Printable View
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-50993183
I did the 'green' thing and put ground source heating in.
I'm surrounded by wind turbines.
My question is, why do I pay so much more per Kwh than just about any other part of the UK?
Anyone in the industry know why? Reduce (or at least equalise) the cost where wind power is available might encourage more over to electricity for heating.
you soon will only be able to fit electric, ground source or possibly biofuel heating in new homes. the government are making the move to outlaw gas boilers from 2025
Question for Goodfellers, I have read recently that running a ground heat pump - house heating system costs 25% more than heating the same house using Gas (probably the cheaper town gas not Calor). In your experience is this true or have I been conned by the media. I do have a neighbour that said to me he was shocked at how expensive it was to run the ground pump heating system in his new home in Caithness.
As mentioned by Shaggy, the SNP have decided to stop anyone putting in a gas heating system in new build houses from 2024 - to me this is just nuts as Scotland's contribution to Global CO2 is a very tiny percentage of that given off by China and America and will make absolutely no difference to any CO2 in the World, plus we are planting the majority of trees in Britain, throughout Scotland, that absorb/use CO2 and give off oxygen (thank goodness). The SNP also went for duel fuel for the two new ferries they have not yet been able to build - and they used Natural Gas and Diesel in these ferries. This is one of the reasons the ferries have not been built in time or on budget, with the cost at least double. It would appear double standards to stop individuals using gas for heating when they claim the new gas/diesel ferries are environmentally better for Scotland.
So why on earth are we going to penalise new house builders in Scotland with expensive to build, heat pump systems - that probably have an average lifespan of 10-12 years (my guess).
Anyway I am interested in the actual running costs of ground heat pump heating systems - is it economically viable, and does it actually heat a home in winter, and where is the cost of electricity involved in - running the heat pump or supplementary heating, or both?
Hi Richard.
My ground source system is run by a three kw compresser.plus a couple of water pumps (about 70w each I think). I have an economy 10 electricity supply, so I get ten hours at 10.23p per kwh (inc vat), then the other 14 hours are at 16.17 per kwh. So with my system I have a 250 gallon heat store, so the system runs for the 'cheap' 10 hours, this heats the floor (underfloor heating) and any surplus gets stored. Most of the time the heat store tank is about 40 degrees C so hot enough for a shower and washing up. I can send the ground source hot water direct to the tank if I just want hot water without heating. I also have solar hot water panels which heat the tank too, although they don't make much difference in winter.
So, if I have the system running for the 10 hours it costs roughly £3.50/day, this keeps a reasonable sized three bedroom house at 21 degrees no problem.
For me, it is a good system, I'm pleased with the running costs. Maintenance is very low, just keeping an eye on fluid levels and cleaning two filters once a year. I expect I will have to get the compresser re gassed at some point (system is 12 years old and still running well) I'm hoping a 'normal' refrigeration engineer can do that rather than a specialist ground source heating engineer as the compresser system is basically the same as a commercial freezer.
One of my neighbours has an air source heat pump which he says was a bit of a 'con' as he says it costs more to run than his old oil system. I think ground/air source work well with under floor heating as you can take advantage of the cheaper 10 hours without having to use the more expensive electricity.
I do have a log burner as 'stand by', just in case the system fails. The only time I light it, is if we've been away for a while and want instant heat.
I'd recommend it for a new build, but not sure about retro fitting it.
Thanks for the detailed information on your ground heat system, it sounds like reasonable running costs for a 3 bed house.
I am sure this information will be very helpful for others who are considering a new build. I think the main point is that ground pump heating is not actually environmentally friendly unless the electricity is generated by wind turbines, many people just think they stick in a heat pump and it is all then free (most MSP's and Green environmentalists for example). The initial costs I assume are relatively high, my guess is 10K for an average property so in actual real terms it still costs a lot more to run that using natural gas.
The answer of course is for properties near wind farms (lets just say all of Caithness) to be given lower electricity tariffs rather than give out "free" money to community groups that often only benefit a relatively small number of people, or ideally do both, lower tariffs and money for community groups.
Last year I had a quote to replace a oil fired heating/ hot water system with an air source heat pump. The cost to remove the oil burner and install the compressor and associated equipment was £9,000. The existing radiator system was compatible. The estimated running cost was £1,400 per year for the electricity.
My current cost for oil is £800 per year and I estimate the electric to run the pump is about £200 per year. So the increase in running cost for a heat source was a bit much. ( +£400 ) Keeping the oil system for now but the air source or ground source is appealing.