Available and Heated Air from Warm Spaces and/or Exhaust of Air Conditioners from Residences or Buildings for Use with Heating Water of Nearby Swimming Pool

Abstract

A system for supplementing the heater for a swimming pool comprises the use of a heat exchanger for the heat generated by an air conditioning evaporator or condenser. The system can also recover and use the otherwise lost heat of an attic and redirect the same to augment the heating of the water of a swimming pool.

Claims

1. A system for heating the water of a swimming pool by use of pumped water from and back to the swimming pool comprising a heat exchanger of the heat from any one of an attic; an attic air exhaust and an evaporator or condenser of an air conditioning system.

2. A swimming pool water heating system comprising: a) a pump for drawing water from and returning water to the swimming pool; b) an internal space air conditioning system comprising an evaporator or condenser unit; c) a heat exchanger between the exhaust of said evaporator or condenser unit and the water from said swimming pool.

3. A system as claimed in claim 2 wherein said heat exchanger is integrated into said air conditioning system.

4. A system as claimed in claim 3 wherein said heat exchanger is a component of said evaporator or condenser.

5. A system as claimed in claim 4 wherein said heat exchanger is a component of a water cooling tower for said air conditioning system.

6. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein a thermostat is provided to control the temperature of the water provided to said swimming pool.

Description

[0009] FIG. 1 is a simple schematic diagram showing how a conventional home residence with an air conditioning system and a heated swimming pool have operated in the past and also shows the inventive system coupled into a residential home with attic exhaust air and/or air conditioning evaporator/condenser heat being fed into a heat exchanger for use in supplementing the water heater for a swimming pool. For ease of illustration and understanding, the schematic does not show electric supply, nor even all pipes used in the system but, rather, only those thought necessary for a clear understanding of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS AND THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0010] As seen in the Figure, a simple, conventional, two-story residential home is provided with windows. The home H shown is a standard two story Colonial-style home with an attic, A, used for storage. Generally, the roof of the attic A is not itself insulated from the outside but the floor F of the attic A (the ceiling of the living space for the home H) is provided with insulation to retain heat in the home (in the wintertime) and to keep the cooler air of an air conditioned home within the living space of the home in the summertime). As is conventional, the attic can have a side vent V for air circulation and even a roof mounted (through the attic A) fan which is often thermostatically controlled to exhaust heated air (in the summertime) to the atmosphere if the attic A gets too hot, i.e., if the temperature exceeds a predetermined maximum. The Exhaust Fan or Attic Exhaust (AEX) is shown as is heated vapors shown being transferred to the outside.

[0011] Often, in these traditional two story homes, an air conditioning system is at least partially located in the attic, usually, the air handler or distributor. Generally, such is suspended from the underside of the roof of the attic A and it receives “conditioned” or cooler air from the outside by an evaporator or condenser usually located outside the home and on the side of a home, usually at ground level. Schematically, the air conditioner's evaporator/condenser units are shown in FIG. 1 as elements E/C. These units cool and condition the air by a heat exchanger mechanism and the use of Freon gas which is compressed and allowed to expand in a well known manner to provide cooled air to the air handlers/distributors A/H which distribute the cooler air to the rooms of the home. The warmer air near the ceilings of the home is often collected through vents and returned to the air handler which is, again, located in the attic A. The air evaporators or condenser unit(s) E/C generally remove heat from the withdrawn air by use of the expansion and contraction of Freon gas in a closed loop system and exhaust the removed heat of the air of the home to the atmosphere. This, too, is shown by the vapors extending upwardly from the evaporators/condenser units E/C. A single pipe is shown connecting the cooled air from the evaporator/condenser unit(s) E/C to the air handler AH in the attic A whereupon the now-cooled air is distributed to the rooms of the home via pipes and through ductwork to create a pleasant environment on a warm outside air day or night.

[0012] The home H also includes one or more return registers (RR) which are the intake of the air for directing the same back to the evaporator/condensers E/C, for further air conditioning. Normally, the return registers RR are in or near the ceiling of the home. The standard controls, electricity, thermostats, registers, units, distributors, piping, etc. is well known by those of skill in the field of air conditioning of conventional homes and residences.

[0013] The depicted home H also includes a swimming pool SP in its back or side yard. Steps are shown in the shallow end of the swimming pool. As is conventional, water is directed by piping into the pool after the same has been pumped out of the pool to and through a pool filtration system SWF. The SWF is a conventional filter and treatment system, e.g., with diatomaceious earth and a chlorinator or salt system chlorine filtering and hygiene maintaining device. After filtering and treating, the water is pumped (not a batch pump but, rather, a constant flow pump is generally used for x hours a day or continually) back to the pool. The water flows into the Swimming Pool via pipes or eyeball inlets I and is drawn out of the pool by the pump (adjacent the Swimming Pool Filter system (but not shown) via one or more drains or pool skimmers SK. Of course, for ease of illustration and understanding, one eyeball inlet I and one skimmer SK are shown for swimming pool SP, but many can be used.

