There are currently four heat pump water tank options that most suppliers install for $33.
In terms of durability and quality with less noise, which one is better?
And who would you recommend for installation in Sydney?
1) Midea 170 Litre
- Integrated
2) Smartlifestyle - 200L
- Integrated
3) Ecogenica 215
- Split Heat pump
4) Eco Alliance 215
- Split Heat pump
17 years from a heat pump is a good run. What brand is it?
Rheem, still working fine, thought I better replace it before it dies.
I had an Ecogenica 215L installed @$33
It is certainly good value: They send a plumber to install it, and an electrician. They replace the current breaker with a 20A RCBO, and use the existing heater's wire to your fuse panel to connect a double outdoor socket- one of which the heat pump plugs into, so you also get a spare socket near your heater which come in handy. It doesn't use much current, so a 10A RCBO might be a better choice.
Compared to the market leader in Heat Pump Hot Water Systems, Sanden, it isn't that bad. I have had one of these, previously. You don't get the Sanden's stainless steel tank (I am not sure how the Ecogenica can't be stainless, but the brochure/manual doesn't say it is). You also don't get its software, better control system, design, quality connections and heat shrouding. But the Ecogenica is not as nasty as a PRC made heat pump can be, and you can shield the pipes yourself once the plumber leaves to stop the heat gradually escaping all day. In fact it is one of the best from PRC yet (clearly why, (apart from the NSW and Fed gov's subsidisation of the program) it is why it is 'cheap'.
There is a programmable LCD control panel, but its shielded 4-wire cable is not very long so can only get a couple of metres from the heat pump at best. It may be possible to extend it, but how much longer it doesn't say. Its controller is not weatherproof, so will need its own weatherproof enclosure, or to be mounted inside the house- neither of which the plumber will do for your hard-earned $33. All they will do is leave the controller and its wire bundled up inside the main housing of the heat pump, and if they don't set the time, it will think its midnight on Monday, once they first turn it on.
The heat pump will also run when it thinks its 02:00am, weekly, the day after you install it. The manual hints in half-translation/obfuscation that it will do this to disinfect (by heating the tank to 65ºC), instead of the normal 60ºC it normally maintains. So this will regularly wake you and your neighbours (or anyone sleeping near the thing), and they won't tell you this. This will likely cause problems- since there is no other noise at that time of the night, and it produces a sound pressure level of around 68db or more whilst heating the water. You may want to set the time to be 12 hours out of step, so that this cycle heats during the day instead.
Whilst heating it draws about 700W (which it will need to do for an hour or two each day to maintain 60ºC (in a household of 3 having showers), so it can be quite economical when compared to a 3600W element in the average storage heater.
It uses propane as the refrigerant inside the heat exchanger, and installs with quick-connects, so when something in the heat exchanger rusts out, the 2kg of propane inside will gradually escape and the whole thing will stop working, maybe even be a fire hazard for a short time. A new tank will require replacement, but is not a common item, and is specific to this system. I wouldn't bank on one being available, and even if it was, replacement would involve evacuating both units and refilling with Propane, for which there is no procedure in the manual, and would take quite specialised refrigeration skills and tools.
If you are thinking how best to use solar power to run your hot water system, the Ecogenica/Eco-alliance is good, but won't do it without some fiddling with the timer which you will need to setup away from the weather. And it will use coal (and your electricity bill) to heat unless you program it otherwise, and regardless of that, still do a dirty cycle at 02:30am, at least once a week- at a time you cannot control. On top of all that we have to see how long it lasts, and if subsequent repair is even possible.
The Midea and the 'Smart Lifesytyle' are single piece upright units (the heat pump is built-in), and while they may be better from a reliability perspective, they could well be worse. They may make less noise too, but have heat pumps integrated into them on the top of the tank, so the sound can travel further. They may take longer to heat (their heat pumps are smaller) but might be a little more efficient (less transfer losses between pump and tank). They are both programmable from a controller on the outside, but this is exposed directly to weather and sunlight, and is plastic, so will likely go bad over time. The Midea (also available from Bunnings) seems much nastier than the Smart Llifestyle, but have not seen that one up close.
Do they make as much noise as the Ecogenica? Do they last like people expect them to? Will the installer be in business by the time they fail? Will the plumber be able to fix it/ get support, or parts? These aspects require careful thought before you opt in to the program, because literally every other option on the market lasts >10 years and is simple, cheap and quick to repair.
I'm pretty sure these units are none of the above- they really only save electricity for a short time (which successive dysfunctional state governments are rushing to do prior to the Lidell coal-fired plant closing, resulting in overuse of expensive fracked gas turbines, and billed by their mates' off-shore accounts (who figured out how to make the best of this 10 years ago).
After the tanks fail, they will go to landfill, making them environmentally worse than just leaving a working storage tank in place- the very thing the NSW scheme has been setup to replace (and part subsidised by the federal government through the Clean Energy Council. The CEC should halt all payments to these vendors for RECs under this scheme until they can demonstrate the sustainability of these heaters on this basis alone, but going on past performance, it won't (it's own policies around removing approval for solar panels for are the cause of so many fully functional solar panels and inverters being landfilled at the moment, at a time that we desperately need more generation). Like most gov programs, this is a poor effort, poorly executed. It makes money for the entities involved, but is very, very wasteful. But is successful as it is initially attractive to consumers and can be used (with extreme expedience) to support pretty wild claims about reducing carbon impact.
