A heat pump still costs energy to run… And running it in reverse to cool a room is the exact same process as running an ac to cool a room. It’s all phase change cooling which we’ve been doing for decades. The only possible innovation that could be had here is using the waste heat instead of just releasing it to the outside environment, but that requires wanting to heat something else while you need to cool the server room.
Comment on What Happens When Facebook Heats Your Home
TranscendentalEmpire@lemm.ee 11 months agoModern heat pump systems are reversible, so you would be drawing the heat energy from the room and releasing it outside. During this exchange air is run over a compressed coolant which cools the air and reintroduces it back to the room.
Crozekiel@lemmy.zip 10 months ago
bitwaba@lemmy.world 10 months ago
That’s just called an air conditioner?
KairuByte@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 months ago
An AC can only cool the home, while a heat pump can both cool and heat a home. They are different things, and worth looking into.
bitwaba@lemmy.world 10 months ago
That’s just an air conditioner. The difference between an air conditoner and a heat pump is that a heat pump has a reversal valve that allows the refrigerant to run backwards through the system.
My point is someone is using a whole bunch of words to say “I’d air-condition my server room”. It’s not exactly a ground breaking idea.