2021 Quick Start Grant Recipients
AESC
Testing HPWH in Manufactured Housing
Overview
AESC is installing heat pump water heaters (HPWHs) in manufactured homes in Winton, CA, a CalEnviroScreen designated Disadvantaged Community (DAC). AESC will measure whether the HPWHs' cool exhaust air can lower existing air conditioning costs and improve resident comfort and will quantify the energy, cost, and GHG impacts of the retrofits.
Market Barrier
The growing affordable manufactured and mobile home market presents a compelling case for replacing electric, natural gas, and propane hot water heaters with HPWHs in both retrofits and new construction. However, these opportunities are hampered by a lack of field data on installation costs (including potential ducting and electrical upgrade work) and potential ancillary benefits (such as removing heat and humidity from the home with the cool air produced by HPWH operation).
Proposed Solution
AESC will replace existing gas water heaters with HPWHs in ten manufactured homes in Winton, CA, a CalEnviroScreen DAC, at no cost to the participants. AESC will model and measure the interactive energy impacts that HPWHs have on existing air conditioning loads, with the expectation that the cool air byproduct of HPWH operation will reduce the residents’ cooling needs and costs. AESC will also quantify the energy, cost, and GHG impacts of the retrofits and customer satisfaction with the installed HPWHs, all while ensuring utility cost neutrality or cost savings for the participants.
Theory of Change
Modeling and measuring energy savings in the manufactured and mobile home market can help justify the cost of retrofits and potentially justify the implementation of additional utility incentives to aid in market scalability. Learnings from this pilot may inform ongoing California Public Utility Commission proceedings related to the Mobile Home Park Utility Upgrade Program.
Project Status:
In progress
Housing Type:
Manufactured housing
Technology:
HPWH
Location:
High poverty area in PG&E and SCE territories