Are heat pumps really as green as we all think?

Using heat pumps to cut down on home energy use may not be as environmentally friendly as people think, research suggests.

The quality of heat pump installation throughout the UK varies widely, according to research by the Energy Savings Trust, which monitored the technical performance and customer behaviour across 83 sites in a year-long trial.

Air source heat pumps were found to be less efficient than ground source heat pumps, although the system efficiency of UK ground source technologies was lower than in similar European trials.

The report also indicates that well-installed heat pumps can lead to carbon savings and reductions in gas and electricity bills.

Design and installation of the heat pump was found to have a significant impact on how well the system reduced energy bills and improved a home's carbon footprint.

Furthermore, customer use of controls was found to have an impact on performance, with many property owners suggesting that they found the instructions for use difficult to understand.

The findings have been published ahead of the scheduled launch of the government's Renewable Heat Incentive in April 2011.

Ministers have targeted increasing the level of heat generated by renewable sources from 1% to 12% over the next ten years.

Posted by Martin Ellis