the Guardian i will take that with a pinch of salt
Heat pumps are they a waste of money?
- Thread starter Chippy_Tea
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Maybe I didn't read the article right, but it's essentially saying that because the government et al have demanded that net zero is the only way forward, a lot of people are taking that bait and getting jobs in the net zero sector...
This is from the article: "The analysis showed economic growth and climate action go together, said the report’s authors"
But doesn't that mean, in essence, that if the powers that be say "everyone will be dead in ten years unless we get more vending machine repair people" then there's a huge influx in jobs for vending machine repair people, that proves what they said to begin with?
Seems a bit like a self fulfilling prophecy, I'm sure I'm missing something here, nobody is really that gullible right?
This is from the article: "The analysis showed economic growth and climate action go together, said the report’s authors"
But doesn't that mean, in essence, that if the powers that be say "everyone will be dead in ten years unless we get more vending machine repair people" then there's a huge influx in jobs for vending machine repair people, that proves what they said to begin with?
Seems a bit like a self fulfilling prophecy, I'm sure I'm missing something here, nobody is really that gullible right?
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You've met the British public, right?
I think we have reached the point were BS is believable and is the norm
I bet that wasn’t in the Telegraph.
So if it’s in the Telegraph or Mail it’s true but the Guardian or Independent then it’s BS. Very sad.
conorm
Active Member
We built our house in 2020.
I did a lot of research and puts lots of thought in to our design. Our architectural technologist is passive house certified so we went in the project with a huge focus on insulation and energy efficiency.
We ended up with a 9kW heatpump, under door heating, load sof insulation.
It's amazing, it works perfectly and I wouldn't change it for the world. BUT... Gas would have been a cheaper install, and running costs would have been about the same.
There are a few issues which have been raised already that I see every day in the self build forum I'm on.
1. They are not cheaper to run than gas due to the fact that gas is too cheap in the UK.
2. The heatpump grants have attracted stawths of chancers who are doing poor installs and massively over charging. Our system for heat pump, 300l cylinder, buffer, controls, under floor heating over 250m², etc, cost about £9k all in before VAT reclaim. Heat pump companies are charging huge amounts and gearing it so basically the £7.5k grant is their pure profit.
3. Poor installs, drafty, poorly insulated houses and the gas / electric price disparity is fuelling a huge negative pressure for heat pumps.
4. I've seen huge numbers of people that changed from gas to heatpump because they were told it would be cheaper. A slight slide on sCOP from 3 to 2.5, means it's more expensive than gas. I've seen plenty of installs were people are getting sCOP of 2, or even 1.5. Again, down to poor installs, lack of understanding within the industry.
5. The quality of new build housing is shocking, with many examples of the above issues happening in new builds. Under sized pumps, running at too high flow temperatures, complicated zoning and controls, leading to poor COPs and huge bills.
6. Heat pumps are the only way to decarbonise heating systems.
In summary, existing housing stock is ****, new builds not much better, gas is too cheap, grant bandwagons aren't helping, heatpumps work when done right.
I did a lot of research and puts lots of thought in to our design. Our architectural technologist is passive house certified so we went in the project with a huge focus on insulation and energy efficiency.
We ended up with a 9kW heatpump, under door heating, load sof insulation.
It's amazing, it works perfectly and I wouldn't change it for the world. BUT... Gas would have been a cheaper install, and running costs would have been about the same.
There are a few issues which have been raised already that I see every day in the self build forum I'm on.
1. They are not cheaper to run than gas due to the fact that gas is too cheap in the UK.
2. The heatpump grants have attracted stawths of chancers who are doing poor installs and massively over charging. Our system for heat pump, 300l cylinder, buffer, controls, under floor heating over 250m², etc, cost about £9k all in before VAT reclaim. Heat pump companies are charging huge amounts and gearing it so basically the £7.5k grant is their pure profit.
3. Poor installs, drafty, poorly insulated houses and the gas / electric price disparity is fuelling a huge negative pressure for heat pumps.
4. I've seen huge numbers of people that changed from gas to heatpump because they were told it would be cheaper. A slight slide on sCOP from 3 to 2.5, means it's more expensive than gas. I've seen plenty of installs were people are getting sCOP of 2, or even 1.5. Again, down to poor installs, lack of understanding within the industry.
5. The quality of new build housing is shocking, with many examples of the above issues happening in new builds. Under sized pumps, running at too high flow temperatures, complicated zoning and controls, leading to poor COPs and huge bills.
6. Heat pumps are the only way to decarbonise heating systems.
In summary, existing housing stock is ****, new builds not much better, gas is too cheap, grant bandwagons aren't helping, heatpumps work when done right.
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Great balanced view. We were looking at getting one as we already have solar panels but the heat pump was too big and we didn’t have the space.
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