American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and Climate Energy, LLC announced the official start of retail sales of freewatt Micro-sized Combined Heat and Power (Micro-CHP) cogeneration system for homes, which features advanced and highly efficient energy management technologies. The freewatt Micro-CHP system provides heat for the home with the added benefit of electricity production. The ultra-quiet MCHP unit produces 3.26 kilowatts of heat and 1.2 kilowatts of electric power. The electric power produced displaces electricity that consumers would otherwise purchase from the local electric utility, saving $500 to $1000 per year on their electric bill. An additional unique financial savings benefit of utilizing the freewatt system is realized through the process of net metering. In states where legislated, net metering allows homeowners to literally sell unused electric power back to the power grid in their community, providing additional savings. In addition, the system produces 30% less carbon dioxide emissions than a conventional heating system with electricity provided from the grid.
Climate Energy and Honda plan to gradually expand production and sales of the freewatt Micro-CHP system and plan to introduce the system to other cold weather climates in the U.S. in the future. Currently, a similar version of an MCHP system is retailed in Japan, with over 45,000 units sold to date since its introduction in 2003.
