, but they require expensive and time-consuming earthworks, as well as the availability of sufficient free space for laying a soil heat exchanger (on which, subsequently, anything will grow poorly in summer, due to freezing of the soil) . The "water" indicated in the formula on the right refers to the heating circuit located inside the building. It can be either a system of radiators or liquid underfloor heating. Such a system will also require complex engineering work inside the building, but it also has its advantages - with the help of such a heat pump, you can also get hot water in the house.

But the category of air-to-air heat pumps looks the most interesting. In fact, these are the most common air conditioners. While working for heating, they take heat from the outdoor air and transfer it to the air heat exchanger located inside the house. Despite some drawbacks (serial models cannot operate at ambient temperatures below -30 degrees Celsius), they have a huge advantage: such a heat pump is very easy to install and its cost is comparable to conventional electric heating using convectors or an electric boiler.

3. Based on these considerations, Mitsubishi Heavy duct semi-industrial air conditioner, model FDUM71VNX, was chosen. As of autumn 2013, a set consisting of two blocks (external and internal) cost 120 thousand rubles.

4. The outdoor unit is installed on the facade on the north side of the house, where there is the least wind (this is important).

5. The indoor unit is installed in the hall under the ceiling, from which, with the help of flexible soundproof air ducts, hot air is supplied to all living spaces inside the house.

6. Because the air supply is located under the ceiling (it is absolutely impossible to organize the supply of hot air near the floor in a stone house), it is obvious that you need to take the air on the floor. To do this, with the help of a special box, the air intake was lowered to the floor in the corridor (in all interior doors, overflow grilles were also installed in the lower part). Operating mode - 900 cubic meters of air per hour, due to constant and stable circulation, there is absolutely no difference in air temperature between the floor and ceiling in any part of the house. To be precise, the difference is 1 degree Celsius, which is even less than when using wall-mounted convectors under windows (with them, the temperature difference between floor and ceiling can reach 5 degrees).

7. In addition to the fact that the indoor unit of the air conditioner, due to the powerful impeller, is able to drive large volumes of air around the house in recirculation mode, one should not forget that people need fresh air in the house. Therefore, the heating system also acts as a ventilation system. Through a separate air duct from the street, fresh air is supplied to the house, which, if necessary, is heated (during the cold season) using automation and a channel heating element.

8. Distribution of hot air is carried out through these grilles located in the living rooms. It is also worth paying attention to the fact that there is not a single incandescent lamp in the house and only LEDs are used (remember this point, this is important).

9. Waste "dirty" air is removed from the house through the hood in the bathroom and in the kitchen. Hot water is prepared in a conventional storage water heater. In general, this is a fairly large expense item, because. well water is very cold (between +4 and +10 degrees Celsius depending on the time of year) and one might reasonably notice that one can use solar collectors to heat water. Yes, you can, but the cost of investing in infrastructure is such that for this money you can heat water directly with electricity for 10 years.

10. And this is "TsUP". Air source heat pump master and main controller. It has various timers and simple automation, but we use only two modes: ventilation (during the warm season) and heating (during the cold season). The built house turned out to be so energy efficient that the air conditioner in it was never used for its intended purpose - to cool the house in the heat. LED lighting played a big role in this (heat transfer from which tends to zero) and very high-quality insulation (it's no joke, after arranging the lawn on the roof, we even had to use a heat pump this summer to heat the house - on days when the average daily temperature dropped below + 17 degrees Celsius). The temperature in the house is maintained year-round at least +16 degrees Celsius, regardless of the presence of people in it (when there are people in the house, the temperature is set to +22 degrees Celsius) and the supply ventilation never turns off (because laziness).

11. The meter for technical electricity metering was installed in the fall of 2013. That is exactly 3 years ago. It is easy to calculate that the average annual consumption of electrical energy is 7000 kWh (in fact, this figure is slightly lower now, because in the first year the consumption was high due to the use of dehumidifiers during finishing work).

12. In the factory configuration, the air conditioner is capable of heating at an ambient temperature of at least -20 degrees Celsius. To work at lower temperatures, refinement is required (in fact, it is relevant when operating even at a temperature of -10, if the humidity is high outside) - installing a heating cable in a drainage pan. This is necessary so that after the defrosting cycle of the outdoor unit, the liquid water has time to leave the drain pan. If she does not have time to do this, then ice will freeze in the pan, which will subsequently squeeze out the frame with the fan, which will probably lead to the breaking of the blades on it (you can see photos of the broken blades on the Internet, I almost encountered this myself because . did not put down the heating cable immediately).

