Richmond® 50 Gallon Electric Water Heater with Hybrid Heat Pump any good?

[JRHAWK9]

I should look at what we use for electric, as I'm sure it's probably quite a bit. We have one fridge and an electric stove/oven, but we also have three desktop computer systems running almost 24/7. Plus the well pump and Kuuma blower. In summer we have dehumidifier going downstairs in addition to the AC.

 

[sloeffle]

565 KWh in 29 days

That's impressive.

We are generally between 1,000 KWh - 1,500 KWh. Our house is all electric though. I don't burn much wood during the shoulder seasons because the house just gets too hot. I'd say most of my usage is for heating / cooling.

 

[brenndatomu]

That's impressive.

We are generally between 1,000 KWh - 1,500 KWh. Our house is all electric though. I don't burn much wood during the shoulder seasons because the house just gets too hot. I'd say most of my usage is for heating / cooling.

The only time we have went over 1000 KWh in a month was when I first started burning wood, I installed a stove in the basement and used electric radiators in the "cold corners" of the house...yeah, that didn't work out too well...

 

[sloeffle]

The only time we have went over 1000 KWh in a month was when I first started burning wood, I installed a stove in the basement and used electric radiators in the "cold corners" of the house...yeah, that didn't work out too well...

Those electric space heaters can really suck down some juice.

Our geo uses around 2.4 kW when running on first stage, and around 3.7 kW when it kicks over to the second stage. The geo rarely runs in the second stage. When they put it in, they designed it to run on the first stage 90% of the time. I don't even have the third stage strip heaters wired up because they take two 60 AMP breakers . If I remember correctly, they cost around $2 per hour to run with at my current power cost of .14 cents per kWh.

 

[Highbeam]

Both electricity and propane fuel costs vary widely across the country. I’ve seen 3 cents per kWh in eastern wa to 30 cents in the ne. Propane is worse. From under 1$ per gallon to 4$.

All to say, you need to run your numbers including the efficiency of the appliance.

 

[JRHAWK9]

Just got our bill and I grabbed it to look at it and also created an online account to view past months. I don't pay this bill, so I never paid attention to it.

This month's usage was 753 kWh, cost was $104.

Here's the history of use:



We sleep with a fan on every night as well. It's not the tyical box fan, it's more of a commercial-type all metal fan. We wanted one that was loud and this one was advertised as loud and perfect for those looking for white noise. LOL We sleep in the loft, so there are no doors to shut and we want to drown out any pet movement and other various sounds during the night.

 

[JRHAWK9]

This month's usage dropped to 609 kWh. This is the lowest usage time of year though for us, with limited Kuuma blower runtime, no A/C and no basement dehumidifier.

 

[brenndatomu]

This month's usage dropped to 609 kWh. This is the lowest usage time of year though for us, with limited Kuuma blower runtime, no A/C and no basement dehumidifier.

We are at 620 kWh this month...down 96 from same time last year...I'm liking the general trend here with this HPWH. Just now getting into the time where we usually start using the dehumidifier some, so we'll see if my thinking that the dehumidifier won't be needed much now turns out to be true or not.

 

[JRHAWK9]

This month's usage dropped to 609 kWh. This is the lowest usage time of year though for us, with limited Kuuma blower runtime, no A/C and no basement dehumidifier.

I guess I should say last month's usage...as the bill went from April 21 - May 19

 

[sloeffle]

I'm a little jealous of your electric usage. I've been WFH since March sometime due to COVID-19 which doesn't help either.

I emailed the electric company because I am seeing weird highs and lows on my usage



I have a hard time believing I used 1kWh of electric on a couple of those days. They said I used 91 kWh when it spiked in April. The funny thing is, my electric was out most of the day because I had to rebury the underground going into my house.

 

[brenndatomu]

I have a hard time believing I used 1kWh of electric on a couple of those day. They said I used 91 kWh when it spiked in April. The funny thing is, my electric was out most of the day because I had to rebury the underground going into my house.

Things that make you say hmm...

 

[Highbeam]

View attachment 260386
I'm a little jealous of your electric usage. I've been WFH since March sometime due to COVID-19 which doesn't help either.

I emailed the electric company because I am seeing weird highs and lows on my usage

View attachment 260388

I have a hard time believing I used 1kWh of electric on a couple of those days. They said I used 91 kWh when it spiked in April. The funny thing is, my electric was out most of the day because I had to rebury the underground going into my house.

This is part of the reason I installed the home energy monitor that displays real time power consumption and daily consumption.

