We’ve completed another energy efficient Air Source Heat Pump installation this week. This customer had an old and very inefficient gas boiler system.

Not only was the boiler an old generation boiler with poor use of energy, there was also the opportunity to replace an old poorly insulated hot water tank which was partly full of limescale. The latest generation of hot water tanks are heavily insulated, meaning your heating system has to kick in much less often to maintain hot water temperature.

We removed the gas boiler system and replaced it with a state of the art Vaillant heat pump, accompanied with the brand new pressurised unvented cylinder and all new radiators. All pipework at the heat pump, in the loft and airing cupboard have been fully insulated to provide the maximum efficiency possible.

Here’s a new state-of-the-art heating system update for another happy CCS customer who had an old style back boiler heating system. We completely removed her old back boiler system and replaced it with a new air source heat pump sitting on a compact outdoor concrete base.

We installed a brand new highly insulated stainless steel mains pressurised hot water cylinder. We fitted all new radiators complete with individual thermostatic valves and neatly installed replacement pipework, with the finishing touch of some smart trunking over pipes running down the wall to help finish off the look of the room, much better than the untidy look of exposed pipes in the corner of the room.

The whole system is now controlled by an easy to use wall mounted thermostatic controller. The customer not only has a new high efficiency system, it’s also easy to control and looks better.

Solar thermal heating installations are making a comeback. First used over fourty years ago, this proven technology is coming ‘back to the future’ with new new roof panel designs and control systems. You can now fit panels on a wider range of roof layouts, including ones which do not face directly south.

Sophisticated modern control systems also mean that solar thermal works really well with latest generation technology such as high efficiency gas boilers and air source heat pumps. Make use of free heat from the sun when it is shining, or use low cost energy from boiler or heat pump when there is no sun.

Some of the key benefits of solar thermal installations include:

• Helps to reduce your carbon footprint
• A new installation could be eligible for RHI (Renewable Heat Incentive) which means the government gives you money for 7 years for having the system. This could equate to a big chunk of the installation price coming back to you. Find out more in our previous blog post: Renewable Heat Incentive
• Solar thermal can generate between 35-55% of your hot water on average throughout the year, it will be significantly more in the summer and less in the winter.
• Doesn’t have to be on a south facing roof – due to improvements in technology we can now offer an east/west array, which splits the panels across 2 roof surfaces.
• The installation incorporates a new efficient mains pressured cylinder, giving you much better heat recovery and water pressure from taps.
• It has very low running low costs.
• Depending on existing type of water system, it could be significantly cheaper to run, especially if you are heating your hot water with an immersion heater. That is a very expensive way of heating the water, there is likely to be a saving of 35-55% of that cost if you add solar thermal panels into the system.
• Solar thermal works well in conjunction with an air or ground source heat pump. The combined system would make your heating system fully renewable energy driven, not using any fossil fuels for heating

There are plenty of reasons to look at the new generation of solar themal heating systems. Call us on 03330 436670 for a no obligation discussion with our technical surveyor who can take a look at your premises and advise on the best format and likely costs.

Yes, really. The government has a scheme for giving an incentive to property owners to install renewable heat systems. It’s called RHI – the Renewable Heat Incentive. Naturally, there are some conditions attached to it: to qualify, your home has to have cavity wall insulation and at least 150mm (6 inches) of loft insulation.

The scheme takes an estimate of the energy needs of your home and makes an annual payment every year over 7 years. As an example, if your home was assessed to qualify for an RHI payment of £7000, you’d get £1000 a year every year for 7 years. The payment varies according to property size. Here are some examples:

• 1 Bedroom property = £4,000 – £5,5000
• 2-3 Bedroom property = £4,500 – £7,000
• 4 Bedroom property = £6,000 – £8,000

These are averages, the actual figure will be based on an assessment of fuel usage. This can be substantially higher or lower depending on the assessment of your particular property. Call us to discuss what a possible figure could be for your own property.

So, if you replace a gas or oil boiler with a heat pump you could be eligible for a substantial RHI payment from the government.

But what’s the cost of running that heat pump?

