Comparison between air source heat pump and boiler

1. From the perspective of investment cost

For the same heat output, an electric boiler is slightly cheaper than air source heat pump, but it requires 3 times more power than air source heat pump.

2. From the perspective of energy saving

Air source heat pump absorbs heat from the air and compresses it to produce heat, which is about 4 times more energy-efficient than a traditional electric heat pump; while electric boiler is a direct heat generating device without any conversion process in the middle, so it can only generate 90% of the heat. Energy energy-saving air source heat pump is more energy-efficient than an electric boiler.

(1) Air source heat pump can achieve 1KW to 4KW all year round.

(2) Boiler can only achieve 1KW to 0.95KW or lower.

3. Differences in working principles
(1) The basic operating principle of air source heat pumps is based on the reverse cycle principle. The liquid working fluid first absorbs heat from the air in the evaporator and evaporates to form steam (vaporization). The latent heat of vaporization is the recovered heat. Then it is compressed into high-temperature and high-pressure gas by the compressor and condensed into liquid (liquefaction) in the condenser. The absorbed heat is sent to the required heated water. The liquid working fluid is reduced in pressure by the expansion valve and expanded. It returns to the expansion valve absorbs heat and evaporates to complete a cycle. This cycle repeats, continuously absorbing heat from the low-temperature source and outputting it to the heated water, directly reaching the predetermined temperature.
(2) Electric boilers are also called electric heating boilers and electric heating boilers. As the name suggests, they are composed of electric heating and related electric control components. They are mainly used in the form of electric heating to output steam, high-temperature water, or organic heat carriers with a certain amount of thermal energy.

4. Differences in structure
(1) Air source heat pump units are relatively complex, mainly consisting of four major components: compressor, condenser, evaporator, and expansion valve.
(2) The structure of the pot is relatively simple, mainly composed of a high-power electric heating wire and an insulated shell.

5. Safety difference
During the heat generation process of the air source heat pump, there is no pressure and no risk of leakage. During the heat generation process of the electric boiler, the main insulated shell is used to see if there is a possibility of leakage and if there is a risk of electric shock.

6. Electric power requirements

The electric load required by the air source heat pump is 1/3 smaller than that of the electric boiler, and the requirements for the power grid are smaller than those of the traditional electric boiler.

7. Functional differences

The air source heat pump is an air conditioning equipment. During use, it can realize heating and cooling functions and daily hot water according to the needs of users, realizing three-in-one; while the electric boiler is relatively simple and can only realize the heating function.