Imagine never wondering if your next shower will stay hot from start to finish. Then imagine saving money each month because of your new water heater — while also reducing your carbon impact.
Sound too good to be true? One company's newest invention aims to make it a reality in homes across the United States.
The scoop
Heat pumps have become more popular as in-home heating and cooling solutions. These energy-efficient machines use the heat from outside air to regulate a home's temperature, typically resulting in much lower monthly operating costs than traditional air conditioners and gas furnaces.
Now, that technology has made its way to water heaters. Cala is among the companies leading the charge in the field of heat pump water heaters, which work in a similar way to their home-climate counterparts.
These water heaters use heat from the nearby air and run it through a compressor, which in turn heats your water in a more efficient manner than gas, oil, propane, or electric water heaters. Cala CEO Michael Rigney told The Cool Down that "you can get up to 500% efficiency with a heat pump water heater," which is good news for your wallet and the environment.
Although heat pump water heaters, such as Cala's, cost more upfront than a traditional water heater, rebates and tax credits can make up much of that difference. The Inflation Reduction Act offers credits that could help you save over $1,000 on a heat pump water heater, although the time to act on that may be now, as President Donald Trump has said he plans to scrap the IRA's green-energy subsidies.
With a heat pump water heater, Cala claims users can save hundreds of dollars per year over other types of water heaters.
How it's helping
Cala isn't the only company to make heat pump water heaters, but it does bill itself as the first "intelligent" one, which results in more efficient energy use.
The Cala system learns when you use the most hot water, making sure that you'll have plenty on hand for those times. It knows the most efficient times to run the system and heat water, saving money and energy. It uses predictive technology to know, for example, when a major storm is coming so that it can preheat your water tank in case the power goes out.
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Durable materials 💪 What everyone's saying
On Reddit, users rave about their heat pump water heaters. Many say they have made up the up-front price difference in just a couple of years thanks to their monthly energy savings.
"One of the best energy savings decisions you can make," one Redditor wrote. "Mine saved be about $250/yr compared to gas."
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