Am I legible for Ground Source Heat Pumps?
As a new build you are ideal for ground source heat pumps as long as you have a reasonable amount of land to site the underground pipe work. There are three different types of system.
How Much Can I Expect To Save?
You can expect to save in two main ways, one way you save on money you are already spending and the second is a unique income that the government has backed for 20 years.
Renewable Heat Incentive
This is a government backed income exclusively for home owners who use renewable heat such as ground source heat pumps. This income is backed by the government for 20 years so you are guaranteed to get a return on your investment.
You can expect to receive between £1000-£2000 a year for 20 years.
Assuming the average (£1,500), from the Renewable Heat Incentive alone you would receive £30,000 this is on top of your annual savings on energy bills.
Energy Bill Saving
These are the savings you can expect compared to the competitors.
Gas: Annually around £70
An Electric System: Annually around £530
An Oil System: Annually around £160
A System Running off Solid Fuel: Annually around £370
Assuming the average energy bill saving of £282.50 annually, over the course of 20 years you can be saving £5650 on your bills.
This amounts to a total of £35650 saved and earned over 20 years by adding a ground source heat pump to the plans of your new build.
1. Horizontal collectors
This system consists of a series of loops of 40mm pipe work buried to a depth of one metre. The length of the pipe work needed varies depending on the heating needs of your property, but will usually be more than 400m in total length.
2. Compact collectors
These are panels of pipe work joined together to create the length of pipe work necessary. Whilst they take up less room, due to their size the trench needed is bigger at 2m wide and 1.5m deep.
3. Bore hole collectors
These are buried deep in the ground, ideal for smaller gardens. Access will be needed for geological surveys and drilling equipment. Depth can start from 80m down.
You will need to have an indoor space available that can accommodate a fridge freezer sized operating unit. As ground source heat pumps work best with under floor heating (or radiators oversized by 40-50%) new radiators may be needed.
Why Should I Choose Ground Source For My New Build?
The ground source system is ideally suited to new builds and renovations, as the ground work costs can be incorporated with the build. Even choosing a energy efficient boiler be it gas, oil, electric or solid fuel will not be as economical as a ground source heat pump. Also it will cost you more money to run and requires more professional attention than the ground source heat pump will therefore saving money in the future. You also wouldn’t be eligible for the renewable heat incentive which will turn your ground source heat pump into a lucrative investment.
What should I do next?
When you contact us, we will ask you some simple questions about your property which will enable us to tell you if your property is suitable for the ground source system.
If it might be suitable, we will arrange a convenient time to visit your property when our Renewable Energy Adviser will explain the installation options and fully size up the work. Your property measurements are then entered into our specialist software to identify the ground source system best suited to you and your home.
