Fossil fuel resources are becoming increasingly low. Everyone is concerned about reducing their energy bills, and the more eco-conscious among us
want to reduce our impact on the environment.
Whether for environmental or financial reasons or even better, both, finding a more energy efficient and economical way to heat our homes is now a real priority-for the government, for housing providers and for forward thinking home owners alike.
The good news is that you can get cheaper and greener heat, without compromising on system performance.
Heating solutions designed by us make maximum use of the renewable energy all around us, converting free heat from the air and the sun to deliver completely reliable and controllable heating and hot water for homes, even when temperatures outside are below zero.
FACT... The price of oil in the UK has increased by 60% in the last two years and it's set to rise even further over the next 5 years.
RHI Tariff Rates
Currently in the UK, just under half of our carbon emissions are created by heating buildings and water. Over 99% of this is predominantly supplied by fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal, etc) and less than 1% by renewable energy. The proposed Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) has been designed by the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) to alter this way of living, so that by 2020, 12% of heat is generated by renewable technology, thereby cutting carbon emissions and allowing the UK to hit its binding EU targets.
From October 2012, the RHI will guarantee long-term payments for the end user on specified renewable installations. It will include all types of heating, from households to factories and public sector buildings. The tariffs, which will be annually adjusted with inflation, will be paid for 20 years to eligible technologies installed since 15th July 2009 with payments being made for each kWh of renewable heat produced.
The end user can only claim cash-back through the RHI if the product and installer are both MCS approved. MCS is an independent scheme for the certification of microgeneration products and installers. It is designed to assess these products and installers against robust criteria, which provides greater protection for consumers when fitting renewable technologies to their property.
Solar Thermal Water Heating systems can also qualify for the RHI if they are certified under the Solar Keymark Scheme and installed by an MCS Approved installer. Solar Keymark is the quality label for solar thermal products in Europe. By obtaining Solar Keymark, the manufacturer is clearly demonstrating the consistent factory made quality of the product. Comparable to ISO9001, the Keymark certifies compliance of a product with the relevant European standards and requires independent tests by an accredited bodies and the existence of a quality management system.
Premium Payments.
The RHI Tariff payments are due to start in 2012, however in the interim, up to 25,000 installations from July 2011 will be supported by a RHI Premium Payment to help people cover the purchase price of green heating systems. Details of how this can be claimed will we announced in May 2011 and rates have been published as follows:
Solar Thermal – £300/unit
Air Source Heat Pumps – £850/unit
Biomass boilers – £950/unit
Ground Source Heat Pumps – £1250/unit
Households claiming this premium will be eligible for a RHI tariff from October 2012 when the Green Deal begins, as will anyone else who has had eligible equipment installed from July 2009. There will be clear criteria in order to qualify for the payment e.g. well insulated home based on its energy performance certificate, agreeing to give feedback on how the equipment performs, etc.
Further information on the Renewable Heat Incentive is available from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). Just call: 0300 060 4000 or visit their website: www.decc.gov.uk
Many businesses and homeowners currently using oil are looking to reduce their annual running costs and their carbon footprint. Ground source heat pumps can substantially reduce your running costs when compared to oil
and following the announcement of the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme (RHI), ground source heat pumps are now a financially compelling offer for clients. To compare the running and installation costs of a ground source heat pump with the costs associated with an oil boiler, please see attached an example cost comparison sheet, based on a typical commercial application.
The Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme is a worldwide first, introduced to incentives businesses and homeowners to install renewable technologies into their premises. The scheme is designed to provide a return on investment of 12% for the investment in ground source heat pumps.
All commercial property owners who install a ground source heat pump to heat their premises receive quarterly payments at a fixed rate of 4.3p per kW/hour, for a total of 20 years. Domestic tariffs have not yet been announced and will not commence until October 2012, but in the meantime, a grant of £1250 will be paid to homeowners who install and commission a unit before October 2012, subject to eligibility.
Our company is keen to promote energy sources which cause no damage to the environment, our range of renewable installations includes:
Solar Hot Water
Solar Thermal Water Heating systems can also qualify for the RHI if they are certified under the Solar Keymark Scheme and installed by an MCS Approved installer such as us.
Solar Keymark is the quality label for solar thermal products in Europe. By obtaining Solar Keymark, the manufacturer is clearly demonstrating the consistent factory made quality of the product.
Comparable to ISO9001, the Keymark certifies compliance of a product with the relevant European standards and requires independent tests by an accredited bodies and the existence of a quality management system.
This is the Solar Key mark to look out for!
Flat plate collectors or evacuated tubes?
The above Solar hot water system was installed by us at a private residence in Milton Earnest, Bedfordshire April 2011.
Although we can install evacuated tubes these tend to be more expensive and less attractive. We will take care of the whole project from start to finish. See our photo gallery fro more photos of past and current projects. Nigel of Spitfire Scaffolding supplies our access needs to roofs. When the job is finished you have our personal gurantee the site will be left clean and tidy!
When installed and tested for performance in an array many years ago by what was the DTI there was no significant difference in the performance between flat plate and evacuated tube collectors, so why pay the extra?