 

[mellow]

Yea, I use Sense to keep track of my energy usage because I did not trust the electric company. It does a top notch job of that and I can see what my bill will be $$$ for the month ahead of time, it is within a few dollars from the final bill.

 

[blades]

Would not be the first time the computer at a power company messed up, among other screw ups.

 

[sloeffle]

Got an email back from my power company. They said my meter doesn't send my electric usage back to the electric company at the same time every day.

 

[blades]

random time selection ? sounds fishy to me. Have to give them credit for coming up with the best excuses I ever heard. Could be a net work load thing i suppose but...... one would think they would be using equipment capable of the load. Does you bill break down into amount used per day? Mine is by the month only other break down is heating or cooling days.

 

[brenndatomu]

random time selection ? sounds fishy to me. Have to give them credit for coming up with the best excuses I ever heard. Could be a net work load thing i suppose but...... one would think they would be using equipment capable of the load. Does you bill break down into amount used per day? Mine is by the month only other break down is heating or cooling days.

The highs and the lows are always back to back...plausible.

 

[brenndatomu]

Forgot to update with the last bill...went from 682 kWh in June 2019, down to 564 for June 2020...savings of $14.14
The next bill should start to reflect not having to run the dehumidifier...BUT, maybe not, because with the extreme hot spell we are in now, the extra AC usage may mask the savings...we will see.

 

[vinny11950]

Forgot to update with the last bill...went from 682 kWh in June 2019, down to 564 for June 2020...savings of $14.14
The next bill should start to reflect not having to run the dehumidifier...BUT, maybe not, because with the extreme hot spell we are in now, the extra AC usage may mask the savings...we will see.

Thank you for the updates. I am considering installing one of these in the basement. Currently I have a 10 year old on demand electric water heater, which I hope has another 5 years of life. However my utility offers a $650 rebate if I buy a hybrid model, so I could buy a new hybrid model for about $600. Then I would just have to calculate the monthly savings plus the dehumidifier effect in the basement, which is a great benefit in the summer, as the humidity becomes an issue. Plus I would free up 3 breaker spots in the breaker box, which is running short on breaker slots. I am still on the fence of when to do this, but your thread helps a lot. Thanks.

 

[brenndatomu]

Just as I thought...the July bill went up compared to last year...hard to decipher anything too much from it because it was also for 33 days instead of 30. I think we are still on the right track though, because even with the AC being on most of the month, I still averaged 31 kWh per day instead of the 33 from 2019...

 

[brenndatomu]

Plus I would free up 3 breaker spots in the breaker box, which is running short on breaker slots

How so? They still get wired up to 240...so 2 legs of 120v...if you are running in hybrid mode (or electric only) they still use big power if/when the electric elements kick on...I used the same wiring as I had for my previous 50 gall electric heater.
I have mine set to "heat pump only" mode, so the electric elements don't kick on. We have only ran low on hot water once that I know of...but it would have been fine if I would have taken my shower last instead of my wife...I like warm showers, she likes HOT.

 

[brenndatomu]

Menard's has the same HPWH that I installed cheaper than I've ever seen it right now...$867 after sale and mail in rebate! (store credit)

https://www.menards.com/main/plumbing/water-heaters/heat-pump-water-heaters/richmond-reg-50-gallon-electric-water-heater-with-hybrid-heat-pump/10e50-hp4d/p-1499409305671-c-8688.htm?tid=-5888820524521747500&ipos=4

 

[maple1]

How so? They still get wired up to 240...so 2 legs of 120v...if you are running in hybrid mode (or electric only) they still use big power if/when the electric elements kick on...I used the same wiring as I had for my previous 50 gall electric heater.
I have mine set to "heat pump only" mode, so the electric elements don't kick on. We have only ran low on hot water once that I know of...but it would have been fine if I would have taken my shower last instead of my wife...I like warm showers, she likes HOT.

Not sure his circuit configuration. But on demand electrics have really big amperage needs, way more than conventional tank heaters. Having said that, my 18kw electric boiler does only use up 2 panel spots. Using a huge breaker and wiring.

 

[brenndatomu]

But on demand electrics have really big amperage needs, way more than conventional tank heaters.

Still should only be 2 legs of 120...unless its 3 phase (very doubtful) would just be large breakers/wiring...just as with your e boiler

 

[maple1]

Still should only be 2 legs of 120...unless its 3 phase (very doubtful) would just be large breakers/wiring...just as with your e boiler

Thinking so also but no experience with on demands. Didnt know if they maybe could have something like a circuit for each element. Or something like that.