A heat pump water heater looks like a tall tank heater with a unit on top. That unit takes heat from the surrounding air and puts it into the water. It is still an electric heater, but it is installed differently: it needs space, airflow and a place for the condensate to drain.
Updated July 2026 · Licensed CFC1432506
A standard electric tank heats water with elements. A heat pump model does most of the heating with a compressor that pulls warmth out of the air around it — which is why it works best in a space that is warm, like a Florida garage or utility room, and why it cools that space slightly as it runs.
That changes the installation. The unit is taller than most tank heaters, it needs clear air around the top, and the compressor makes condensate that has to be drained. We plan those three things before the old heater comes out.
In a flood zone the floor is the worst place for a water heater. Raising the unit keeps the burner, the controls and the electrical connections above the water if the room ever floods, and it makes the connections easier to service.
We build those stands ourselves, on site, from pressure-treated lumber, sized to the unit and to the height the location needs. It is not a shim under a tank — it is a platform built to carry a full heater and stay square under it for years. Our work on a stand like this is $150.
The drain pan sits on the platform, the heater sits in the pan, and the pan drains away — so a leak leaves the room instead of soaking the floor.
In a room under renovation, the new heater had to stand above the floor. We built a pressure-treated stand on site, set a drain pan on it and installed a Rheem Performance Platinum heat pump water heater with a thermal expansion tank. The EnergyGuide label was still on the new unit when these photos were taken.
Ceiling height, air volume around the unit and where condensate can drain.
Stand and drain pan at the height the location needs.
Shutoff, expansion tank, relief-valve discharge and condensate line.
Tank filled before power, operating mode set, and we show you the controls.
Yes. It plugs into an electrical supply like a standard electric tank heater, but most of the heating is done by a compressor that moves heat from the air into the water, with elements as a backup.
Often not. It needs a certain volume of air around it and clearance above. A garage or a larger utility room usually suits it better. We check the space before recommending one.
In a flood zone it keeps the unit and its electrical connections above the water if the room floods, and it makes servicing easier. We build the stand on site from pressure-treated lumber; our work on a stand like this is $150.
The compressor cools the air around it and pulls moisture out, like an air conditioner. That water has to go somewhere — a drain line, not the floor.
A Rheem Performance Platinum heat pump model — the name is on the unit in our photos. We install other brands too; the right unit depends on the space and the household.
Workmanship warranty: 5 years on new construction, 1 year on repairs. Equipment carries the manufacturer's warranty.
Pro Plumbers FL is a family-run company. The licence CFC1432506 is held by Liubov Ivanova; Viktor Zarubitskii — in the plumbing trade since 1998 — plans the job, makes the technical decisions and works on site. Our own plumbers do the plumbing. Work outside plumbing, such as concrete cutting, we either do ourselves or bring in a contractor — either way it is written into your quote.
Source: Google
Send photos of the room where the heater stands now — we will tell you whether a heat pump model fits.
Licensed CFC1432506 · Insured · Clearwater, FL + 50 miles