13. As I mentioned above, LED lighting is used everywhere in the house. This is important when it comes to air conditioning a room. Let's take a standard room in which there are 2 lamps, 4 lamps in each. If these are 50 watt incandescent lamps, then in total they consume 400 watts, while LED lamps will consume less than 40 watts. And all energy, as we know from the physics course, eventually turns into heat anyway. That is, incandescent lighting is such a good medium-power heater.

14. Now let's talk about how a heat pump works. All it does is transfer heat energy from one place to another. This is how refrigerators work. They transfer heat from the refrigerator to the room.

There is such a good riddle: How will the temperature in the room change if you leave the refrigerator plugged into the outlet with the door open? The correct answer is that the temperature in the room will rise. For a simple understanding, this can be explained as follows: the room is a closed circuit, electricity flows into it through the wires. As we know, energy eventually turns into heat. That is why the temperature in the room will rise, because electricity enters the closed circuit from the outside and remains in it.

A bit of theory. Heat is a form of energy that is transferred between two systems due to temperature differences. In this case, thermal energy is transferred from a place with a high temperature to a place with a lower temperature. This is a natural process. Heat transfer can be carried out by conduction, thermal radiation or by convection.

There are three classical aggregate states of matter, the transformation between which is carried out as a result of a change in temperature or pressure: solid, liquid, gaseous.

To change the state of aggregation, the body must either receive or give off thermal energy.

During melting (transition from a solid to a liquid state), thermal energy is absorbed.
During evaporation (transition from a liquid to a gaseous state), thermal energy is absorbed.
During condensation (transition from a gaseous state to a liquid state), thermal energy is released.
During crystallization (transition from a liquid to a solid state), thermal energy is released.

The heat pump uses two transient modes in its operation: evaporation and condensation, that is, it operates with a substance that is either in a liquid or in a gaseous state.

15. The refrigerant R410a is used as the working fluid in the heat pump circuit. It is a fluorocarbon that boils (changes from liquid to gas) at very low temperatures. Namely, at a temperature of - 48.5 degrees Celsius. That is, if ordinary water boils at a temperature of +100 degrees Celsius at normal atmospheric pressure, then R410a freon boils at a temperature almost 150 degrees lower. Moreover, at a very negative temperature.

It is this property of the refrigerant that is used in the heat pump. By targeted measurement of pressure and temperature, it can be given the desired properties. Either it will be evaporation at ambient temperature with the absorption of heat, or condensation at ambient temperature with the release of heat.

16. This is what the heat pump circuit looks like. Its main components are compressor, evaporator, expansion valve and condenser. The refrigerant circulates in a closed circuit of the heat pump and alternately changes its state of aggregation from liquid to gaseous and vice versa. It is the refrigerant that transfers and transfers heat. The pressure in the circuit is always excessive compared to atmospheric pressure.

How it works?
The compressor sucks in the low pressure cold refrigerant gas coming from the evaporator. The compressor compresses it under high pressure. The temperature rises (the heat from the compressor is also added to the refrigerant). At this stage, we obtain a gaseous refrigerant of high pressure and high temperature.
In this form, it enters the condenser, blown with colder air. The superheated refrigerant gives up its heat to the air and condenses. At this stage, the refrigerant is in a liquid state, under high pressure and at an average temperature.
The refrigerant then enters the expansion valve. There is a sharp decrease in pressure in it, due to the expansion of the volume that the refrigerant occupies. The decrease in pressure leads to partial evaporation of the refrigerant, which in turn reduces the temperature of the refrigerant below ambient temperature.
In the evaporator, the pressure of the refrigerant continues to decrease, it evaporates even more, and the heat necessary for this process is taken from the warmer outside air, which is then cooled.
The fully gaseous refrigerant enters the compressor again and the cycle is completed.

