Heat Pump Dryers
High efficiency electric clothes dryers that significantly reduce household greenhouse gas emissions.
Like heat pump water heaters, heat pump dryers move heat from the ambient environment rather than generating it anew, which makes them very efficient. These dryers actually have two heat pumps. One heats the drum, which evaporates water in your clothes. The other cools the resulting warm, moist air and condenses out the water.
Advantages of Heat Pump Dryers
Why might you consider a heat pump dryer instead of a conventional unit?
It will save you money. A heat pump dryer uses less than half the energy of even a modern Energy Star conventional electric dryer, which will save a typical homeowner more than $50 / year on electricity in Illinois or Wisconsin. Heat pump dryers also use less than half the energy of modern gas dryers. And, since the most common times for dryer use are nights and weekends, if you are on an hourly or time-of-use electricity plan, you will likely save money by going with a heat pump unit.
You can put it (almost) anywhere. Heat pump dryers are ventless. This means don’t need a duct to an exterior wall, so you can put them wherever it is convenient. (Most do require a drain.)
You won’t be heating the outdoors. Because they are ventless, heat pump dryers don’t eject warm indoor air outdoors. Your heat pump dryer will reduce the load on your furnace — saving you more money than you’d calculate only by looking at the efficiency of the dryer itself.
They are easier on your clothes. Heat pump dryers operate at a lower temperature than conventional dryers, which makes them easier on your clothes.
It’s the best choice for the environment. According to the Department of Energy’s Energy Star ratings, heat pump dryers only consume about 40% of the energy of even very efficient gas or standard electric models.
They are safer and healthier. Burning natural gas in your home creates modest risks to health due to its effect on indoor air quality and fire potential. Heat pump units don’t create these risks.
Things to Consider
Before you take the plunge with a heat pump dryer, though, here are some things to be aware of:
Make sure to get the right size. Some heat pump dryer models have a smaller capacity (around 4.0 cubic feet) than a typical American dryer. This might be great for a two-person household, but for a larger family look for models that have a capacity of 7.0 to 8.0 cubic feet (which is normal by American standards).
They can take longer to dry. Heat pump dryers operate at lower temperatures than conventional dryers, but this otherwise very positive review of LG’s latest heat pump dryer mentions the dryer takes about 1 hr, 40 minutes to complete a cycle. If you have moderate needs this won’t be a problem, but if you have a high volume of laundry that you are timing with your washer this might be inconvenient.
You might need a 240V circuit. Most heat pump dryers require a 240V electrical circuit. If you already have an electric dryer, you almost certainly have the necessary circuit already. If you’ll be replacing a gas dryer, however, you may need someone to install a heat pump dryer circuit.
Heat Pump DRYER Incentives
Both Illinois and Wisconsin offer rebates for heat pump dryer installation. ComEd, Illinois’s largest electric utility, also offers a rebate for heat pump dryers.
These incentives fit into a broader set of incentives for electrifying all the gas appliances in your home. (Get more information for: Illinois or Wisconsin.)
Wisconsin Heat Pump DRYER Rebates
Wisconsin will offer a rebate of up to $840 for heat pump dryers under its Home Electrification and Appliance Rebate (“HEAR rebate”) program. In addition, you can receive up to $6,500 for the cost of electric wiring upgrades to support the dryer (for example, you may need a 240V heat pump dryer circuit run to your laundry room). There are certain income limitations, but they are fairly generous. Funding for the rebate comes from the federal government; it was part of 2022’s federal Inflation Reduction Act. Focus on Energy administers the heat pump dryer rebate in Wisconsin. We expect it to be available by the end of 2024.
Illinois Heat Pump Dryer Rebates
Customers of ComEd, Illinois’ largest electric utility, can take a $200-300 rebate on the purchase of a heat pump dryer. We recommend using this to offset the cost of the appliance itself.
Illinois will also offer rebates for heat pump water heaters funded by the federal government as a result of 2022’s Inflation Reduction Act. Illinois’s program is not yet live, but we expect it will be similar to Wisconsin’s but be available only to lower-income households.
(Including EV chargers, heat pump water heaters, and induction cooking, and heat pump HVAC.)
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