Is a heat pump a profitable investment?
Thermodynamic water heaters or heat pumps appeared a few years ago and are now a great success among both households and commercial entities. They consume 3 times less electricity than a conventional hot water tank. The expected savings with this type of device are around 70%!
How does a thermodynamic water heater work?
To put it simply, a heat pump works like your refrigerator. But instead of cooling the air, it heats it. It consists of a tank and a small heat pump that captures the energy present in the calories in the ambient air.
This recovered energy is then transmitted to the tank where the hot water is stored. For every 1 kW consumed, the hot water recovers 3 to 4 kW.
Installation of a heat pump
A thermodynamic water heater can replace your old appliance without difficulty, it will use the same connection pipes.
It should be installed in a room of at least 20m3 (laundry room, cellar, garage, etc.) that is not heated. Note that this appliance is quite bulky, it weighs on average 400 kg. It must be placed on a solid floor.
These models are often installed outdoor in Perth, in order to make the most off the hot weather!
Return on investment
The many advantages of a thermodynamic water heater explain its price, which is higher than that of an electric or gas water heater.
Here is a table comparing the prices of each water heater on average, for a purchase and delivery of the system only and including installation.
| Price | Electric | Heat pump |
| Appliance only | 750$ | 2500$ |
| Appliance and installation | 1200$ | 3100$ |
In this second table, we will calculate the annual expenditure in dollars for each type of system. We will base our calculations on the consumption of a family of 4 people.
| Savings | Electric | Heat pump |
| Annual consumption | 650$ | 180$ |
| Annual savings | – | 470$ |
| Cost after 5 years | 3250$ | 900$ |
| Savings over a 5 year period | 2350$ |
Unfortunately, a thermodynamic water heater does not benefit from financial aid from the State government in WA and does not currently allow you to reduce your initial investment:
As you can see, you are going to need a few years (3 to 5) to see some ROI on your heat pump purchase compared to an electric system but the investment is often worth it according to us!
