{"id":215253,"date":"2026-01-07T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/07\/how-quilt-solved-the-heat-pumps-biggest-challenge-techcrunch\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T16:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:00:00","slug":"how-quilt-solved-the-heat-pumps-biggest-challenge-techcrunch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/07\/how-quilt-solved-the-heat-pumps-biggest-challenge-techcrunch\/","title":{"rendered":"How Quilt solved the heat pump’s biggest challenge | TechCrunch"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Smart home startup Quilt introduced a three-zone heat pump on Tuesday that promises to maintain efficiency even in the kinds of demanding conditions that stymie traditional incumbents. <\/p>\n

The three-zone unit does what it says on the label: one outdoor unit is now capable of driving three indoor heads, as they\u2019re known in the HVAC world. It\u2019s a product that will make large installations simpler and cheaper while minimizing the footprint outside the home, and it\u2019s key to the startup\u2019s plans for expansion, which were recently turbocharged<\/a> by a $20 million Series B focused on expanding sales.<\/p>\n

But the real story is how Quilt<\/a> developed the new product.<\/p>\n

Since its founding, Quilt has prided itself on the amount of data it collects from its heat pumps. Not only are they internet connected, they\u2019re also laced with more sensors than typical heat pumps.\u00a0<\/p>\n

By analyzing that data, Quilt engineers have been able to do things that other companies have not. In September, for example, they shipped an over-the-air update<\/a> to heat pumps in people\u2019s homes that unlocked an additional 20% capacity, which could be directed toward either one or two zones. With the free update, people could be more comfortable during heat waves and cold snaps.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The team also used the data to develop the new three-zone unit and, in the process, solve a vexing challenge that many competitors face.<\/p>\n

Like all heat pumps, multi-zone units work best when they\u2019re run at variable speed \u2014 that is, when heating or cooling demand is low, the compressor runs at a lower speed to deliver only the amount of heating or cooling that\u2019s needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Techcrunch event<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco<\/span>
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

But there are limits to how low they can operate. Compressors become less stable at low speeds, making them harder to control. Matthew Knoll, co-founder and CTO at Quilt, compares it to driving a car a low speeds. Maintaining an even 70 mph is easier than a steady 11 mph. \u201cIt\u2019s a little harder,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To compensate, most systems stop the compressor at a certain point, sacrificing some efficiency and comfort in the process.<\/p>\n

Quilt, though, was able to draw on data collected from the thousand or so units already installed in people\u2019s homes and businesses, giving them insights into how the systems were operating in the real world.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way most systems are developed, they\u2019re tested in a lab under a couple scenarios because testing\u2019s expensive. And you end up with kind of a you know an average product,\u201d Knoll said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a thousand units out there in many different climates, and if we see something, we can look at it across a bunch of different units to understand if there\u2019s room to optimize or if we\u2019re seeing a problem in a corner case,\u201d he said<\/p>\n

The company also uses a larger copper coil than many competitors, which allows it to spec a smaller compressor. That combination, along with some other tweaks to the design, allows Quilt to deliver nearly 90% of its rated capacity (27,000 BTUs) at -13\u02da F (-25\u02da C) without sacrificing low-demand performance or efficiency. Quilt says it\u2019s the most efficient three-zone mini-split on the market.<\/p>\n

To save power, each indoor head can be controlled individually, supplying as little as 2,210 BTUs of heat or 1,570 BTUs of cooling. If heating or cooling isn\u2019t needed, refrigerant still flows through the lines like it does in other heat pumps. But thanks to the outdoor unit\u2019s low-speed performance, it only releases around 300 BTUs of heat in heating mode. That\u2019s about as much heat as a grown adult throws off.<\/p>\n

Where does Quilt go from here? Knoll wouldn\u2019t comment on future plans other than to say that Quilt \u201cwants to be able to have a solution for all homes.\u201d More products are coming, and it\u2019s likely that reams of data will help lead their development.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Smart home startup Quilt introduced a three-zone heat pump on Tuesday that promises to maintain efficiency even in the kinds of demanding conditions that stymie traditional incumbents. The three-zone unit does what it says on the label: one outdoor unit is now capable of driving three indoor heads, as they\u2019re known in the HVAC world. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":215254,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-215253","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tech"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215253","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=215253"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215253\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/215254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=215253"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=215253"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=215253"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}