Skip to main content
Project Info COMPLETE Project Title

Evaluation of the General Electric Heat Pump Water Heater

Project Number ET10PGE1002 Organization PG&E End-use Water Heating/DHW/HPWH Sector Commercial, Residential Project Year(s) 2010 - 2010
Description

While electric water heaters are less commonplace in PG&E’s residential service territory than natural gas units, where they are used, they can represent a significant portion of a home’s electric demand (up to 5 kW). As a potentially large power user, electric water heaters are likely candidates for demand response (DR) measures when electric supplies are tight. A typical DR measure for a standard electric water heater would be to lock out the heating elements during the event (similar to the PG&E SmartAC devices that prevent operation of air conditioner compressors). Since most water heaters store thermal energy using a large volume of water, they may be able to pass through a DR event without using any energy, even without a device that locks out the elements. However, if there is a large demand for hot water during an event, the elements would need to activate or the user would eventually run out of hot water, which may not be tolerable to the user.
 

Project Report Document
Loading PDF Preview...
Industry
I have read and accept the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • Pacific Gas & Electric Company logo
  • Southern California Edison Company logo
  • Southern California Gas Company logo
  • San Diego Gas & Electric Company logo
  • Sacramento Municipal Utility District logo
  • Los Angeles Department of Water and Power logo
  • CEC logo

Copyright © 2024 Energy Transition Coordinating Council. Trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

The ETCC is funded in part by ratepayer dollars and the California IOU Emerging Technologies Program, the IOU Codes & Standards Planning & Coordination Subprograms, and the Demand Response Emerging Technologies (DRET) Collaborative programs under the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission. The municipal portion of this program is funded and administered by Sacramento Municipal Utility District and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.