South Korea's LG Electronics has presented a new line of water heating heat pumps for residential applications. They can be installed in garages, kitchens, laundry rooms, or bathrooms.
The Therma V comes in two versions, with the capacity to heat 200 liters or 270 liters of water. The 200-liter model has a COP of 3.30 at 7 C and 3.50 at 15 C. The 270-liter model has a COP of 3.45 at 7 C and 3.85 at 15 C.
The electric heat pumps have a power input of 2 kW at 230 V. The 200-liter model has an annual energy consumption of 756 kWh at 7 C and 709 kWh at 15 C. The larger model consumes 712 kWh per year at 7 C, and 646 kWh per year at 15 C.
The air source heat pump uses 75% of energy from the air and only 25% of electricity to heat water, according to LG’s product website. It features LG’s Dual inverter compressor, which works with twin rotors.
“As twin rotaries balance each other while they are rotating with high speed, it reduced noise dramatically compared to the shaking single rotary compressor,” LG claims in the product's data sheet. The heat pump produces noise at 53 dBA, which is the equivalent of refrigerator noise.
The Therma V 200L measures 580 mm x 1,625 mm x 582 mm and weighs in at 100 kg. The 270 L model measures 580 mm x 2,008 mm x 582 mm and weighs 119 kg. They can operate in temperatures from -5 C to 48 C. The devices use R134a refrigerant with a global warming potential (GWP) of 1,430.
The new solution comes with a 10-year warranty for the water tank and the compressor.
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The GWP is extremely high, 1430 times the potential of CO2, so it is not really eco-friendly.
Yeah, I believe 134a was phased out in the US. Really strange to use an outdated refrigerant. Also I feel like the math was wrong here. That seems pretty energy heavy annually.
??? GWP, I understand means Greenhouse Warming Potential. However, if this LG product replaced a regular electric immersion element hot water tank and uses less electricity than the device it replaced, how is this a bad thing ? The fact that it uses LESS electricity means it is contributing LESS CO2 no mater how that electricity was created : coal, oil, gas, wind, solar, nuclear, etc..
Yeah, it is odd to use a dated refrigerant. Almost like they don’t want to sell the first gen into NA and Europe which is too bad as I am in the market just now. 🔨🔨
Can this unit heat water for a hydronic radiator system or is it just for a domestic hot water?
Hi. I would be interested to know what is the maximum temperature of stored water these can provide. Would they heat the water to 60degC?
Hi ,is this 2 kw per hour for 200l of hot water. , I heat and get my potable water in a open radaint floor system. I am using 2 Geo 50 gallon hwhp both run at 500watt per hour = 1 kw h. Have them in my Landry room .and they work really well .i have a super insulated 1200 sg ft home and on the cold day they run 24 /7. =. 24kw/ day about $ 2.60 per day. BEST REGARDS ARTHUR
Curious as to the total cost of ownership vs a regular electric water heater
Both GE and Rheem manufacture far more efficient and reliable air source heat pump water heaters. They both cost much less than LG as well. LG appliances are notoriously unreliable. LG should have stuck with making cellphones. They were actually good at that.
I think this is an exciting development in the field of sustainable home heating and cooling. Heat pumps are an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional heating and cooling systems, and the use of heat pumps for water heating can help homeowners save money on their energy bills while reducing their carbon footprint.