Rheem Ambiheat Heat Pump Hot Water Review

Tim's Rheem Ambiheat Review

While there’s a lot to like about Rheem’s Ambiheat, I recommend you look elsewhere. I like that it has strong reviews, a reasonably strong warranty and I really like that it’s manufactured in Australia. Ambiheat’s fall down on the refrigerant - the legacy unit (available to those around Australia except Victoria) uses R-134a which has an astronomically high global warming potential (GWP) and the newer R-513a unit (Victoria) has a GWP of 629. I think people are better off looking at other units on the market that have been using better refrigerants for longer.

✅ Cost: The Rheem Ambiheat is affordable

❓ Reliability: The R-134a units have a strong track record, but it's too early to tell with the R-513a units

❌ Refrigerant: The R-134a units use a terrible refrigerant. The R-513a is better, but still has a significantly higher global warming potential (GWP) than other units on the market

✅ Maintenance: Maintenance requirements are standard

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“It comes on steady, hot and strong. Install A Rheem! Install A Rheem! Install A Rheeeeeeeeeeem!”

Anyone else grow up with this jingle playing on the TV?

Well, does Rheem still come on steady, hot and strong?

Let’s dive in.

Rheem Manufacturing Company is an American company founded in 1925 with Rheem Australia founded in 1936. That’s a long time! (but not quite as long as Stiebel Eltron). Rheem manufactured its first water heater in Australia in Waterloo in 1939. The Rheem Australia story can be seen in this 2 minute Youtube video.

It is one of only two heat pump hot water units in the Australian market that is made in Australia. Rheem’s main manufacturing facility is located near Parramatta.

Rheem’s Ambiheat is an all-in-one unit that comes in two sizes: 180L (1-3 people) and 270L (4-6 people).

The Rheem Ambiheat scores 4.7 out of 5 on Product Review. This is a good score, in line with the better units on the market.

Rheem’s warranty is complicated, but it’s better than average.

The Ambiheat has previously used R-134a as the refrigerant. R-134a has an astronomically high global warming potential of 1,430. This means for every 1 kilogram of R-134a released into the atmosphere, it is the equivalent of 1.4 tonnes of carbon dioxide released. For this reason I couldn't recommend an Ambiheat, or any other unit using poor refrigerants. Federal and State governments agree as they try to phase these refrigerants out of the market. For example, the Victorian Government has withdrawn eligibility for units that use a refrigerant with a GWP of greater than 700. Ambiheat now comes in a R-513a model to be eligible for these rebates. R-513a has a GWP of 629, so it's 629 times the global warming impact of carbon dioxide and over 200 times the impact of propane. Personally I'd prefer other units on the market which have been using the refrigerant for a longer period of time, many of which are more affordable.

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Rheem Specifications

Model	Ambiheat
Split/All-in-one	All-in-one
Capacity (L)	180/270
Tank Material	Glass lined
Tank Protection	Sacrificial anode
Place of Manufacture	Australia
Product Review Score	4.7 from 33 reviews
Warranty	Cylinder - 7 yrs supply, 3 yrs labour Sealed System - 3 yrs supply & labour Parts & Labour - 1 yr
Time in Market (Unit)	2024
Company Founded	1925
Noise Level	48 dB
Maintenance	6 months (owner) - operate the PTR valve and the expansion control valve (if fitted) 5 years (tradesperson) - major service, repalce PTR valve, inspect and replace anode (if required), check element, check and clean heat pump, check condensate drain, inspect all connections. If anode is not replaced at year 5, it must be replaced at year 8.
Recommended Retail Price (RRP)	$4,000 (est)