Here are some average annual running costs of an Air Source Heat Pump, these are rough average numbers which will depend on how well insulated the property is, how warm you want to keep it, and how much hot water you use. Exact numbers are impossible to work out, but if you talk to our surveyor he can help with guidance.

Here are some rough estimates for a start:

• 1 Bedroom property = £380.00 running cost per year (based on 8,000 kWh per year)
• 2-3 Bedroom property = £570.00 running cost per year (based on 12,000 kWh per year)
• 4 Bedroom Property = £810.00 running cost per year (based on 17,000 kWh per year)

Compare these costs with the potential RHI payment, and you can see you won’t just get low cost heat, the government will pay you an incentive payment on top of that.

Take the example of a 2-3 bedroom property. The RHI payment could be up to £7000 over 7 years, which is £1000 a year, but the running cost is only £570. Obviously these figures will vary for different properties – give us a call to talk to our surveyor and find out what it could mean for your home.

Why are you asking to visit for a survey?

It lets us have a discussion with the customer on a face to face basis to give honest advice on the best options for their house.

We can see your property for ourselves and give the best advice to ensure that the new heat pump technology works the best it possibly can.

We need to measure the heat losses for each individual room to ensure we can accurately select the size of the pump unit and radiators properly. If we are installing a solar thermal option, we also need to measure the property and loft spaces to be able to size the panels accurately to provide the most hot water possible.

And finally, it lets you answer any questions you have in a discussion with our professional experienced surveyor. What it is NOT, we promise you, is a high pressure double glazing sales visit. It’s a meeting with our technical expert who will measure up, discuss options and go away to prepare a no-obligation quote for you.

Is it safe to have this work carried out during covid?

As a responsible company working inside customers home every day, we ensure we are a covid secure company.

We leave a covid checklist behind with every customer to put their mind at ease that we have kept them as safe as possible.

All our staff whilst in the property will wear masks and have all the relevant personal protective equipment required to work safely in the customers property.

How long will the installation take?

A standard installation will take an average of 5 working days to complete.

What does the pump look like?

The heat pump will look like a slightly larger domestic air conditioning unit.

We install either the Vaillant aroTHERM or the Samsung EHS Gen6:

Vaillant – https://www.vaillant.co.uk/homeowners/products/the-arotherm-air-to-water-heat-pump-1408.html
Samsung – https://www.altoenergy.co.uk/samsung-gen6

Find out more about how an Air Source Heat Pump could work for you – CCS Surveyor Eddie talks about what’s involved in a free home survey:

You might have heard that the government’s new Green Homes Grants Scheme, launched in autumn 2020, encourages home owners to install Air Source Heat Pumps to replace old gas and oil fired heating systems. But why should you consider the benefits of an Air Source Heat Pump system instead of just getting a new gas boiler?

The answer is, there are lots of benefits from this ‘new’ technology. However, it’s not really so new. Sure, it’s a new idea to use it in household heating systems, but heat pumps have been used in commercial buildings for years, and you even already have a heat pump in a different form quietly working away to run your household fridge and freezer. But what are the benefits for a household heating system?

Well first of all there’s the reason the government are pushing us all to think about heat pumps – and that’s to cut down our carbon footprint. Instead of burning fossil fuels like gas or oil and releasing harmful carbon into the environment, a heat pump uses an efficient electric motor to move heat from the outdoors air into your home. All you need is a small amount of electricity, hopefully from renewable energy, to run the electric pump. You could easily be cutting your carbon emissions and your carbon footprint by three quarters.

And there’s not just the feelgood factor of cutting your carbon footprint, you’ll save money too. Because three quarters of the energy used will literally be extracted from the air outside your home, you’ll massively cut your fuel bills as well – especially if you can power the pump from solar panels.

There are practical benefits too, because you are getting rid of your old gas boiler you’ll free up some valuable space in the house – and a household’s old boiler is often in the kitchen where storage space is already at a premium.

Heat pumps really are the system of the future, if you have got an old boiler it’s pointless to replace it with another boiler which over time will become ever more expensive to run. If you install a heat pump today there are massive government incentives which are only on offer for a short time. The Green Homes Grant Scheme could see up to two thirds of your installation cost being paid for by the government.