17. I'll try to explain again in a simpler way. The refrigerant boils already at a temperature of -48.5 degrees Celsius. That is, relatively speaking, at any higher ambient temperature, it will have excess pressure and, in the process of evaporation, will take heat from the environment (that is, street air). There are refrigerants used in low-temperature refrigerators, their boiling point is even lower, down to -100 degrees Celsius, but it cannot be used to operate a heat pump to cool a room in the heat due to very high pressure at high ambient temperatures. R410a refrigerant is a kind of balance between the ability of the air conditioner to work both for heating and cooling.

Here, by the way, is a good documentary film shot in the USSR and telling about how a heat pump works. I recommend.

18. Can any air conditioner be used for heating? No, not any. Although almost all modern air conditioners work on R410a freon, other characteristics are no less important. Firstly, the air conditioner must have a four-way valve that allows you to switch to “reverse”, so to speak, namely, to swap the condenser and evaporator. Secondly, please note that the compressor (it is located on the lower right) is located in a thermally insulated casing and has an electric crankcase heater. This is necessary in order to always maintain a positive oil temperature in the compressor. In fact, at an ambient temperature below +5 degrees Celsius, even in the off state, the air conditioner consumes 70 watts of electrical energy. The second, most important point - the air conditioner must be inverter. That is, both the compressor and the impeller electric motor must be able to change performance during operation. This is what allows the heat pump to work efficiently for heating at outdoor temperatures below -5 degrees Celsius.

19. As we know, on the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit, which is the evaporator during heating operation, intensive evaporation of the refrigerant occurs with the absorption of heat from the environment. But in the street air there are water vapors in a gaseous state, which condense, or even crystallize on the evaporator due to a sharp drop in temperature (the street air gives up its heat to the refrigerant). And intensive freezing of the heat exchanger will lead to a decrease in the efficiency of heat removal. That is, as the ambient temperature decreases, it is necessary to “slow down” both the compressor and the impeller in order to ensure the most efficient heat removal on the evaporator surface.

An ideal heat pump for heating only should have a surface area of ​​the external heat exchanger (evaporator) several times the surface area of ​​the internal heat exchanger (condenser). In practice, we return to the very balance that the heat pump must be able to work both for heating and cooling.

20. On the left, you can see the external heat exchanger almost completely covered with frost, except for two sections. In the upper, not frozen, section, freon still has a sufficiently high pressure, which does not allow it to effectively evaporate with the absorption of heat from the environment, while in the lower section it is already overheated and can no longer take heat from the outside. And the photo on the right gives an answer to the question why the external unit of the air conditioner was installed on the facade, and not hidden from view on a flat roof. It is because of the water that needs to be diverted from the drainage pan in the cold season. It would be much more difficult to drain this water from the roof than from the blind area.

As I already wrote, during heating operation at a negative temperature outside, the evaporator on the outdoor unit freezes over, water from the outdoor air crystallizes on it. The efficiency of a frozen evaporator is noticeably reduced, but the air conditioner electronics automatically controls the heat removal efficiency and periodically switches the heat pump to the defrost mode. In fact, the defrost mode is a direct conditioning mode. That is, heat is taken from the room and transferred to an external, frozen heat exchanger in order to melt the ice on it. At this time, the fan of the indoor unit runs at minimum speed, and cool air comes out of the air ducts inside the house. The defrost cycle usually lasts 5 minutes and occurs every 45-50 minutes. Due to the high thermal inertia of the house, no discomfort is felt during defrosting.

21. Here is a table of heat output for this heat pump model. Let me remind you that the nominal energy consumption is just over 2 kW (current 10A), and the heat transfer ranges from 4 kW at -20 degrees outside, up to 8 kW at a street temperature of +7 degrees. That is, the conversion factor is from 2 to 4. It is how many times the heat pump saves energy compared to the direct conversion of electrical energy into heat.

By the way, there is another interesting point. The resource of the air conditioner when working for heating is several times higher than when working for cooling.

22. Last fall, I installed the Smappee electric energy meter, which allows you to keep statistics on energy consumption on a monthly basis and provides a more or less convenient visualization of the measurements taken.

23. Smappee was installed exactly one year ago, in the last days of September 2015. It also attempts to show the cost of electricity, but does so based on manually set rates. And there is an important point with them - as you know, we raise electricity prices 2 times a year. That is, for the presented measurement period, tariffs changed 3 times. Therefore, we will not pay attention to the cost, but calculate the amount of energy consumed.

