[Hv23t]

Well I finished the 2nd test of the system on Friday. I havnt had time to do the calcs on efficientcy till this morning. Here are the results:

Time (hr:min) H2o (f) Watts used

0:00. 56. 0
0:20. 65. 210
0:40. 73. 360
1:00. 78. 510
1:20. 86. 670
1:40. 88. 810
2:00. 89. 910
2:20. 95. 1090
2:40. 100. 1270
3:00. 105. 1450
3:20. 109. 1630
3:40. 115. 1810
4:00. 119. 1990
4:20. 122. 2170
4:40. 125. 2360
5:00. 129. 2550

I used the formula that AChacker gave me to figure out COP.
The COP Changes over time with temp so I just did it for total at each hour.

1 HR. COP=3.16
2 HR. COP=2.65
3 HR. COP=2.69
4 HR. COP=2.32
5 HR. COP=2.10

For my first attempt at something like this I'm very happy with the results. And I know there is room for improvement. #1 is going to do something about a defrost cycle. After about an hour the HX was just a block of ice. What air was able to work its way around it was coming out at 41-45 deg. The dehumidifier only went into its own defrost cycle once at the 1:40 mark. So I think I'm going to install a recycling relay that will turn the compressor off every hr for 4 to 5 minutes. #2 is going to be insulate the feed and return line to the tank HX seperately. Now one line is about 30-40 deg hotter and some of the heat is escaping to the return line befor reaching the tank. After reaching 130 the system shut down at the preset thermostat setting. I was playing with my ir temp gun and found that while the temp was 130 toward the bottom of the tank where the thermostat is located. The top of the tank was at 148 deg. So ac- was probably right about installing a circulation pump to get more accurate numbers. My plan this next week is to install this system inline ahead of the main water heater at my parents house. Essentially being a preheater for the existing one and making sure they don't run out of water if this one breaks down.

Hv23t