Window heat pumps: A breakthrough for small apartments

“The introduction of heat pumps in residential buildings is undoubtedly one of the biggest challenges facing the heating equipment market,” emphasizes Globenergia. An attractive solution that may meet the expectations of residents of small apartments is the device we previously described.

The Globenergia service points out that development prospects in this field will be limited unless comprehensive research efforts are made. One solution that may help adapt heat pumps to residential construction is window heat pumps.

The window heat pump is currently in the design stage and is not yet available to a wide audience. The creators of this innovative concept—Gradient and Midea America—have so far been successful, winning last year's Clean Heat for All Challenge in New York. The prize for this project was $70 million, provided by the city of New York for further development.

"It is possible that within a few years, window heat pumps will become a common sight on New York City windowsills, primarily because of the ease of installation,” wrote Karol Kołtowski in our publication. However, the device's presence in some countries may not be suitable, as it was designed with vertically sliding windows in mind, which are popular in the United States.

The window heat pump is a compact device mainly intended for people renting small apartments. To install the Gradient device, windows of appropriate sizes are required—they must have a minimum width of 61 centimeters and a depth between 15 and 41 centimeters. Additionally, adequate space is needed around the indoor and outdoor units. The device can heat or cool a room up to 40 square meters. In larger rooms, multiple units will be necessary.

The installation of this pump is simple enough that anyone can do it themselves. The indoor unit weighs about 22 kilograms, and the outdoor unit weighs about 40 kilograms. Unfortunately, the pump is not quiet, so it is better not to place it, for example, in a bedroom – during operation, it generates noise ranging from 48 to 58 decibels.