Building heating and/or cooling methods of the present disclosure can include continuously distributing fluid from within conduits within a concrete floor of a building to conduits within grounds surrounding and/or supporting the building.

One embodiment of LMHPs, as shown in FIG. 10, is a multi-function, grid-interactive heat pump system by alternately charging/discharging thermal energy storage (40) as its heat pump source. The charging process maintains thermal stability to the source. The thermal stability of the source ensures high system performance, and this energy-storage-as-source and its effective use provide system operational versatility. Which takes the forms of availing the system-operation of dual heat sources (10 and 20) for heating application, demand-response management (48), grid-integrated water heating (46) as well as grid-integrated space heating and cooling (48). By transcending the limitations of individual, stand-alone, solar units and heat pump units, the grid-interactive heat pump system performs heating function better than all existing heat pump methods. LMHP principle is applicable to single-function, grid-interactive heat pump operation with similar benefits of high performance and demand-response management. Other embodiments are described and shown.

Photovoltaics and an MPPT DC/DC converter powers a DC bus of a controller. It uses an electric heat pump to heat a mass like water, and also has a resistive heating element to heat the mass. A microcontroller controls a variable frequency (VFD) motor drive to power the electric heat pump when sufficient solar power is available to run the heat pump and uses the resistive element to heat the thermal mass when insufficient solar power exists for the heat pump or when excess solar power is available. A controller has an MPPT input for solar power and a VFD to provide power through an output to a heat pump-based water heater and an output to power a resistive water heating element. A microcontroller determines solar power available and runs the heat pump when possible and the resistive element when insufficient power is available or when excess power is available.

Photovoltaics and an MPPT DC/DC converter powers a DC bus of a controller. It uses an electric heat pump to heat a mass like water, and also has a resistive heating element to heat the mass. A microcontroller controls a variable frequency (VFD) motor drive to power the electric heat pump when sufficient solar power is available to run the heat pump and uses the resistive element to heat the thermal mass when insufficient solar power exists for the heat pump or when excess solar power is available. A controller has an MPPT input for solar power and a VFD to provide power through an output to a heat pump-based water heater and an output to power a resistive water heating element. A microcontroller determines solar power available and runs the heat pump when possible and the resistive element when insufficient power is available or when excess power is available.

A fuel-fired appliance with thermoelectric-powered secondary electric heating has a burner providing hot combustion gasses into a first housing. A second housing containing a fluid receives heat from the combustion gasses in the first housing. A thermoelectric device attaches to a surface of the appliance heated by the combustion gasses and generates a voltage. An electric heating element is in thermal communication with the second housing, and the electric heating element is electrically connected to the thermoelectric device.

A fuel-fired appliance with thermoelectric-powered secondary electric heating has a burner providing hot combustion gasses into a first housing. A second housing containing a fluid receives heat from the combustion gasses in the first housing. A thermoelectric device attaches to a surface of the appliance heated by the combustion gasses and generates a voltage. An electric heating element is in thermal communication with the second housing, and the electric heating element is electrically connected to the thermoelectric device.

A hydronic heating system. A vat of water is heated on a hot wood stove. The water is recirculated through a heat exchanger to heat a remote living space.

The present disclosure pertains to a system configured to prepare and use prediction models for classifying images. Some embodiments may: obtain, via a system return temperature sensor, a system return temperature; obtain, via an appliance return temperature sensor, an appliance return temperature; and responsive to a determination that the appliance return temperature is greater than the system return temperature by at least a first threshold amount, decrease, via a hardware processor, a speed of the appliance pump.

A combined heat, cooling and power system is configured to generate energy as well capture a large percentage of energy that would otherwise be lost using components, including heat transfer components, embedded within a vessel to transfer energy in the form of heat to liquid within the vessel.

A hybrid heating system is disclosed. The hybrid heating system includes a compressor that is configured to compress refrigerant. The hybrid heating system further includes a first heat exchanger that is configured to adjust a temperature of water by exchanging heat between the water and refrigerant compressed by the compressor. The hybrid heating system further includes a second heat exchanger that is configured to evaporate refrigerant by exchanging heat exchange with exterior air. The hybrid heating system further includes a first boiler heat exchanger that is configured to increase a temperature of water using heat generated by combustion. The hybrid heating system further includes a second boiler heat exchanger that is configured to exchange heat between exhaust gas discharged from the first boiler heat exchanger and refrigerant flowing into the second heat exchanger.