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mhoush: Heat Recovery Chiller
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I’m doing it now. I did discuss this on
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this episode of the HVAC School Podcast.
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Heat Recovery Chillers
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I have always had a love and passion for..." name="description"/>
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Heat Recovery Chillers
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<h1>
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Heat Recovery Chiller
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</h1>
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<div class="-mt-6">
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<div class="text-gray gray-links text-sm">
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<span class="border-r border-gray pr-2 mr-2">October 27, 2023</span>811 words, posted in <a href="/articles/tag/hvac/">HVAC</a>, <a href="/articles/tag/chiller/">chiller</a> and <a href="/articles/tag/hydronics/">hydronics</a>
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<img alt="banner" src="http://localhost:3000/articles/images/2023-10-27-heat-recovery-chiller.png"/>
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<p>This is an article that I wrote back in 2020, but I don’t believe that I published it anywhere, so
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I’m doing it now. I did discuss this on
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<a href="https://hvacrschool.com/podcasts/is-the-future-of-air-conditioning-self-contained-propane-chillers/">this episode of the HVAC School Podcast.</a></p>
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<h2>Heat Recovery Chillers</h2>
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<p>I have always had a love and passion for hydronic systems, perhaps it’s because they are not that
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common in most areas. The designs tend to be elegant and the flexibility is unparalleled by most
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equipment choices currently available in the U.S. I’m going to try to not get too far into the weeds
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in this article, but offer an overview of what I feel would be my dream system.</p>
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<h2>The Source</h2>
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<p>A heat recovery chiller will do simultaneous heating and cooling, as opposed to a traditional
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heat-pump or reverse cycle chiller that can only operate in one mode at a time. This system would
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have a second refrigerant to water heat exchanger and utilize the air-source when we don’t need to
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bank / store heat, or are running in heat only mode. There are several benefits to this style
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system, the main being that while operating simultaneous heating / cooling mode the COP of the
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system doubles. For example, the <a href="https://multiaqua.com/mhrc2/">Multi-Aqua MHRC2</a> shows a COP of
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about 8, which is approximately equivalent to 30 EER or 34 SEER. This gives us geothermal level
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performance without the need of a field.</p>
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<h2>Indoor Portion</h2>
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<p>The indoor portion of the system, we would utilize buffer tanks as thermal storage for the chiller.
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The buffer tanks give us several benefits, including longer run times for the chiller, load
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matching, and the ability to size for larger load (heating or cooling) without some of the problems
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that occur when over-sizing a traditional system. The buffer tanks also allow sizing more
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aggressively by having storage during peak load conditions.</p>
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<p><img src="/articles/images/2023-10-27-buffers2.png" alt="buffer" /></p>
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<p>This shows a cooling buffer tank as well as a heating buffer tank. The horizontal pumps are what
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circulate water through the chiller, while the vertical pumps are what distribute the water to the
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load / emitters. This configuration allows for water to be used for the loads first and extra
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capacity to go into the buffer tanks. The buffer tanks also offer hydraulic separation for the pumps
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(meaning that they won’t interfere with each other if / when there are different flow rates).
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Another advantage of the buffer tanks is that you can connect multiple heating or cooling sources in
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parallel to the system. This is shown by the extra tees in the hot buffer tank where we could
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connect something such as solar water collectors, pellet or wood boiler, or a conventional boiler.
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You’ll also notice on the right side of the hot buffer tank, that I am showing a brazed plate heat
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exchanger that would be used to supply domestic hot water.</p>
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<h2>Distribution System</h2>
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<p>This could be a number of things, from radiant panels, in-floor, high-output baseboard radiators,
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however I’m going to model it as a 4-pipe hydronic air handler.</p>
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<p><img src="/articles/images/2023-10-27-ah.png" alt="ah" /></p>
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<p>The hydronic air handler is able to provide cooling, heating, and re-heat dehumidification, all in
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one package. With a hydronic system, it would be very easy to load match by controlling the fan
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speed and utilizing a Delta-T pump or outdoor reset controls. These air handlers are available from
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several manufacturers and come in different styles from traditional (as shown), small duct high
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velocity systems, and even ductless styles.</p>
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<h2>Disadvantages</h2>
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<ol>
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<li>Not highly available in the U.S.</li>
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<li>When the chiller is down nothing works (not much different than traditional)</li>
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<li>Lack of understanding / technicians afraid to work on this style system.</li>
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<li>Potentially higher upfront costs.</li>
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<li>Lack of design or planning could cause unhappy clients (same with traditional)</li>
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<li>Distribution systems need to be designed around low water temperatures (not a drop in replacement
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for traditional boiler systems)</li>
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</ol>
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<h2>Advantages</h2>
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<ol>
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<li>Central plant for heating, cooling, and DHW (also a disadvantage)</li>
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<li>Flexible distribution options / methods.</li>
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<li>Self contained refrigerant circuit</li>
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<li>Ability to produce / store thermal energy during off peak electrical hours</li>
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<li>Ability to move BTU’s more efficiently through water than air</li>
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<li>Long life for distribution system (50-100+ years)</li>
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<li>Easier transition to natural / flammable refrigerants</li>
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</ol>
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<h2>Conclusion</h2>
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<p>In conclusion, there are many advantages to this style system, as well as disadvantages. One of the
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main points is to think of the system in 3 distinct components, the source(s), thermal storage, and
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distribution. As mentioned, this only one concept, but in reality, there are many ways to accomplish
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this, which is one of it’s advantages. For example, perhaps in certain scenarios it makes sense to
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dump excess heat into a pool, create ice storage during off peak hours, cascade into another water
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-> water heat pump for higher temperature distribution, incorporate solar collectors, and so on.</p>
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<p>Thank you for reading all the way to the end!</p>
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</article>
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<div class="border-t border-light mt-8 pt-8">
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<h2 class="text-4xl font-extrabold mb-8">
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Written by
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</h2>
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<div class="prose">
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<h3 class="!m-0">
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Michael Housh
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</h3>
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<p class="text-gray">
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HVAC business owner with over 27 years of experience. Writes articles about HVAC,
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Programming, Home-Performance, and Building Science
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</p>
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<div class="mt-16">
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<h2 class="text-4xl font-extrabold mb-8">
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More articles
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<section>
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<h2 class="text-2xl font-bold mb-2">
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<a class="[&:hover]:border-b border-orange" href="/articles/2025/vapor-htmx-todo-app/">Vapor + HTMX</a>
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</h2>
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<div class="text-gray gray-links text-sm mb-4">
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<span class="border-r border-gray pr-2 mr-2">January 05, 2025</span><a href="/articles/tag/general/">general</a>, <a href="/articles/tag/programming/">programming</a> and <a href="/articles/tag/software/">software</a>
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</div>
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<p>
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<a href="/articles/2025/vapor-htmx-todo-app/"><div>
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Build an example application using Vapor and HTMX.
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</div></a>
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</p>
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</section>
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<section>
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<h2 class="text-2xl font-bold mb-2">
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<a class="[&:hover]:border-b border-orange" href="/articles/2024/free-as-in-freedom/">Free As In Freedom</a>
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</h2>
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<div class="text-gray gray-links text-sm mb-4">
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<span class="border-r border-gray pr-2 mr-2">April 09, 2024</span><a href="/articles/tag/general/">general</a>, <a href="/articles/tag/open-source/">open-source</a> and <a href="/articles/tag/software/">software</a>
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</div>
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<p>
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<a href="/articles/2024/free-as-in-freedom/"><div>
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Salute to open-source software engineers
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</div></a>
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</p>
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</section>
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<p class="prose mt-8">
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<a href="/articles/">› See all articles</a>
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