I am sceptical too about the longevity of the vacuum inside the evacuated tube. I have seen so many of them with condensation on the inside after
only a few years. This is an indication the vacuum has gone, so losing
their performance, this is why I prefer the flat plate collector.
- Ground Source Heat Pumps - This technology is not new and in fact we all come into contact with it every day of our lives and most homes already rely on this technology. If you own a fridge you are familiar with this technology. Have you ever wondered how these products work; how the low temperatures are achieved inside and why the rear of the appliance gets warm?
- Ground Source Geothermal Heating Systems use solar energy that is absorbed in the ground throughout the year. In the UK the ground at a depth of 1 meter or more has a near constant temperature of around 10 - 12° C. This low grade thermal energy can be extracted and used to provide heating and hot water. Heat pumps will typically operate with an efficiency of between 300% & 400% or coefficient of performance (COP) of 3 to 4. This means that for every kilowatt used 3 - 4 kilowatts of heat will be generated. Ideally underfloor heating should be utilised as this requires water to be heated to a lower operating temperature, approximately 35 /40° C. Radiators can be used but may need to be over sized in comparison to radiators installed for a gas or oil powered system. In practice radiators should be over sized by about 2.5 times. In a modern house built to an insulation standard of 0.35W/°C this is possible.
- A building of 1000m2 in size, typically has an annual energy requirement of approximately 72,000kWh/Per year. Assuming the cost of electricity is 9.5p per kW/hour - therefore a ground source heat pump with a COP of 3 means a running cost for a GSHP of approximately 3.17p per kW/hour.We are assuming the cost of oil is 59p per litre. If a boiler runs at 86% efficiency, the cost of running an oil boiler is 6.7p per kW/hour.Typical installation costs for GSHP and Oil boilers. We have factored in a cost of £1500 as an estimate for 10 years maintenance for an oil boiler and a cost of £5000 to account for two boiler replacements over a 25 year period. No maintenance costs or replacement costs have been factored in for ground source heat pumps as there should be no requirement for ongoing maintenance. Ground source heat pumps have a life expectancy of 25 years.Based on oil costing 59p per litre and electricity costing 9.5p per kW/hour Assuming the cost of oil and electricity do not increase or decrease over the next 25 years. RHI Payments as per the Commercial RHI Tariff which was announced on 10th March 2011. Domestic Tariffs are yet to be announced but will come into affect from October 2012. The installation figure has been calculated based on a borehole installation. If sufficient land is available horizontal ground arrays should be usedsignificantly reducinginstallation cost.
- Air Source Heat Pumps - Up to 400 % efficient and a viable alternative when there is insufficient land for ground collectors. The only down side is they are situated out side the property and can spoil the look of the property. Certainly not viable on Grade 2 listed as planning consent has to be sought prior to installation due to the albeit low noise levels.
How does heat pump work?
An air-to-water system distributes heat via your wet
central heating system. Heat pumps work much more efficiently at a lower
temperature than a standard boiler system would. So they are more
suitable for underfloor heating systems or larger radiators, which give
out heat at lower temperatures over longer periods of time.
Every heat pump that we install is at least 400% efficient - for each unit of energy that is input, you gain 3-4 units of heat output, making them extremely efficient to run. However, because heat pumps provide a lower operating temperature they are mostly suited to new build with modern levels of insulation (To part L), so unfortunately are not so suited to older dwellings unless the insulation can be bought up to part L specification, but please call for a no obligation quotation.
Despite this, we are still able to provide a condensing Gas or Oil boiler which will, along with an upgrade to your existing central heating controls significantly reduce your heating bills.The new boiler can be linked to a solar thermal hot water system, harnessing UV to heat your water, even on days that are overcast. (See our customer testomonial from Brian Harrison)
About Co-efficient of Performance (COP)
COP stands for ‘Coefficient of Performance’. This is a ratio with no units, basically indicating the amount of energy required to run the compressor, compared with the amount of energy being produced by the heat pump, to heat the water.
Industry Standard Testing (EN14511) for air source heat pumps is carried out at an air temperature of 7oC and a water temperature of 35oC. Standard testing, carried out to EN14511 establishes a benchmark COP at a particular ambient and circuit water temperature. This is 7oC for ambient air and 35oC for water flow temperature.
For example, the Grant Aerona 13.0kW ASHP model produces a COP of 4.8, when tested to this level. This means for every kilowatt (kW) of energy used to run the Aerona, 4.8kW of energy is being given to the heating system in return.
All air source heat pumps will have a decrease in output if the air temperature is cooler than those test conditions. This is also true if the system water temperature is raised to a higher temperature. It is therefore vital that an accurate heat loss calculation is carried out to ensure the sizing of the heat pump is correct. Not surprisingly, if the air temperature is higher, or system water temperature is lower, an increase in output can occur.
Rain Water Harvesting Systems
- Hosepipe bans, low river levels, empty reservoirs….you don’t have to look far to see why water has become one of the key environment issues of the last ten years.
- Why waste fresh (often metered) water for flushing Wc's, car washing, irrigation & washing machines when filtered rain water is free, and because it's not metered you won't pay sewerage charges either so you save on both counts!
The above photo shows the installation of a rain water harvesting system.
