On Dec 11, 4:19*am, "Existential Angst" wrote:
"Vic Smith" wrote in message

...





On Mon, 10 Dec 2012 07:43:07 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

Think about how it could help the AC. *The current coils
and fan in the condesner are perfectly capable of taking
the heated, compressed refrigerant down to close to
ambient temperature. * The pool heat exchanger is going
to do the same thing.

"Ambient" pool water temperature normally isn't the same as ambient
air temp. *A pool provides an enormous heat sink, cooling at night,
with evaporative cooling not requiring jumping through EPA hoops.
Water is thousands (WAG) of times more capable of removing heat than
air.
And "perfectly capable" doesn't address the difference in time running
to do the same job. *Which gets to electrical consumption and
compresser/fan wear.

Yeah, it's smaller because water
can take the same heat away with a smaller heat exchanger.
But, at the end of the day, all I see that's saved is the cost
of running the AC condenser fan. *Don't know how much
that is in the whole AC scheme, but considering you have
a compressor, big blower in the furnace, I'd be surprised if
it's more than 15% or so.

I've seen estimates that water cooled condensers give 20-50% energy
savings. *It's all in the details - and climate.
In some climates people want their pools chilled.
Barring that, using pool water to cool the condenser is elegant and
efficient if the bottom line works out *The main issues are initial
cost and maintenance.
Those are the nuts to crack. *It all gets to payback.

Excellent points.
Bottom line, the pool will help the A/C *MUCH more than the A/C will help
the pool.

No it won't. Because the refrigerant temp coming back
to the air handler is going to be about the same in either
case. The existing condenser is HUGE because it's air
based. But it's sized so that the returning refrigerant is
near ambient when it goes back. The pool water is
going to be typically 80 - 85. At least it would be if this
thing does what it's claimed to do. The refrigerant
can't go lower than the pool temp, even if this small
water based heat exchanger is 100% efficient.
So, in my world, the bulk of the energy savings is
from the AC condenser fan not running and instead
the pool pump being used. The pool pump electricity
isn't counted, because the pump would have to run
6 or 8 hours a day to filter anyway.





BUT, it is proly unlikely this could be done economically, at least in a
one-off basis.

But, if A/C mfrs would outfit the condensing heat exchanger with a water
jacket, so that all's you needed was some fittings, plastic tubing and a
small-ish pump, then indeed it would be economical, and likely radically
increasing the SEER ratings.
--
EA



It ain't gonna do much for SEER, for the reasons noted above.