Patent ID: 8037931

Claim:
A hybrid fluid heating apparatus, comprising a controller that: (a) in response to both sensing of a demand for more heat at a tank containing potable water and sensing of an availability of heat from a refrigerant within at least one vapor compression refrigeration unit, maintains a cooling fan in a deactivated state and commands that circulation of fluid occur between the tank and at least one heat exchanger that extracts heat from the refrigerant to heat the fluid, (b) in response to sensing that the demand for more heat at the tank is satisfied, ceases the circulation of the fluid between the tank and the heat exchanger and activates the cooling fan to blow across a condenser of the at least one vapor compression refrigeration unit to expel waste heat from the refrigerant to ambient air, (c) in response to both sensing of the demand for more heat at the tank and sensing an availability of heat by insolation from at least one solar collector unit, commands that circulation of the fluid occur between the tank and the at least one solar collection unit to heat the fluid by the at least one solar collection unit; (d) in response to both sensing that the demand for more heat at the tank is satisfied and sensing of an availability of heat from the at least one solar collection unit, commands that the circulation of the fluid from the at least one solar collection unit divert to a heat dump before flowing to the tank; and (e) implements the circulation of the fluid in each of (a) and (c) and directs activation of at most a single circulation pump to enable the circulation of the fluid via associated in-line valves and common piping.