Hi,
I have been looking at air source to water heat pumps as an alternative to a geothermal heat pump. I found the Mitsubishi Ecodan, but it isn't for sale in the U.S. I then found the Daiken Altherma, and got a qoute for it- $18,500. To me that is extremely expensive, payback would be exceptionally long.
Looking further I found heat pumps for swimming pools, Aquatherm for example. They cost between $2,000 and $3,000. Instead of heating a large pool couldn't they be connected to a small (120gl) tank inside the house similar to how a solar system is set up?
I know most of them are only set to operate at 90*, but with a small tank (compared to a swimming pool) wouldn't it get hotter? Or can they be set to a higher temp? Most of them also have a minimum flow rate of 30gpm, maybe a larger heat exchanger could get around this requirement?
I don't understand why the Daikens are so expensive. Maybe supply and demand is controlling the price.
With high fuel prices any alternative is seen as an opportunity to make a fortune. Whew, had to vent.
Does anybody know if this would work, or why it wouldn't?