[0014] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a Pool Heater PH is provided in the pool system for raising the temperature of the water, generally after filtration and chlorinating. Here the Pool Heater PH is shown with water coming into it from the swimming pool and water flowing from it, after the temperature of the water is raised (a thermostat turns the heater on and off, depending on the set temperature and the actual temperature of the water) it flows back to the pool SP, through the eyeball inlet(s) I. The Pool Heater PH is driven by a source of electricity (not shown) and the heat is transferred within the Pool Heater PH to the water via a heat transfer set of internal pipes of the Pool Heater PH. The Pool Heater is generally connected, for providing the heat, to a source of natural gas, propane tanks, or even solar or electric power.

[0015] As can be seen in FIG. 1, heat is lost in the summertime from these residences because of the heat of the attic being exhausted to the atmosphere through the Air Exhaust fan or venting mechanism and heat is also lost or unused from the evaporator/condensers E/C of the air conditioning system. Yet, the Pool Heater PH needs to generate heat to warm the water of the pool.

[0016] The present invention contemplates the use of the otherwise lost heat of the attic A and/or that of the evaporator/condenser E/C units to supplement or provide heat to the water of the pool. Of course, the use of the heat from the attic and/or air conditioning system is controlled by a thermostat so that the pool water is not allowed to get too hot and uncomfortable. As can be appreciated, a system of water-carrying pipes can pass through the air exhausting flow of the evaporator/condensers units E/C and also through the Attic Exhaust fan area, wherein the pipes are either filled with water, air or another heat absorbtive material and then that fluid, now heated with otherwise lost heat form those systems, can be placed into the system for heat transfer to the water from the pool preferably on its way to the Pool Heater. The heat transfer from the Attic A, the Attic Exhaust Fan AEX and from the evaporator/condenser units E/C can be accomplished by a simple heat transfer HT mechanism either before the Pool Heater PH or after the Pool Heater. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the Heat Transfer is located downstream or after the Pool Heater PH. The heat transfer mechanism can be piping of countercurrent flow of fluids and/or air and/or water and/or other heat absorbing material or fluid which gains and “takes” heat from the sources of high heat (e.g., the Air Exhaust Fans and the Attic A and the Evaporator/Condenser Units E/C) and then transfers, efficiently, that heat to the flow of water of the swimming pool SP as the same is returned to the pool via piping and by the action of a pump. As seen in FIG. 1, pipes or other conduits are provided to take the heater air or heat component of the air from the attic A, the Attic Exhaust Fans AEX, the Evaporator/Condenser Units (E/C) to direct the same to and into a Heat Transfer mechanism. There the heat absorbed from those units is transferred to the water from the pool to raise its temperature and return the pool water back to the pool.

[0017] Thus, in the heat of the summer, when heat builds up in the Attic A of a residential home, H, the heat can be used to augment the swimming pool heater (or replace it entirely) to heat the swimming pool water. The heat otherwise lost from the attic A, the Attic Exhaust Fans AEX and/or the evaporator/condenser units E/C is preserved and directed to the Heat Transfer mechanism and then, through conduction or convection, the heat transferred directly or indirectly to the pool water, thereby raising the temperature of the same, as desired.

[0018] Suitable switches, valves, controls, electronics, etc. may need to be connected for convenience but all are clearly within the understanding of one of skill in the area of temperature controlling of fluid, water, and air.

[0019] In an alternate embodiment, an air conditioning component, the condenser or evaporator is provided with a water inlet (from the swimming pool) which then passes through the condenser/evaporator, to absorb the heat from the air withdrawn from the home and the byproduct of the air conditioning system, to heat the pool water. Thus, after the pool water is heated by the condenser or evaporator, the water is returned and pumped back into the pool. Accordingly in this embodiment the evaporator or condenser component of the air conditioning system is integrated into the heat transfer mechanism for use in raising or maintaining the heat of the water of a swimming pool. As some air conditioners are actually water cooled (considered more efficient than air cooling) the integration of the present invention is considered within the knowledge and ability of one of ordinary skill in the art. The present invention is considered a likely “win-win” as the air conditioning system and evaporator will be more efficiently operated with a water cooled system and the swimming pool water is being heated, at least in part, by the otherwise lost heat to the atmosphere from the evaporators of the air conditioning system. Thus, the pool heater is operating far more efficiently and likely significantly less fuel will be needed to raise or maintain the temperature of the water. The consumer, i.e., the home owner, will experience a lower fuel bill both from conserving fuel for the pool water heater and a lower electric bill from the more efficient air conditioning as it is being cooled by a water cooled system, not air cooling.