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INSTANT ELECTRIC HOT WATER FOR MODULAR BUILDS

AN EFFICIENT INSTANT HOT WATER SOLUTION THAT OFFERS STREAMLINED INSTALLATION AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY, IS GAINING GROUND AS A GO-TO FOR MODULAR AND OFFSITE PROJECTS.

Australian owned MicroHeat’s solution differs from conventional electric water heaters in that it does not rely on heating elements, but instead uses direct energy transfer technology to exploit the natural electrically conductive properties of water. Hot and warm water can be delivered continuously via a digital system that monitors and reacts to changes in the characteristics of the water being heated, 100 times per second.

The system gained early visibility in the offsite construction realm when it was endorsed by Unitised Building, a subsidiary of Hickory Group and developer of trademarked prefabricated building solution UB System. In the search for efficient space usage and electric hot water, Unitised Building installed MicroHeat’s CFEWH (Continuous Flow Electric Instant Water Heaters) in a modularised two-bed, two bathroom apartment project in collaboration with the sustainable living project The New Joneses, which was displayed in Melbourne’s Federation Square in 2017.

MicroHeat’s compact size equating to A4 punches above its weight, supplying continuous, instant hot water.

Benefits of the system identified by UB included MicroHeats’ small size (A4 footprint), efficiency and ease of install, enabling them to be fitted within the existing modular framework of the apartment, thereby making it easy for the units to be added to the offsite assembly process.

A key consideration in the installation of the technology was reduced electricity consumption, with the units only consuming power on-demand. The units are configured for single phase, two phase and also three phase power. They can also be installed in tandem.■


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