How Hybrid Heating Systems Work

Posted on: 18 July 2018

Home heating technologies have changed tremendously over the years. In general, newer systems have greater capacity, use less energy, utilize more eco-friendly fuels, run more quietly, and save the homeowners money. Hybrid heating systems are one technology that is gaining steam.

Hybrid water and air heaters are those that can be used both for heating your water and your air. These systems can be very functional and money saving in many properties. This article explains how hybrid heating systems work, and why they could be perfect for your home.

Converting Fuel to Heat

Both water heaters and traditional forced air furnaces create heat by burning fuel. Most fuels are natural gases or propane. So, it make sense that manufacturers have create hybrid appliances that use the same fuel burning to heat both water and air, instead of using two separate, energy consuming appliances.

Limited Capacities

First things first, it is important to point out that hybrid systems usually have limited capacity as far as heat creation goes. That is, if you have a large home to heat, and you use a lot of hot eater even the largest hybrid heater probably won't be sufficient. It would be just be too much of a workload for the unit, and you would probably end up with less hot air, and colder showers.

Heating Air and Water

Hybrid system will basically heat water in a manner similar to that of a traditional water heater. But, how does it also heat up the air? The hybrid system heats up air by circulating the hot water through the pipes that are connected to your furnace or boiler. This hot water basically works like refrigerant precipitating the transfer of heat from the furnace to the air handler. In a traditional tank water heater, a lot of the heat created by the burning fuel can be wasted. The longer it sits, the more it starts to cool off. But, since the heat will basically be transferred to the furnace, it does not end up being wasted. This is very eco-friendly way of heating a moderate sized home because it can greatly reduce fuel and electricity consumption.

Hybrid systems obviously need to be retrofitted with your existing HVAC system. So, you first step is to have an HVAC pro come examine your system and give you an estimate. You will be able to determine whether or not the project is within your budget.

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