In fact, Smappee has problems with the visualization of consumption graphs. For example, the shortest column on the left is the consumption for September 2015 (117 kWh). something went wrong with the developers and for some reason there are 11, not 12 columns on the screen for a year. But the total consumption figures are calculated accurately.

Namely, 1957 kWh for 4 months (including September) at the end of 2015 and 4623 kWh for the whole of 2016 from January to September inclusive. That is, a total of 6580 kWh was spent on ALL the life support of a country house, which was heated all year round, regardless of the presence of people in it. Let me remind you that in the summer of this year for the first time I had to use a heat pump for heating, and for cooling in the summer it did not work even once in all 3 years of operation (except for automatic defrost cycles, of course). In rubles, at current tariffs in the Moscow region, this is less than 20 thousand rubles a year, or about 1,700 rubles a month. Let me remind you that this amount includes: heating, ventilation, water heating, stove, refrigerator, lighting, electronics and appliances. That is, it is actually 2 times cheaper than the monthly payment for an apartment in Moscow of the same area (of course, excluding maintenance fees, as well as fees for major repairs).

24. And now let's calculate how much money the heat pump saved in my case. We will compare with electric heating, using the example of an electric boiler and radiators. I will count at pre-crisis prices, which were at the time of the installation of the heat pump in the fall of 2013. Now heat pumps have risen in price due to the collapse of the ruble, and the equipment is all imported (the leaders in the production of heat pumps are the Japanese).

Electric heating:
Electric boiler - 50 thousand rubles
Pipes, radiators, fittings, etc. - another 30 thousand rubles. Total materials for 80 thousand rubles.

Heat pump:
Channel air conditioner MHI FDUM71VNXVF (outdoor and indoor unit) - 120 thousand rubles.
Air ducts, adapters, thermal insulation, etc. - another 30 thousand rubles. Total materials for 150 thousand rubles.

Do-it-yourself installation, but in both cases it is about the same in time. Total "overpayment" for a heat pump compared to an electric boiler: 70 thousand rubles.

But that's not all. Air heating using a heat pump is at the same time air conditioning in the warm season (that is, air conditioning still needs to be installed, right? So we add at least another 40 thousand rubles) and ventilation (mandatory in modern sealed houses, at least another 20 thousand rubles).

What do we have? "Overpayment" in the complex is only 10 thousand rubles. It is still at the stage of putting the heating system into operation.

And then the operation begins. As I wrote above, in the coldest winter months the conversion factor is 2.5, and in the off-season and summer it can be taken equal to 3.5-4. Let's take the average annual COP equal to 3. Let me remind you that 6,500 kWh of electrical energy is consumed in a house per year. This is the total consumption of all electrical appliances. Let's take for simplicity of calculations at a minimum that the heat pump consumes only half of this amount. That is 3000 kWh. At the same time, on average, for the year he gave 9000 kWh of thermal energy (6000 kWh "dragged" from the street).

Let's translate the transferred energy into rubles, assuming that 1 kWh of electrical energy costs 4.5 rubles (average day/night tariff in the Moscow region). We get 27,000 rubles of savings, compared with electric heating only for the first year of operation. Recall that the difference at the stage of putting the system into operation was only 10 thousand rubles. That is, already for the first year of operation, the heat pump SAVED me 17 thousand rubles. That is, it paid off in the first year of operation. At the same time, let me remind you that this is not a permanent residence, in which the savings would be even greater!

But do not forget about the air conditioner, which specifically in my case was not required due to the fact that the house I built turned out to be over-insulated (although a single-layer aerated concrete wall is used without additional insulation) and it simply does not heat up in the summer in the sun. That is, we will throw off 40 thousand rubles from the estimate. What do we have? In this case, I began to SAVE on the heat pump not from the first year of operation, but from the second. It's not a big difference.

But if we take a water-to-water heat pump or even an air-to-water heat pump, then the figures in the estimate will be completely different. That is why an air-to-air heat pump offers the best price/performance ratio on the market.

