02-27-11, 09:01 AM | #1 |
Lex Parsimoniae
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Woburn, MA
Posts: 4,918
Thanks: 114
Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts
|
Heat pump coil covered in snow and ice?
Every time it snows here, it seems like the Sanyo Mini-split is doing way too many defrost cycles..
I've used these Frost King wires on my roof & gutters for years and they work okay. Amazon.com: Frost King Roof & Gutter De-icing Cable Kit RC 120 Ft (Model RC120): Everything Else So, I'm thinking of adding a bunch of hot-wire loops on the surface of the air intake area of the outdoor coil. Maybe even on the side too. These pictures were taken After a defrost cycle (or two maybe).. I think about 400watts would work okay, and perhaps it could be controlled remotely using an X10 module.. I know the wire will melt light snow pretty quickly at normal winter temperatures. And I know that 400watts will about double our power use during snow fall. But, I'm wondering how much of that 400watts(1,365 BTUh) of heat will be captured by the Sanyo coil & pumped inside?? Maybe 30%?? Comments are welcome. Thanks, Rich |
|
|