Choose air conditioning systems that work best with your home design, preferences, and budget. Air conditioning systems are efficient air-to-air heat pumps that convert each 1kW of power into about 4 kW of heating or cooling. Consider a split system for a single room, multi split and ducted systems for multiple rooms.
This BLOG explores options for electric underfloor heating, radiator panels and hydronic convectors. It includes hydronic and electric-resistance systems. It excludes reverse cycle air conditioners, which are a subject of their own and do not radiate heat. Hydronic systems are a lot more expensive to install but a lot cheaper to run and add greater capital value to your home. Electric resistance systems are much cheaper to install but a lot more expensive to run. These systems do not stir up dust, airborne pollen and other allergens. Therefore, they are better for people with breathing issues such as asthma. They can be installed as underfloor radiant systems, radiator panels or fan-coil convectors.
The Galletti ART-U can coil convector provides hydronic cooling and heating with a heat pump. The ART-U convector is designed for cooling in summer using chilled water from a reverse cycle heat pump. An internal fan draws air through its coils. Condensation is drained away outside, which gives you latent cooling as well as sensible temperature cooling. In winter, hot water from the heat pump is circulated through the convector.
Replace your gas boiler with a hydronic heat pump for efficient heating and a cooling option using your solar power. Benefits include lower operating costs, less greenhouse emissions, adding value to your home, and safer appliances with longer operating life. However, you should also work on improving the thermal performance of your home. Also, explore upgrading your power supply. This BLOG discusses the key points.
Heating, Ventilation and Cooling (HVAC) Design starts with thinking through your needs. Good building design has low heating and cooling requirements. This enables all-electric solutions with energy efficient appliances such as inverter heat pumps and air conditioners. These appliances can be largely powered by solar panels. The thermal energy can be stored in the mass inside your home during the day and released at night.
You can enjoy underfloor heating and cooling if you are renovating or building with suspended floors. Use a heat pump as the heat source to have reverse cycle cooling in summer as well. This will absorb heat from your home and expel it outside in reverse cycle mode. You can apply most types of floor coverings over your underfloor heating circuits including tiles timber boards and loose weave carpet.
Consider adding a larger heat pump buffer tank or thermal battery to increase the internal mass of your home for greater thermal storage. This will help moderate the extremes of your indoor temperatures, reduce your power consumption for heating and cooling and maximise your solar power during the day.
Heat pumps use water to transfer heat to your home in winter from the outside air and reverse this process in summer to keep your home cool. Water is 3300 times more capable of transferring heat than air so you don’t need large air ducts with heat pumps.
Heat pump refrigerants have steadily evolved since 1987, when the Montreal Protocol set the objective of phasing out harmful refrigerants for the environment. All heat pump and air conditioning refrigerants have their pros and cons. Due to urgent action needed now to avoid catastrophic climate change, natural and man-made refrigerants with low GWP are becoming essential. This BLOG discusses man-made and natural refrigerants. The latter are gaining widespread support because of their environmental and performance benefits, which outweigh concerns about flammability (apart from CO2) that can be managed.
This all-electric house renovation in Toorak involved going off gas and replacing the old ducted air conditioning system with hydronic heating and cooling. Both form and function of the heating and cooling system were important for this project. New radiator panels, hydronic towel rails and fan-coil convectors were installed, powered by an electric heat pump.
The Greenor designer range of hydronic fan-coil convectors are manufactured by Cinier in France. They present a fusion of art and leading technology. Greenor convectors are designed for prominent locations in your home, to be admired whilst also providing gentle, silent heating and cooling. They make virtually no noise or air drafts from transferring heat by convection and radiation. The hot or chilled hydronic water flowing to these convectors is produced by electric air-to-water heat pumps.
Do I need a buffer tank with a hydronic heat pump? Heat pump buffer tanks are recommended for heat pump hydronic systems for three key reasons:
1. Hydraulic separation for hydronic systems with heating and cooling
2. Prevent short cycling with insufficient water volume from room zoning
3. Additional thermal storage of heat produced by heat pumps using daytime solar power.
An energy assessment identifies areas to better manage. It leads to a plan for better energy management that reduces energy costs. Do an energy assessment to help you understand, measure, verify and better manage your energy use. This is more important for a large house or commercial facility, where energy use is higher. If you can measure it, you can manage it!
The Galletti ART-U Hydronic Fan Coil convector is becoming more popular with our all-electric heating and cooling quotes. It is designed for wall mounting in architectural spaces. This new Italian fan coil gives you efficient and effective hydronic heating and cooling when matched with an all-electric heat pump. It has a superior brushless fan motor that is very quiet. In summer, it works like a wall mounted air conditioner reducing temperature and dehumidifying your room.
This BLOG discusses slab insulation so that you can effectively store energy and reduce heat loss from your slab-on-ground. Insulate underneath and also the slab edges. This is very important if you have solar power because you can store excess solar energy in your insulated slab. However, a slab with no insulation creates a thermal bridge for heat to flow outside, draining away your solar energy.
This BLOG discusses all-electric heating and cooling systems adding value to your home. It discusses mandatory energy ratings that have been in force in the UK and Europe for more than a decade, slowly catching on in Australia starting with the ACT. The justification for all-electric heating and cooling includes: a) lower running costs with solar power, b) adding value to your home and c) reducing Greenhouse emissions.
This Victorian house in Castlemaine was transformed into a comfortable, low energy home. It features all-electric heat pump hydronic heating/cooling, heat recovery ventilation and heat pump hot water. The new home married its Victorian past to a modern extension using passive home principles.
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