25. And finally, a few words about electric heaters. I was tormented by questions about all sorts of infrared heaters and nano-technologies that do not burn oxygen. I will answer briefly and to the point. Any electric heater has an efficiency of 100%, that is, all electrical energy is converted into heat. In fact, this applies to any electrical appliances, even an electric light bulb gives off heat exactly in the amount in which it received it from the outlet. If we talk about infrared heaters, then their advantage lies in the fact that they heat objects, not air. Therefore, the most reasonable application for them is heating on open verandas in cafes and at bus stops. Where there is a need to transfer heat directly to objects / people, bypassing air heating. A similar story about the burning of oxygen. If somewhere in the brochure you see this phrase, you should know that the manufacturer is holding the buyer for a sucker. Combustion is an oxidation reaction, and oxygen is an oxidizing agent, that is, it cannot burn itself. That is, this is all the nonsense of amateurs who skipped physics lessons at school.

26. Another option for saving energy with electric heating (whether by direct conversion or using a heat pump) is to use the heat capacity of building envelopes (or a special heat accumulator) to store heat using a cheap night electric tariff. That's what I'll be experimenting with this winter. According to my preliminary calculations (taking into account the fact that next month I will pay the village electricity tariff, because the building is already registered as a residential building), even despite the increase in electricity tariffs, next year I will pay for the maintenance of the house less than 20 thousand rubles (for all consumed electrical energy for heating, water heating, ventilation and equipment, taking into account the fact that the house is maintained at a temperature of about 18-20 degrees Celsius all year round, regardless of whether there are people in it).

What is the result? A heat pump in the form of a low-temperature air-to-air conditioner is the easiest and most affordable way to save on heating, which can be doubly important when there is a limit on electrical power. I am completely satisfied with the installed heating system and do not experience any discomfort from its operation. In the conditions of the Moscow region, the use of an air source heat pump fully justifies itself and allows you to recoup the investment no later than in 2-3 years.

By the way, do not forget that I also have Instagram, where I publish the progress of work almost in real time -

A heat pump is a universal device that functionally combines the characteristics of an air conditioner, a water heater and a heating boiler. This device does not use conventional fuel, its operation requires renewable sources from the environment - the energy of air, soil, water.

Therefore, a heat pump today is the most cost-effective unit, since its operation does not depend on the cost of fuel, it is also environmentally friendly, since the heat source is not electricity or combustion products, but natural heat sources.

For a better understanding of how a heat pump works for heating a house, it is worth remembering the principle of operation of a refrigerator. Here the working substance evaporates, giving off cold. And in the pump, on the contrary, it condenses and produces heat.

How a heat pump works

The entire process of the system is presented in the form of a Carnot cycle - named after the inventor. It can be described as follows. The coolant passes through the working circuit - air, ground, water, their combinations , from where it is sent to the 1st heat exchanger - the evaporation chamber. Here it transfers the accumulated heat to the refrigerant circulating in the internal circuit of the pump.

The principle of operation of a heat pump for heating a house

The liquid refrigerant enters the evaporation chamber, where low pressure and temperature (5 0 C) convert it into a gaseous state. The next stage is the transition of gas to the compressor and its compression. As a result, the temperature of the gas rises sharply, the gas passes into the condenser, here it exchanges heat with the heating system. The cooled gas turns into a liquid, and the cycle repeats.

Advantages and disadvantages of heat pumps

The operation of heat pumps for heating a house can be controlled by means of specially installed temperature controllers. The pump automatically turns on when the medium temperature drops below the set value and turns off if the temperature exceeds the set point. Thus, the device maintains a constant temperature in the room - this is one of the advantages of the devices.

The advantages of the device are its efficiency - the pump consumes a small amount of electricity and environmental friendliness, or absolute safety for the environment. The main advantages of the device:

• Reliability. The service life exceeds 15 years, all parts of the system have a high working resource, power surges do not harm the system.
• Safety. No soot, no exhaust, no open flames, no gas leakage.
• Comfort. The operation of the pump is silent, climate control and an automatic system, the operation of which depends on weather conditions, help to create coziness and comfort in the house.
• Flexibility. The device has a modern stylish design, it can be combined with any home heating system.
• Versatility. It is used in private, civil construction. Because it has a wide power range. Due to which it can provide heat to rooms of any size - from a small house to a cottage.

The complex structure of the pump determines its main drawback - the high cost of equipment and its installation. To install the device, it is necessary to carry out earthworks in large volumes.

