Principles of Cold Climate ASHP Sizing and Design

Dana Fischer
Proposal Status
Ready for Committee Review
Username
Dana Fischer
Proposer First Name
Dana
Proposer Email
dfischer@hvac.mea.com
Proposer Last Name
Fischer
Proposer Phone
(207) 272-4650
Proposer Job Title
Manager of Utilities & Electrification - East
Proposer Additional Info
Dana Fischer is the Manager of Utilities and Electrification for the East Coast. He has been with Mitsubishi Electric for 4.5 years engaging with everyone from individual homeowners to trade organizations to the US Secretary of Energy about the transformative power of cold-climate heat pumps. In the prior 7 years going back to the ARRA grant era, he was the Program Manager of the Home Energy Savings Program at Efficiency Maine helping craft residential rebate and loan programs for weatherization, conventional heating systems and heat pumps. He also has background in municipal finance, solar thermal and ultra-high purity manufacturing, and microbrewing with education and training in Philosophy, Sociology, Business and Fermentation Science, but not all at once.
Proposed Session Description
A detailed and advanced (but abridged) version of the cold climate sizing and design training that is provided to HVAC contractors in NY and across the region from Mitsubishi Electric. While HAVC contractors in the NYS Clean Heat and Mass Save programs are required to receive ccASHP design training to participate in rebate and financing programs, there is significant benefit for builders, consultants and others in the broader sustainable energy community to gain understanding of the principles of sizing and design of cold climate air source heat pumps.
Why is this session important?
Across the energy industry and in the media are a slew of myths and misconceptions about heat pumps and their ability to decarbonize our housing stock heating needs or to maintain the comfort of occupants. Greater depth of understanding of what cold climate variable capacity heating systems are capable of and the transformations of heating that have already occurred in other cold parts of the world illuminates the path forward. Proper sizing is important, but not difficult with a basic understanding of how to read the specifications of heat pumps and how they operate under different conditions. Attendees will gain a higher degree of confidence in appropriate application of heat pumps and the factors that should be leveraged to assure the right fit every time in every building.

Comments

Amalia Cuadra Mon, 05/02/2022 - 4:20 pm

Maybe –  This talk appears to be derived from a talk given by Mitsubishi to HVAC contractors that participate in the NYS Clean Heat and the Mass Save programs.  Questions that I have:Will the presentation provide a technical approach that targets the audience? What design considerations are specific to the NYC market?  Design professionals in the NYC market should have fundamentals in heat pump design. Is that a fair assumption on my end? Consultants may definitely benefit from this talk. However, NYC faces additional challenges outside of cold climate sizing and design. No mention of a second speaker, which is always helpful making the talk more engaging. 

Elihu Dietz Wed, 05/04/2022 - 5:33 pm

Round 1 - MAYBEIt is probably useful for consultants to have a basic background in sizing considerations for heat pumps. That said, this training may not have enough content to warrant a whole session. Are there other topics that could be added to this session such as 1) installation best practices to and common mistakes he's seen in Clean Heat and Mass Save, 2) location and types of of indoor units, or 3) barriers to training contractors.  Also curious if this training is available as a recording already, which would make this session less appealing for the conference. 

Ben Sachs-Hamilton Mon, 05/09/2022 - 12:07 pm

Round 1 Discussion:Hesitation - no mention of a second speaker (red flag). Could installation best practices be addressed? Barriers to training contractors? If training is already being done, should be more information about why this session is unique. Second speaker that is a contractor who has been trained?

Amalia Cuadra Tue, 05/31/2022 - 10:32 am

ROUND 2 Comments:Undoubtedly, the speaker will be engaging and will be able to hold the audience's attention. I asked the speaker what one thing NESEA should know before deciding on his talk is. He said, “The people of NESEA would be less knowledgable than the installers.” Bold! My concern is that his talk would be geared towards the residential market. He discussed bringing someone from the Commercial team to join him during the talk. The talk he proposes would be trimmed down from his 5-hour training presentation; it would have case examples; focus on sizing and misconceptions. These are very interesting topics and a recipe for a good talk. In addition, it’s a good opportunity for design professionals to learn from hands-on experiences. I landed on not moving this talk forward because it is geared toward the residential market. It is also Mitsubishi centered. And we may be addressing topics that design professionals are currently addressing in their designs.  I wonder if it would serve as a very good training session before our Conference.  

Diversity and Inclusiveness
Part of discussion on sizing relates to maximizing cost effectiveness of different heat pump layout strategies. This may not seem related to social justice and equity, but it is critical that everyone in the energy industry understand the principles of design to prevent selection of equipment that would have the potential to make matters worse for LMI households from both the perspectives of comfort or increased energy burden.
Learning Objectives
Understanding of principles of refrigeration and technological advances that contribute to the exceptional high performance of Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pumps.
Ability to identify correct combinations of outdoor condensers to match seasonal needs for heating and cooling.
Understanding of control strategies for Integrated Controls and key considerations to ensure optimal comfort and actual delivered energy efficiency in dual fuel systems.
Familiarity with concepts of building load calculations, graphical overlay with local bin temperature data, and heat pump minimum and maximum capacities.
Has this session been presented before?
Yes
When and Where?
Yes and No. This material is a subset of technical design training provided to HVAC installers in programs across NY and MA, but is not training that is generally delivered to the community of architects, engineers, consultants and builders that make up the bulk of NESEA event participation. This material has not been presented at any other conference.

NYC 2022 Areas of Focus

Session Format
Debate between opposing viewpoints

Strongest Content Connection - NYC 2022

Comments about your speaker roster
Animated speaker with ability to engage a large audience and spur discussion and questions on in depth materials.
Reviewer 1
Dietz, Elihu
Reviewer 2
Cuadra, Amalia
Proposal #
119
Committee Decision
Being Considered

Presenters