I read an article, which I cannot find now, that said that water heaters can be retrofitted to provide a more cost effective energy storage system when compared the electrochemical battery storage systems. Basically, excess renewable energy would be used to heat water in residential water heaters. But, I don’t understand how the energy is later extracted for use or if it was only for the purpose of providing hot water.
In: Engineering
My heat-pump water heater runs during the middle of the day to heat my water. Not only is that the time my solar panels are generating the most power, it’s also the time the air is warmest, making my heat pump most efficient.
Hot-water storage tanks are big enough and well insulated so they will stay hot for at least a day. Water also requires a large amount of energy to heat. So just heating them at the best time saves renewable energy. The energy is only “extracted for use” in the sense that you use the hot water; it’s never turned back into electricity.
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