Heat pumps - classification

The operation of a heat pump for heating a house is possible in a wide temperature range - from -30 to +35 degrees Celsius. The most common devices are absorption (they transfer heat through its source) and compression (the circulation of the working fluid occurs due to electricity). The most economical absorption devices, however, they are more expensive and have a complex design.

Classification of pumps by type of heat source:

1. Geothermal. They take heat from water or earth.
2. Air. They take heat from the air.
3. secondary heat. They take the so-called production heat - generated in production, during heating, and other industrial processes.

The heat carrier can be:

• Water from an artificial or natural reservoir, groundwater.
• Priming.
• Air masses.
• Combinations of the above media.

Geothermal pump - principles of design and operation

A geothermal pump for heating a house uses the heat of the soil, which it selects with vertical probes or a horizontal collector. Probes are placed at a depth of up to 70 meters, the probe is located at a small distance from the surface. This type of device is most efficient, since the heat source has a fairly high constant temperature throughout the year. Therefore, it is necessary to spend less energy on heat transportation.

Such equipment is expensive to install. The high cost of drilling wells. In addition, the area allotted for the collector should be several times larger than the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe heated house or cottage. Important to remember: the land where the collector is located cannot be used for planting vegetables or fruit trees - the roots of the plants will be supercooled.

Using water as a heat source

A pond is a source of a large amount of heat. For the pump, you can use non-freezing reservoirs from 3 meters deep or groundwater at a high level. The system can be implemented as follows: the heat exchanger pipe, weighed down with a load at the rate of 5 kg per 1 linear meter, is laid on the bottom of the reservoir. The length of the pipe depends on the footage of the house. For a room of 100 sq.m. the optimal length of the pipe is 300 meters.

In the case of using groundwater, it is necessary to drill two wells located one after the other in the direction of groundwater. A pump is placed in the first well, supplying water to the heat exchanger. Chilled water enters the second well. This so-called open circuit of heat collection. Its main disadvantage is that the groundwater level is unstable and can change significantly.

Air is the most accessible source of heat

In the case of using air as a heat source, the heat exchanger is a radiator forcedly blown by a fan. If a heat pump works for heating a house using an air-to-water system, the user benefits from:

• Possibility to heat the whole house. Water, acting as a heat carrier, is diluted through heating devices.
• With minimal electricity consumption - the ability to provide residents with hot water. This is possible due to the presence of an additional heat-insulated heat exchanger with storage capacity.
• Pumps of a similar type can be used to heat water in swimming pools.

If the pump operates on an air-to-air system, no heat carrier is used to heat the space. Heating is produced by the received thermal energy. An example of the implementation of such a scheme is a conventional air conditioner set to heating mode. Today, all devices that use air as a heat source are inverter-based. They convert alternating current to direct current, providing flexible control of the compressor and its operation without stopping. And this increases the resource of the device.

Heat pump - an alternative home heating system

Heat pumps are an alternative to modern heating systems. They are economical, environmentally friendly and safe to use. However, the high cost of installation work and equipment today does not allow the use of devices everywhere. Now you know how a heat pump works for heating a house, and having calculated all the pros and cons, you can decide on its installation.

Among the main directions of development of engineering equipment for private households, one can single out an increase in productivity with ergonomics and an increase in functionality. At the same time, developers are increasingly paying attention to the energy efficiency of the technical equipment of communication systems. The heating infrastructure is considered to be the most costly, so companies are showing particular interest in the means of providing it. Among the most tangible results of work in this direction is the air heat pump, which replaces traditional heating equipment, increasing

Features of air heat pumps

The main difference lies in the way heat is generated. Most involve the use of traditional energy carriers as a source. However, in the case of air pumps for both heating and hot water, most of the energy is consumed directly from natural resources. About 20% of the total potential is allocated for supply from the usual stations. Thus, air thermal houses consume energy more economically and cause less damage to the environment. It is noteworthy that the conceptual versions of the pumps were developed in order to provide office space and enterprises. But in the future, technologies also covered the segment of household equipment, allowing ordinary users to use profitable sources of thermal energy.

