EcoRenovator - View Single Post - 24000 BTU AC Unit conversion to geothermal well water source

jeff5may · 12-19-16, 10:51 PM

Ledbalon,

I was joking! If you can heat AND cool with one unit at the same time, that could double-leverage your energy savings. Sounds like a great idea to me.

B420ady,

What you have is a 3 phase, 2 HP industrial compressor. Roughly equivalent to 2 tons (24000 btu) of cooling capacity. Seeing your posted ratings, this is a tougher compressor than normally found in residential equipment. If you can breathe life into it, the thing should be able to handle some pretty harsh service and survive.

The hard part of making this thing work will be supplying it 3 phase power. You will need some kind of drive circuit to run it if you don't have 3 phase power line access. I would definitely take it somewhere that does to test it out. Same basic deal as the mini-split unit before. Make sure it can pump gas before dreaming up a circuit and plumbing for it.

EDIT: oops, got home from work last night and wrote this post without refreshing my browser. My mistake.

The last circuit is probably the best (the digital drive). These are available for cheap as a packaged, programmable drive unit. Benefits include variable speed, better power factor, no startup surge, and increased motor life. Google search terms: vfd, inverter drive, variable frequency drive.

12-19-16, 10:51 PM	#67
jeff5may Supreme EcoRenovator Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: elizabethtown, ky, USA Posts: 2,428 Thanks: 431 Thanked 619 Times in 517 Posts	Ledbalon, I was joking! If you can heat AND cool with one unit at the same time, that could double-leverage your energy savings. Sounds like a great idea to me. B420ady, What you have is a 3 phase, 2 HP industrial compressor. Roughly equivalent to 2 tons (24000 btu) of cooling capacity. Seeing your posted ratings, this is a tougher compressor than normally found in residential equipment. If you can breathe life into it, the thing should be able to handle some pretty harsh service and survive. The hard part of making this thing work will be supplying it 3 phase power. You will need some kind of drive circuit to run it if you don't have 3 phase power line access. I would definitely take it somewhere that does to test it out. Same basic deal as the mini-split unit before. Make sure it can pump gas before dreaming up a circuit and plumbing for it. EDIT: oops, got home from work last night and wrote this post without refreshing my browser. My mistake. The last circuit is probably the best (the digital drive). These are available for cheap as a packaged, programmable drive unit. Benefits include variable speed, better power factor, no startup surge, and increased motor life. Google search terms: vfd, inverter drive, variable frequency drive. Last edited by jeff5may; 12-20-16 at 06:30 AM..