Heata Offers UK Residents Free Hot Water in Exchange for Cooling Its Servers
Ready to take your liquid cooling to the next level, but with someone else’s hardware and get free hot water in the process? Network company Heata is now offering free hot water for a year to UK residents if they sign up to take part in a pilot rollout of the new service.
Of course, there are pitfalls (there are several): You need to allow Heata to install one of your hot water server units in your home. This unit does not replace your existing heating unit. work with it. It provides some, but not all, of the hot water you need.
The company says the unit provides a “useful base load” of hot water and can provide up to 4.8kWh of hot water per day, though the exact amount will vary depending on usage and other factors. Heata is obligated to provide a minimum of 2.5kWh per day. Heata estimates that hosts can save up to £200 a year based on average home hot water usage.
Heata took care of the installation in less than 2 hours, tested by a UK gas engineer and checked to ensure the ‘major cylinder manufacturer’ cylinder warranty is not voided. Of course, not everyone can participate in his Heata trial — Heata’s units are designed for vented domestic hot water cylinders with a diameter of 425-450 mm, and are designed for installation around the perimeter of the unit. Sufficient clearance space is required.
Both power and broadband are required to operate the unit. Heata handles electricity through refunds. The power used to run the unit is metered (visible to the host) and Heata will credit the host with the power used at 10% above the market rate.
it’s not very It’s clear how broadband is handled — in Heata’s FAQ on it Trial registration page, it says that Heata needs a broadband connection to communicate with the unit. The company assures that “in most cases, the unit will only send monitoring information (temperature/fan speed, etc.) to the base,” but that “you shouldn’t notice the impact,” however, it’s a privacy hazard. From my point of view it’s still not good. position.
Also, to avoid using too much bandwidth, I run an occasional speed test and limit large uploads/downloads to “some of this” and these are scheduled at night so they don’t impact my speed during the day. The sign up page also says they plan to install a “dedicated fiber or 4G/5G connection” on the unit in the future. More detailed brochure (PDF) (opens in new tab)which states that the Heata unit will use “a proprietary connection that can either be a dedicated fiber line, or a connection via 4G/5G.”
As for the server, you can’t access it, mine crypto with it, or do whatever you want with it. We sell services (see ESG points). Hitota’s trial will last a year and may be extended “under circumstances.” Heata says it will be responsible for removing the installed unit and re-insulating the section of the cylinder where the unit was installed.
Heata isn’t the only company looking for ways to recycle server heat. Microsoft’s new data center in Finland reports that waste heat will be used to heat local residents’ homes, covering about 40% of the heating needs of 250,000 people. Also, last year, it was reported that a data center in Hokkaido, Japan was using heated wastewater from an eel farm.
If you are in the UK and more interested in ‘free’ hot water than eel, Sign up for a Heata trial here.