Send them an email mate to the address in the forwarded email as they should be able to let you know either way.
Personally I had solar and it was a pain and finally it blew up one cold winters morning when the defroster failed to come on. I went for a Rinnai Infinity gas heater. Brilliant! No more adjusting taps for the water temp as the temp is set via a control pane so there is no chance of scalding.
If you have gas onto your home you should consider this option.
mulder
Originally Posted by mulder
Dont want to get Gas Connected...
Had a Plumber over today as I was servicing his computer.
He said that he has seen many problems with the solar Heaters.....
Hoping in the next week I'll have a good post to put up here..
Will let you know
Yes, BUT, you have to boil water for washing up greasy dishes.50 C is not hot enough,although the new one's will get you 55 C.Unless you have a dishwasher and that will cost you electricity to heat up the water.
Had a Quantum heat pump ordered.
Quoted and Paid for.
This morning The Hot N Cold Shop rang me saying no rebates due to Gas Line running in my street.
There refunding my $
Not Happy.
Looks like I am forced to go Gas even tho I dont want it.. Or Pay Thousands to go the other options..
Bummer
Just to revive an old thread.
Yesterday I had a Quantum 270lt heat pump hot water system installed.
It took just 3 & 1/2 hours to heat up from cold on an 11 degree day.
The cost to me will be about $1,300 after rebates of $2,760.
It says that it will save up to 75% on electricity. It only uses electricity to run the compressor, fan & electronics.
Within the next two years the old electric hot water cylinders will be illegal to install in Australia.
I will post my power savings later as I have PAYG and can see how much is being consumed at any given time.
Some people need to get their finger out of their arse so that the brain can get some oxygen"
yeah, keep us updated would you please xnavyman, it looks interesting, I'm also thiming of what to go next, after all these off peak electric tanks dont seem to last for ever, and i'd love to see some real time/ in situation specs
thanks mate
When I explained to the guy what avatar I wanted, that wasn't what I meant!
Recently had an AAE Evacuated tube solar hotwater fitted. 30 tubes and a 315 stainless tank with offpeak electric boost. Ended up costing me about $3000 out of pocket (stimulus payment)
Wish I had gas in the street
Old hot water service was about 10year old and although not giving any problems when removed from service found to be pretty stuffed.
Plumber who installed it said he was going to install one for himself soon.
Said even though system uses some electronics it is fairly easy to service if things go wrong.
He was not a fan of the heat pump systems as they added extra potential for cost if problems occured and found many to be quite noisy. A neighbour up the road has one which I can hear from about three houses away when taking the dog for a walk at night.
AAE solar also do a gas boost version as well. The stainless tank should see me out for life span.
Have had a 10KWH average daily reduction in off peak useage on the last bill with the installation being done halfway through the billing period. Not too bad for winter in Eastern Victoria I thought.
In Summer the plumber expects that I will have too cover up or remove some of the tubes as it will potentially produce too much hot water, based upon feedback from other customers.
I went to the local agent for Rheem heat pump HWS to find out a bit about them.
Installation is probably the most simple as they are made to connect to existing HWS piping, plus a new electrical connection.
You no longer get your power for heating at the "Off Peak" rate so you pay the full price for the power they use.
You are still totally dependant on the Power grid for your hot water, unlike solar which is heating your water while the sun shines.
He claimed that the average family could probably save about $100 a year on power bills.
To get the full rebates requires the installation to be done by a licensed plumber and electrician.
I have it installed outside the laundry window and have trouble hearing it from inside the house. I stood near the back fence (12mts) and cannot hear it.
It does not have an electric element so that is a saving on electricity and it will still heat the water in -10 degrees. It doesn't get that cold here.
So far it is a lot better than the old cylinder.
Some people need to get their finger out of their arse so that the brain can get some oxygen"
The Rinnai instant heaters are still the best option. Even with getting the gas connected.
Had a chat with the plumber i use for work the other day about the heat pumps and he said like most greener options its all talk without actually delivering anything. He said the problem isnt the heat pump technology rather the electric booster. The heat pump is fine to heat the water in the tank during the day but if you run out of hot water and the booster kicks in then you are charged electricity at the peak rate.