Hopefully that's given you enough detail to make a decision. Heat pumps like the Sandens can last, and are supported- so choosing a system that saves power and lasts is possible, just not under a system designed to favour the installation of the cheapest-possible kit.
What a great a review, Thank you so much
I have the ecogenica as well but couldn’t find any sort of timer. Any help on where I need to find it
It is under the top cover of the heat pump. The cable is coiled up beside it.
The installers should ask you when you want it to run, and set one of the three on/off programs to suit. But they are squeezed for time as they install at a cut-down piece rate for each install. They won't want to spend time optimising the setup/explaining things, especially if you haven't read the manual or know what it is you have ordered.
If you do get one, it is best to prep your site so the installation is as simple as possible, or do things like clear/clean the area and consider installing a raised pad for the heat pump (if it is off the ground it'll have the best chance of lasting).
How to stop the noise at night:
This is how you can stop it waking everyone up, or use your solar generation rather than your electricity bill to heat your water:
As the anti-legionella burn is factory set to be 02:30 hours, and cannot be changed, the only way to make it run during the daytime is to offset the clock by say, 12 hours. Thus it will run at 14:30 in the afternoon instead. You can still set the daily timer program/s to run at the times you don't mind the noise- just remember to make them all 12 hours out, to make up for the offset applied to the clock's time.
Ah ok I had to pop the whole top cover off. Not just the access hatch. I quickly checked the manual and yep it says every Monday at 2.30am. I’ll leave it for now and just set timer 1 for 8am on and 5pm off. Hopefully that does it.
I”ll think about inverting the hours next time. We normally don’t hear it anyway.
Thanks for the tips
@Cheapshots: What is the access hatch- the cover for the power connections?
For me, every time it happens at 2:00am, I think the manual is wrong to say its 02:30.
BTW, in line with sage advice by legal professionals, noone should be opening the unit before attaining suitable qualifications, insurance, workcover, legal representation and advice from a constitutional law expert, not to mention informing the relevant authorities that an appliance is being inspected as the usual half a job was done installing it in a mad rush to claim government subsidies.
So for sure, be sure to unplug the unit surely before opening the top cover, let alone any wiring covers!
@resisting the urge: Here you go. Stupid that it’s under the top cover just to change any settings.
https://ibb.co/2qCfHG8
@Cheapshots: It's a set and forget thing- but the installer (if like mine) may not take the time (or even know) to set the time 12h out if it is installed near bedrooms, or encourage you to set it on an appropriate schedule to stop it making hot water at times you sleep, or when power is most expensive
Hmm thanks. I did pop the cover off and didn’t see any obvious thing to change settings.
I did see the manual had a display to change but didn’t see it anywhere on the unit.
I was out when the guys did the install so couldn’t ask them.
I was thinking I could just get a outdoor plug timer and and use that to run during the day to use my solar?
I’ll pop it open again tomorrow
Do you think this will hold for a family of 5? The 215l tank?
I am located in the Bankstown area, NSW and went with a company called "Free Hot Water". They took down my details and asked a few questions to see if I was eligible (storage electric tank, installed outside, no relocation). They then subcontracted to a company called "Eco Alliance". I was booked in with an install date 14 days into the future, but received a call 6 days later stating they had an available spot the next day. So mine was installed 7 days from first contact with "Free Hot Water".
I went with the 215L Ecogenica tank. The install went well but I needed a new inlet tap because the old one didn't work properly. It was $33 for the install + $50 cash for the tap. (The install included an RCD switch at the switchboard, along with dual socket powerpoint next to the tank/compressor unit). I let it heat up but didn't measure anything yet since it was an exceptional case where the whole tank of cold water had to be heated up. I turned the powerpoint off after it was done heating and 4x regular showers were taken that night.
The next day I plugged the hot water tank into a power meter before turning it on. It drew 550W to start off with and crept up to 800W near the end of the heating. In total it used 2.1kWh over 3 hours. (My old Rheem 250L tank had a 4800W heating element that took just under 2 hours to finish heating to the set 60 degees).
All in all, with my napkin maths… that's a 78% savings in energy usage. And now it's all easily handled/covered by my 5KW solar inverter opposed to before. For a total of $83, I'd be stoked if it lasts for even just a year! (But it does have a 5 year compressor warranty and 7 year tank warranty).
I hope my experience helps people down the track, especially after electrcity prices dramatically rising after the 1st July 2023.
Hey mate! I'm the owner of freehotwater.au. I hope found the experience enjoyable. Thanks for sharing our name :)!
@Jesse freehotwaterHi Jesse, Could someone form your company contact me to see if we're eligible? We recently bought a place and it only has a tiny instant hot water system in the kitchen servicing the whole house. Thanks!
I've just submitted a request online so hopefully someone calls me tomorrow
I thought we are only allowed to contact the approved suppliers listed on the NSW govt energy website. I don't see Free Hot Water as an approved supplier. What am I missing?
I also have installed the ecogenica tank. I previously had controlled load on my meter for my old hot water system and this new heat pump one is connected to the normal usage rate and I still get charged the daily rate for the controlled load.
I need to pay $280 for Endeavour energy to come and remove it off my smart meter.
Yes the heat pump saves me electricity costs but i didnt know that it no longer requires the controlled load section.
I am getting the Ecogenica split 290 litre, not available till late may, as I am replacing a 17 year old heat pump can't get the $33 deal. Paying $1399.