Heat pump water heaters are relatively rare compared to gas water heaters or electric resistance heaters, but they are supposed to be a good idea. The major drawback to them is higher up-front installation costs, but the payback period is just a few years. Compared to full-blown, solar PV they are a considerably simpler upgrade for the American homeowner and since they are relatively new we can expect their price to decline and their reliability to improve over time.
Here is my crazy idea--link a heat pump water heter with domestic refrigeration equipment. One system is generating heat for water and expelling cold air, which could be recovered to offset the heat discharge from a refrigerator. Now that I think about, it won't work for houses because it's better for the refrigerator and hot water heater to be completely decoupled, but for commercial kitchens this could be a money and energy saver.
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