Ground Source Heat Pumps work by extracting heat from the ground. In the UK the ground keeps a constant temperature of about 11-12ºC throughout the year. This is because of the earth's high thermal mass, which allows it to store heat from the sun throughout the year. A Ground Source Heat Pump draws this heat from the ground via a plastic pipe buried in the ground, in either a bore hole or a horizontal trench . This pipe is filled with a water and antifreeze solution, as the water is passed through the pipe the temperature is raised a few degrees by the heat in the surrounding soil. By compression in the heat pump, the temperature of the solution is raised further, and the heat is transferred to your heating system to provide space heating and your domestic hot water.
Heat pumps offer greater energy efficiency over traditional heating products that use non renewable energy, such as gas or oil fired boilers, thus reducing the cost of heating. The efficiency of a heat pump is measured by something called “The Coefficient of Performance or CoP as it is commonly referred to. This is the ratio of units of heat output for each unit of electricity used to drive the heat pump, so if a product has a COP of 3 then it produces 3 units of heat for everyunit of electricity it consumes.
Ground Source Heat Pumps typiclally offer a CoP range from 3 to 5 although some systems can produce higher COP’s. Howver the CoP is only an indication of the highest performance the heat Pump has to offer. The type of building, quality of insulation, current type of heating and electricity tariff all have a bearing on the overall efficiency and as a result each Heat Pump installation is designed and installed to maximize the energy efficiency of the application.
Our job is to examine your exact needs and to deliver the facts so that you, the customer, can make an educated decision as to whether a Ground Source Heat Pump is suitable for both you and your property. All too often we hear from people who have been sold a Ground Source Heat Pump only to discover that their electricity bills have substantially increased. Essentially they have substituted expensive oil or gas, to heat their central heating and domestic hot water with equally expensive electricity, which to be frank is pointless. Therefore our design and consideration of the system is paramount to it's energy consumption and efficient running.
Is Your Property Suitable For a GSHP?
Not all properties are suitable for Ground Source Heat Pumps. Ideally a parcel of land is required for the installation of the ground loop. The land size requirement is largely dependent on the size of the heat pump, which is dictated by the heating requirements of the property. Although there are ground loops available that are condensed in to a crate configuration in order to condense the ground loop and reduce the land that is required, the buried pipes still have to draw heat from the ground. As with any resource if you over stretch the demand it will expire, in this case the ground will literally freeze, if too much heat is extracted from too small an area.
Where land is restricted we can offer the option of making bore holes, however there is an additional cost to this, which can out weigh the bennefit of installing a Ground Source Heat Pump. In this type of scenario we would always recommend that the customer considers an Air Source Heat Pump with combined Solar Hot Water. When correctly designed thje combined energy sources provide outstanding results.
Understanding You
At Solar 7 we offer a wide range of both Ground and Air Source Heat Pumps from a number of market leader manufacturers. We have a technical understanding of combining Heat Pumps with existing heating systems and also in combining Heat Pumps with other renewable energy sources such as Solar Thermal to increase the energy efficiency and ultimately cut your energy bills.
We offer a complete service from the ground excavation to the supply and commissioning of the Ground Source Heat Pump. We also have a dedicated underfloor heating installation and support team who specialise in all aspects of underfloor heating.
We place a high priority on customer service and as such our engineers are trained to the highest standards in all aspects of Heat Pump installation, application and service. Since each installation is different, we prefer to keep your options open - as a result we specialise in a number of different heat pump manufacturers and associated products.
Costs & Savings
Because each property is unique, seldome are two installations ever the same. Some properties may have underfloor heating, some may not. Some may want to keep their existing boiler, some may not. The construction materials and insulation can differ from one property to the next. Bathrooms, bedrooms, occupancy etc etc all make each property different. Different products from different manufacturers offer alternative outputs, options and configurations. Our job is to listen to your requirment and advise you which products would best suit your requirements.
A typical installation costs somewhere in the region of between ten and fifteen thousand pounds. Often this will include alterations to your exisiting central heating and domestic hot water systems, a replacement hot water storage unit and the integration of existing energy sources. There is little doubt that with the ever rising costs of traditional fossil fuels there will be savings from installing a heat pump, how much depends on your particular use, and property insulation values. We supply, install and maintain a range of products to suit all applications and requirements. Here are just a few of the manufacturers that we recommend and install, and who understand the expectations of their own products implicitly.
Stiebel Eltron: Established since 1924 the state-of-the-art German manufacturer have become a wold wide supplier and have earned themselves the enviable reputation as a manufacturer of faultless quality products. Stiebel Eltron offers an innovative and impressive range of Ground Source and Air Source Heat Pumps, that make them one of the market leaders in the field of Heat Pumps. Stiebel Eltron also specialise in Solar Thermal, Mechanical Ventilation Systems and Heat Recovery products.
Kensa: UK Manufacturer, ISO9001 approved for the design and manufacture of heat pumps and hold an unique status as being accredited by the BERR (Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, formally DTI) for the manufacture and installation of Ground Source Heat Pumps. Kensa were also a founding member of the Ground Source Heat Pump Association. Kensa also advise many Government Departments on GSHP applkication and have become well known within the market for their honest and straightforward advice.
Nibe: NIBE Energy Systems Limited are a Swedish manufacturer that has become one of Europe's leading manufacturers in the domestic heating sector. They design, manufacture and supply a range of Heat Pumps and Heat Recovery systems that offer high-tech solutions for heating, ventilation, cooling and heat recovery that reflect today's demand for sustainable construction.
Rehau: Rehau are a market leader in underfloor heat products. Energy efficient underfloor heating is increasingly being specified over traditional radiator systems and has established a reputation as the preferred modern-day heating solution.
Gledhill Torrent: Gledhill provide a range of "Thermal Store" hot water cylinders, which maximise the efficiency of combined energy sources. The Gledhill Torrent RE is an advanced range of "primary" open vented hot water cylinders that offer mains pressure hot water, without the safety risks associated with an unvented hot water system. Being a "Primary Store" the product offers the advantage of being able to combine and utilise energy inputs from a number of different sources such as Heat Pump, Solar Thermal, Wood Burning Stove, Traditional Fossil Fuel Boiler - reducing the energy required to provide heating.
Chelmer Heating Products: Chelmer provide a range of advanced, energy efficient Thermal Store Cylinders which includes the new Ecocat, Thermocat, Multicat and Electrocat. All the cylinders are designed to incorporate Solar and are regulated to make the most efficient use of combined energy heat source.
