Be warm and cosy this winter with a heat pump!
Heat pumps make sense sometimes
We just wanted to delve into the reasons why Heat Pumps are a good idea in some circumstances, and not others. They are not the ultimate environmentally friendly heating system everywhere but are one of a number of possible options for your building.
Here’s why:
Let’s say we are looking for 9000 kWh of heat in a year into our building including the hot water. A heat pump’s performance is measured as COP (Coefficient of Performance). This says how much heat comes out compared to the energy used to make it run. Typically the COP could be 3 and so to get 9000 kWh out we need to put 3000 kWh in.
Heat pumps are normally electrically powered so we need 3000 kWh of electricity.
Facts:
Costs £450 per year (at 15p/kWh all-in price)
Emits 1290 kg CO2 per year.
What if you had chosen a gas boiler?
To get 9000 kWh out from a band A boiler we need to put 10,000 kWh of gas in:
Costs £450 per year (at 4.5 p/kWh all-in price)
Emits 600 kg CO2 per year.
Or, you could use a wood fueled boiler: To get 9000 kWh out from a good quality wood-fuelled boiler we need to put 10,600 kWh in:
Costs £450 per year (at 4.25 p/kWh all-in price)
Emits 175 kg CO2 per year.
So, as you can see, we don’t use heat pumps because of the carbon saving or the cost to run them.
So when would we recommend them?
1. When there is no gas supply and no space for a wood fuel storage hopper or deliveries would be difficult/impossible.
2. When you have a very well insulated house with high thermal mass and well designed solar gain – so you don’t often need heat at all, just a bit of a top-up.
3. When you have a big PV array or your own hydropower and so normally export electricity; you would be better using it for the heat pump.
We would need UK electricity to be twice as clean to make heat pumps as good as a gas boiler in CO2 terms and I think that is a very long way off.
Help from CLPM
We hope you have found our information on ‘Be warm and cosy this winter with a heat pump!’ helpful
If you are planning to refurbish your property to make it more energy efficient or are building a new home then CLPM can advise you on how best to insulate your home- click here to find out more.
If you are planning to make your home more energy efficient or overhaul your heating system and are interested in some independent expert advice, or you want to upgrade to a renewable energy source then do get in touch. Call 01923 896550, email info@cl-m.com or complete a contact form.
