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heat pump dryers in US????

14 years ago

Does anyone know if there is a heat pump dryer technology available in the US? I know they have been released in Europe already. We have a laundry room on the 2nd floor without an outside wall so we vent to the very steep roof. Vent is getting clogged every 3 months......need another option.

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Comments (4)

czechchick2
14 years ago
Yeah, you can buy them here. There is already info about it in laundry forum somewhere. I think Bosh is one of them.
amm0810
Original Author
14 years ago
I checked back and searched for heat pump in the laundry forum. Some talk about them but no one that mentioned they had them in the US. I have checked Bosch and Asko....all the major EU brands and only can find condensing type dryers for sale in US. No heat pump technology yet...in the US anyway.
I am surprised we haven't seen more of this technology. Sounds like they are really taking off in Europe and cut energy consuption for the dryer in half!!
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It could have a lot to do with external factors. The city I live in is very dry not a lot of humidity around. When I was looking to purchase I read some not so favourable review on the dryer saying it took forever etc and almost all of them where from the north of Australia where it’s tropical and almost double the humidity. Generally I wash a load of something then load dryer. Next loads in washer short option activated so 40c wash 1hr23m or 60c 1hr39 and my dryer is finished before washing. Also the display shows an average time when you switch on like a memory and it’s 1hr12m. Like I said haven’t noticed too much of a difference between my old condenser to this. The only thing I will say is that it doesn’t reverse tumble as frequently as the older one so bed linen can ball up. Hope this helps. Oh and my towels have a quick dry weave which I thought was a gimmick but maybe not lol.
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Yes, I agree with getting a pair (whether you stack them or put them under a counter) -- I'm intrigued by the all-in-ones (and the LG gets pretty good reviews), but I do think that's a last choice if you really have very little room. I almost bought a pair with a ventless dryer last week, and I learned a couple of things to consider and check: Find out if you have the option to use a hose to empty the dryer condenser into the water waste line, and - if not - how to empty the condenser reservoir. Some are located in easier places than others. Check the required electrical outlets: The dryer will need a 220V connection but some washers are 220V and some are 120V -- but some machines allow you to plug the washer into the dryer, which means you'd only need one outlet plug (220V). And find out if you need to separately purchase a stacking kit, or if it's included in the cost. I do have the option to vent in my apartment, so I ended up going with a compact size that has a vented dryer, so I can't comment on any specific brands or models; when I was considering ventless, I was looking at Bosch, LG, or Blomberg. (I would have considered Miele, but it's way out of my price range.)
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Chiming in late, but we too have a Blomberg ventless heat pump dryer and are happy with it. The regular dry cycle leaves things feeling like they're a tiny bit damp when you touch them but dry by the time they land on the counter for folding, and without the over-drying I've stopped needing fabric softener to get rid of static. I've found that if you use the crevice tool on the vacuum cleaner you can clean out the secondary filter every now and then (with a little bit of stretching it this way and that), so it doesn't need replacing very often. It's also a good reminder to vacuum the fins on the heat exchanger--and the bathroom/laundry room vent fan--at the same time.
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"It's striking to realize the prosperity Americans take for granted." People in other countries have the same "prosperity" and sometimes more (depending on how you want to define it). Urban living is urban living. Many living in apartments in NY city have to make due with less space and less convenience than many urban dwellers in Europe. European washers and dryers (and by extension, Asian ones before they started making models for the US market). have long been smaller. With long cycles. They wash better while being more gentle on fabrics. A family member abroad has a ventless heat pump dryer. It uses the "refrigeration cycle", extracting "heat" from room temperature air. Think of your fridge or an air conditioner, both are heat pumps that act the same way, with a cold section while expelling hot air, the heat removed to produce the cold section. Using the same "refrigeration cycle", a ventless dryer produces heat AND cold. Direct the heat into the rotating drum where the clothes are, then flow the warmed damp air past a cold heat exchanger where the water in the damp warm air will condense and drip out. Like the water that condenses on the outside of a cold glass on a warm day. That's how they work. It's a slow process but such products use less energy than both gas and electric clothes dryer types in use in the US.
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hidroman
14 years ago
Dryers are common in central northern EU, anyway less than in the US/CAN. Mostly used as a back up solution in winter or when it's raining. Dryer vents are less common

In southern europe dryers are getting common since last ten years. Vents here don't exist, so we have 90% condenser dryers.

Residential gas dryers (rarities) have been banned by our latest severe codes for gas appliances/heaters/furnaces.
Go figure miele discontinued its T 478 G i was about to buy. For the same reason french made washers with internal gas heater don't exist anymore.

So no vents + no gas = condenser dryers = energy hogs.
Heat pumps condenser dryers are the solution to cut power rates.

They also draw half wattage than regular condensers : a regular condenser or vented euro dryer draws 2200 to 3300 Watt. Heat pump dryers draw max 1200- 1300 Watt. True that would be nice for you : 1200 W aren't a issue even @ 120 Volt.

They have separate motors for drum and fan : they can even dry those fabrics one would never dare to put in a regular dryer, like cashmere and silk.

There is a big BUT : the price, not a case they still are a niche product
Basically they are a dryer with a internal A/C unit.
Whatever brand you take they cost 1.5 X to 2 X than the average condenser model, 3X than vented models.
Electrolux (badged as AEG, Zanussi and Electrolux) and BSH (Bosch and Siemens) cost around 1000 euro. Miele ones around 1500 euro. Whirlpool Europe hasn't yet made HP dryers. I don't ever mention swiss ones, cause swiss appliances have such prices that make Miele and Gaggenau seem bargains

That said, dryer vents are common in north America, gas dryers - much more energy efficent than electric ones - are common too.
Two good reasons to make heat pump dryers a huge market flop in the US/CAN
amm0810
Original Author
14 years ago
Thank you hidroman for the info. Very helpful!! Looks like it will be awhile before I can purchase a HP dryer here!

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