{"id":93783,"date":"2025-08-18T11:05:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-18T01:35:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=93783"},"modified":"2025-08-21T15:43:43","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T06:13:43","slug":"hot-water-heat-pump-savings-are-all-in-the-timing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/hot-water-heat-pump-savings-are-all-in-the-timing\/","title":{"rendered":"Hot Water Heat Pump Savings Are All In The Timing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AHot water heat pumps can slash energy bills and carbon emissions due to their sheer efficiency, but take things to another level when timed to draw on cheap solar instead of expensive grid energy. Here\u2019s what your heat pump needs to make this possible.<\/p>\n

How Do You Time Hot Water Heat Pumps To Use Solar?<\/h2>\n

There are three basic options to consider when choosing a hot water heat pump that works hand-in-glove with rooftop solar: internal timers, external timers, and daytime controlled load circuits. Each offer their own benefits, and can also assist non-solar owners too by ensuring a heat pump runs when electricity is cheapest.<\/p>\n

Option 1: A Heat Pump With An Internal Timer<\/h2>\n

The first option is a timer that can control when the hot water heat pump is on and off. Some heat pumps will have internal timer controls which can offer different time windows for heat pumps to be programmed and operated. Some options include a solar time window during the day to make use of excess solar (i.e. between 9am-3pm) or an off-peak electricity time window to make use of cheaper electricity rates (i.e. between 10pm-7am, this may be preferable for households that don\u2019t have a solar system).<\/p>\n

\"An

The programmable internal timer of an Aquatech heat pump<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n

Changing With The Seasons<\/h3>\n

Certain heat pumps can also give more customized timing options for the users which includes choosing a more specific time window (or different windows) depending on user preference. Moreover, some options can automatically change the timer window based on season, which can be very useful as a household\u2019s hot water requirements, heat pump\u2019s efficiency (often known as Coefficient of Performance – COP), daily energy consumption and the available excess solar generation window can significantly change across seasons. Regardless of these options, you should consider a heat pump manufacturer\u2019s recommendations on the minimum required number of hours per day for heat pumps to run.<\/p>\n

I’ve compiled information on heat pump models with and without timers for this piece, drawing on reviews and heat pump manufacturers\u2019 data from manuals and sheets. The first table below is for brands with simple internal timers.<\/p>\n