Air Source Heat Pumps

Is my house suited to an air source heat pump?

ASHPs can work in a wide range of buildings but some upgrades may be required, such as improving insulation to maximize the efficiency. It works with both underfloor heating and radiators, but the latter may need to be resized to meet the buildings heat load. ASHPs are also ideally suited to heating swimming pools and the payback can be very attractive.

Before we would recommend installing a heat pump we will make suggestions to ensure that your property is correctly insulated and draft proofed to get the full benefit of the system.

You will need some space outside your property where a unit can be situated and it will need space around it to get a good flow of air and a sunny spot is ideal.

The payback will be greater when replacing an older inefficient heating system that uses oil or electricity.

How do Air Source heat pumps work?

An air source heat pump works in the same way as a conventional fridge in that it extracts heat from the outside air versus a fridge which extracts heat from its inside. Air source heat pumps can still be an effective way of providing internal heating even when the outside temperature is very low.

Heat pumps do need electricity to run, but the heat they extract from the outside air is constantly being renewed and the amount of electrical energy they use compared to the heat energy they generate, makes them very attractive and efficient.

Air source heat pumps deliver heat at lower temperatures over a much longer period which means that if radiators are the delivery system they should never feel as hot to the touch as they would do when using a gas or oil fired boiler.

What types of air source heat pumps are there?

There are two main types of air source heat pump. Air-to-water systems that distribute heat via your wet central heating system such as underfloor heating or radiators, and Air-to-air systems that produce warm air which is circulated by fans to heat your home.