Air source heat pumps offer alternative energy

Phil Hurley at Nibe has comments on the efficiency of Air Source Heat Pumps, surprisingly overlooked in the UK until recently as oil and gas prices rocket.

As prices increase, more and more planners, developers, builders and householders are searching for alternative energy sources.

Phil Hurley has no doubts about the efficiency of these air/water energy conversion systems.

Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) have two significant advantages over alternative energy systems.

First, they can be used in virtually any domestic situation and second, installation in new build or retrofit situations is simple, fast and does not involve massive disruption to the house or garden.

Geothermal systems require groundwork diggings and a spacious garden, wind turbines need major construction [and of course wind] and solar panels involve expensive rooftop work.

Nibe Air/Water Heat Pumps can be simply fitted anywhere outside; adjacent to a house wall, by a boundary fence, or even at the bottom of the garden.

The units are pleasantly designed with a satin metallic finish, measure only 1,200 x 500 x 1,045mm [including the adjustable feet] and weigh only around 150 kilos each.

As they can be fitted into even the smallest modern garden, the Nibe pumps have proved popular with housebuilders who can combine the significant selling points of cheap heating and eco-friendly living with the welcome receipt of credits granted under the Government's Code for Sustainable Homes.

The principle under which Nibe's ASHPs work is surprisingly simple.

An integral fan in the unit draws in air from the atmosphere, severely compresses it to extract the optimum amount of energy and then harnesses that energy to heat water in a storage tank that can then be used for domestic hot water supply and central heating.

The Air/Water Heat Pump is suited to run underfloor heating since it is at its most efficient between 35C and 45C but it can also be adapted for use in a radiator system if preferred.

In fact the system works in a similar way to the ordinary domestic refrigerator except that in this case it is the heated air that is retained and the near freezing air rejected instead of vice versa.

Energy savings using Nibe Fighter Heat Pumps are impressive.

They create 3kW of energy from every kW of input from the mains electricity on which they operate, and they are confidently claimed to cut fuel costs by around 50 per cent compared with conventional heating methods.

That percentage will almost certainly increase further as fossil fuel prices go up while supplies of fresh air will still be free in the foreseeable future.

There are also significant ecological advantages in addition to energy saving as Nibe's low carbon system reduces CO2 emissions by 35 per cent or more compared with, say, an old gas boiler.

The average UK household is estimated to produce 5 tonnes of carbon every year and nearly three quarters of that is generated from heating, so those percentage savings are significant indeed.

Householders using a Nibe Fighter Air/Water Heat Pump can feel doubly satisfied for they are helping to save the Planet at the same time as saving on fuel bills.

It is certainly true that Scandinavia [and Sweden in particular] has a head start on the UK when it comes to the use of alternative energy systems, and in particular ASHPs, but it is equally true that we are, at last, catching up.

The Swedish technology that is incorporated in the Nibe Fighter Heat Pump range has proved thoroughly suitable for British needs and the demand for Nibe Air/Water Heating systems is accelerating fast.

This demand is coming from all sectors of the market, from the professional builder to the private householder and for both new installations and refurbishment projects.

The advantages of a system that offers major ecological as well economic benefits are already proving attractive.

The rate of switch to Air/Water heating systems such as Nibe's can only increase as fossil fuel supplies become scarcer, prices rise and legislation for energy efficiency and lower emissions become ever more stringent.

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