Principle of operation

The entire working process is based on the circulation of the refrigerant taken from the source. Heating occurs after the condensation of air flows, which are compressed in the compressor. Further, the refrigerant in a liquid state passes directly into the heating system. Now we can take a closer look at the principle of coolant circulation in the pump design. In the gaseous state, the refrigerant is sent to the heat exchanger enclosed in the indoor unit. There it gives off heat to the room and turns into a liquid. At this stage, the receiver comes into play, which is also supplied to the air source heat pump. The principle of operation of the standard version of this device assumes that in this unit the liquid will exchange heat with a refrigerant that has a low pressure. As a result of this process, the temperature of the resulting mixture will decrease again, and the liquid will go to the outlet of the receiver. At the time of passage of the gaseous refrigerant through the pipe with reduced pressure in the receiver, its superheat increases, after which it fills the compressor.

Specifications

The main technical indicator is power, which in the case of home models varies from 2.5 to 6 kW. Semi-industrial ones can also be used in the communication support of private houses if a power potential of more than 10 kW is required. As for the dimensions of the pumps, they correspond to traditional air conditioners. Moreover, they can be confused in appearance with a split system. The standard block can have parameters of 90x50x35 cm. The weight also corresponds to typical climatic settings - an average of 40-60 kg. Of course, the main question concerns the range of temperatures covered. Since the air source heat pump is focused on the heating function, the upper limit is considered to be a target and reaches an average of 30-40 °C. True, versions with combined functions are also produced, which also produce room cooling.

Varieties of designs

There are several concepts for generating heat with an air pump. As a result, the design is sharpened specifically for the needs of a specific generation scheme. The most popular model involves the interaction in one system of air flows and a water carrier. The main classification divides structures according to the type of organization of functional blocks. So, there is a heat air pump in a monoblock housing, and there are also models that provide for the output of the system to the outside using an auxiliary segment. By and large, both models repeat the principle of operation of conventional air conditioners, only their functions and performance have been raised to a new level.

Application of modern technologies

Innovative developments largely led to the development of classical climate control systems. In particular, Mitsubishi uses a two-phase refrigerant injection scroll compressor in its models, which allows the equipment to perform its function regardless of temperature conditions. Even at -15 °C, a Japanese-designed heat air pump demonstrates a performance of up to 80%. In addition, the latest models are equipped with new control systems, which provide more convenient, safer and more efficient operation of installations. With all the manufacturability of the equipment, the possibility of its integration into traditional heating systems with boilers and boilers remains.

Making air pumps with your own hands

First of all, you need to purchase a compressor for future installation. It is fixed in the wall and performs the function of an outdoor unit of a conventional split system. Further, the complex is supplemented with a capacitor, which can be made independently. This operation will require a copper "coil" with a thickness of about 1 mm, which then must be placed in a plastic or metal case - for example, a tank or cistern. The prepared tube is wound around the core, which can be a cylinder with dimensions that allow it to be integrated into the tank. Using a perforated one, it is possible to form turns with the same intervals, which will make the air more efficient, many home craftsmen perform it with the subsequent injection of freon, which will act as a refrigerant. Further, the assembled structure is connected to the heating system of the house through an external circuit.

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Such a unit as a heat pump has a principle of operation similar to household appliances - a refrigerator and an air conditioner. Approximately 80% of its power it borrows from the environment. The pump pumps heat from the street into the room. Its operation is similar to the principle of operation of a refrigerator, only the direction of heat transfer is different.

For example, to cool a bottle of water, people put it in the refrigerator, then the household appliance partially “takes” heat from this object and now, according to the law of conservation of energy, it must give it back. But where? It's simple, for this the refrigerator has a radiator, usually located on its back wall. In turn, the radiator, heating up, gives off heat to the room in which it stands. Thus, the refrigerator heats the room. To what extent it warms up, you can feel in small shops in the hot summer, when several refrigeration units are turned on.

And now a little fantasy. Suppose that warm objects are constantly placed in the refrigerator, and it heats the room or it is placed in a window opening, the freezer door is opened to the outside, while the radiator is in the room. In the process of its work, the household appliance, cooling the air outside, will simultaneously transfer the thermal energy that is outside into the building. The principle of operation of a heat pump is exactly the same.

Where does the pump get heat from?

The heat pump operates due to the operation of natural low-grade sources of thermal energy, including:

• ambient air;
• reservoirs (rivers, lakes, seas);
• soil and ground artesian and thermal waters.

