cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/34021020
I recently installed an Emporia Vue with monitoring for the individual circuit my water heater is on. It captured the very significant difference in energy usage from replacing resistive heat with heat pump.
Like with an AC you need a place for the outside unit and do some piping. They are also more expensive, but the costs usually amortize well before a new unit is needed. They don’t heat as hot, so you might need a bigger tank.
First, from all the ones I’ve installed, they have all been all in one units with the heat pump on top of the tank that use the room air as the source. Not saying split hp water heaters don’t exist, I just haven’t seen any. The install for these units is practically identical to a standard electric water heater except you need to pipe a drain for the condensate.
The ones I’ve seen also include a resistive element and can act in a hybrid mode where they heat the water mostly with the heat pump, but can use resistive to boost the temp.