The temperature you get out of the Rinnai units is actually higher than you will get out of a new storage system, at least here in NSW. Not sure about the regulation in other states. The installation of a new heater means you will need a thermostatic mixing valve installed by law at the heater. This means your water will be restricted in temperature and from memory it is 45 degrees. Most of the instant water units dont require them the to be fitted as they are limited in temperature output anyway.
And for the record gulliver, a dishwasher will deliver you higher water temps than you will ever get out of your tap.
Last edited by viper5150; 26-07-09 at 10:31 PM. Reason: added more
My unit doesn't have an electric element as it will still heat the water in temps down to -10.
The temp of the water is also hotter and the extra 100lts has made a huge difference to the four of us having showers of a morning.
So far I am impressed.
Some people need to get their finger out of their arse so that the brain can get some oxygen"
That would mean that either your old heater was really shot, there is no thermostatic mixing valve or it is set higher than it should be. As i said by law, at least in NSW, a mixing valve must be installed to limit water temps. Not sure about the rules down in Tasmania. That said, the only time you would really notice the lower temps is in the kitchen. Showers and bathrooms in general should notice nothing other than needing less cold water.
Having no electric element or booster then yes, you are likely to make some savings compared to a conventional electric unit or one that has the electric booster.
The old unit was shot.
Looking at the unit there is no mixing valve, straight out of the unit into the house. It may seem hotter because the old one wasn't as effective.
It was also NSW that made it law to have lower temps on clothes dryers. Now, with the lower temps it takes twice as long to dry and costs more.
All because people do not read their appliance instructions.
Some people need to get their finger out of their arse so that the brain can get some oxygen"
That sounds about right, just like flow restrictors in bath taps or kitchen sinks.
You still want the same amount of water but it takes longer to fill anything, meaning you need more hot water as it cools down before you get enough.
If you do have a heat pump hot water service installed make sure that the electrician does not drill any holes in the unit. The pipes are only just beneath the surface and the whole thing will be kaput.
The plumber told me to make sure I told the electrician & lucky I did because he didn't know and was going to fasten the power connector box to the side of the unit.
Some people need to get their finger out of their arse so that the brain can get some oxygen"
Finally got my system up and running after much time, Got the apricus 30 tube system,
Still to early to say if its doing well on my bills.
Will keep you up to date .
My Sparky believes this is the best way to go,
Im still unsure but at least its quieter than the heat pump.
Electric Back up so I don't need the Gas connection I have been trying to avoid in this house.
Installer broke one of the tubes and still has to come back to put in replacement. And tidy up his work as dont look to appealing.
Tank is 315 litre I think.
Last edited by mutanti; 28-07-09 at 08:47 PM.
I aint gunna give up my old coal fired donkey untill I see the whites of the Sheriffs eyes.
Opinion on Solar heating seems to run Hot and Cold (pun intended) here with some swearing they fantastic with others busting a gut at the first heavy Frost.
I worked it out it was costing me about a $1 or so a week to have never ending hot water so long as the donkey is burning.
In the middle of winter it takes 90 minutes to be almost too hot to touch to about 30 minutes in midsummer.
A 20 litre bucket of coal will give you over 15 hours of heat.
With electricity costs about to go into orbit and only LPG available, Like the late Chucky Heston and his Guns, they will have to prise the donkey out of my cold dead hands.
Some years ago I saw a demo on a heat pump in a quite large basically unheated hall and I was impressed by it ability to exchange heat but the need for that pump running I didnt like.
I was wondering how those Instantanous Gas Hot water units compare?
One thing this area has taught me when we have a frost is that its not when the frost is setting that damage occurs, its always as the temperature rises that pipes burst.
Gas prices have just gone up also.
The beauty of the instantaneous heaters is that they only cost you when you turn on the hot water tap. No pilot light which still uses gas, even if it is minimal. The unit ignites when the water starts to flow. Plus you only heat the water you use unlike a storage unit which not only re-heats the water when you are finished using it but also maintains the tank temp.
Only downside is it takes a bit longer to get hot water through to where you need it.
It is what i will be replacing my gas storage heater with when it goes in about 10yrs.
Mind if i ask mutanti why you didnt want the gas connected?
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