Heating system with heat pump

When a heat pump is used for heating, its principle of operation is based on integration into the heating system. It consists of two circuits, to which a third is added, which is the design of the pump.

The coolant, which takes heat from the environment, circulates along the external circuit. It enters the pump evaporator and gives off approximately 4 -7 ° C to the refrigerant, despite the fact that its boiling point is -10 ° C. As a result, the refrigerant boils and then goes into a gaseous state. The already cooled coolant in the external circuit is sent to the next coil to set the temperature.

The functional circuit of the heat pump consists of:

• evaporator;
• refrigerant;
• electric compressor;
• condenser;
• capillary;
• thermostatic control device.

The process of how a heat pump works is something like this:

• the refrigerant after boiling, moving through the pipeline, enters the compressor, which works with the help of electricity. This device compresses the refrigerant in the gaseous state to a high pressure, which causes its temperature to rise;
• hot gas enters another heat exchanger (condenser), in which the heat of the refrigerant is given off to the heat carrier circulating in the internal circuit of the heating system, or to the air in the room;
• cooling, the refrigerant passes into a liquid state, after which it passes through the capillary pressure reducing valve, losing pressure, and then again finds itself in the evaporator;
• thus the cycle is complete and the process is ready to repeat.

Approximate calculation of heat output

For an hour, 2.5-3 cubic meters of coolant passes through the pump through the external collector, which the earth is able to heat by ∆t = 5-7 ° C (read also: ""). To calculate the thermal power of this circuit, you should use the formula:

Q \u003d (T 1 - T 2) x V, where:
V - coolant flow rate per hour (m 3 / hour);
T 1 - T 2 - inlet and outlet temperature difference (°C) .

Types of heat pumps

Depending on the type of dissipated heat consumed, heat pumps are:

• ground-water - for their work in a water heating system, closed ground contours or geothermal probes located at a depth are used (more details: "");
• water-water - the principle of operation in this case is based on the use of open wells for groundwater intake and discharge (read: ""). At the same time, the external circuit is not looped, and the heating system in the house is water;
• water-air - install external water circuits and use air-type heating structures;
• air-to-air - for their operation, they use the dissipated heat of the external air masses plus the air heating system of the house.

Advantages of heat pumps

1. Economy and efficiency. The principle of operation of the heat pumps shown in the photo is based not on the production of thermal energy, but on its transfer. Thus, the efficiency of the heat pump must be greater than unity. But how is this possible? In relation to the operation of heat pumps, a quantity is used, which is called the heat conversion coefficient, or abbreviated CTC. The characteristics of units of this type are compared precisely by this parameter.The physical meaning of the quantity is to determine the ratio between the amount of heat received and the energy spent to obtain it. For example, if the KPT coefficient is 4.8, this means that 1 kW of electricity consumed by the pump allows you to get 4.8 kW of heat, and free of charge by nature.
2. Universal universal application. In the absence of power lines available to consumers, the operation of the pump compressor is provided using a diesel drive. Since natural heat is everywhere, the principle of operation of this device allows you to use it everywhere.
3. Environmental friendliness. The principle of operation of a heat pump is based on low power consumption and the absence of combustion products. The refrigerant used by the unit does not contain chlorocarbons and is completely ozone safe.
4. Bidirectional mode of operation. During the heating period, the heat pump is able to heat the building, and in the summer to cool it. The heat taken from the premises can be used to provide the house with hot water, and if there is a pool, heat the water in it.
5. Safe operation. There are no dangerous processes in the operation of heat pumps - there is no open fire, and substances harmful to human health are not released. The coolant does not have a high temperature, which makes the device safe and at the same time useful in everyday life.
6. Automatic control of the space heating process.

The principle of operation of a heat pump, a fairly detailed video:

Some features of pump operation

To ensure the efficient operation of the heat pump, a number of conditions must be met:

• the room must be well-insulated (heat loss cannot exceed 100 W / m²);
• a heat pump is beneficial to use for low-temperature heating systems. This criterion is met by a floor heating system, since its temperature is 35-40°C. CPT largely depends on the ratio between the temperature of the inlet and outlet circuits.

The principle of operation of heat pumps is to transfer heat, which makes it possible to obtain an energy conversion coefficient of 3 to 5. In other words, each 1 kW of electricity used brings 3-5 kW of heat to the house.