(Air Source Heat Pumps)
Example Air Source Heat Pump Installation
How Air Source Heat Pumps work
Atmospheres can supply and install hot water and heating (R/E) systems. The technology inside an air source heat pump is similar to any domestic refrigerator, which uses a vapour compression cycle. The main components in the heat pump are the compressor, the expansion valve and two heat exchangers.
Overview
Heat pumps move heat in the air into the home to provide a total solution for Domestic How Water and all heating needs. As the heat pumps simply move energy, rather than creating it by burning fossil fuels, they are very efficient. For every 3KW of heat moved into the house, only 1KW of electricity is consumed. This gives a perceived efficiency of 300% sometimes stated as a Co-efficient of Performance (COP) of 3:1.
Renewable Heat Premium
Date 27th July 2011
This is a UK Government scheme designed to help you afford renewable technologies for your home, such as:
Solar thermal panels
Heat pumps ( air source, ground source or water source), and
Biomass boilers
The Renewable Heat Premium Payment scheme will run from 1 August 2011 – 31 March 2012. However, you can register your interest beforehand.
Click Here to find out more
Renewable Energy information update
Date 26th July 2011
Can I get RHI today ?
The Government has stated that the domestic sector will be eligible for RHI support from October 2012. In the meantime, prospective domestic participants may wish to consider applying for the RHPP. Further information about the RHPP can be found at www.decc.gov.uk/RHI.
What happens in October 2012 ?
The real answer is nobody knows but we expect the current commercial scheme will be adapted to suit the domestic sector. The document below details how the commercial RHI works NOW.
Freedom HP has taken the guidance from these documents today, they answer a lot of queries but we will update you if we hear of any major changes to the system. We will not be held responsible for any changes which occur to the RHI between today and October 2012.
Accreditation
In order to receive support under the RHI, your installation will have to be accredited by Ofgem. Application will be online. Accreditation is the process by which Ofgem determine whether an installation meets the eligibility criteria of the scheme and the owner agrees to the conditions of participation. The date of accreditation for your installation is the date from which your RHI payments will be calculated.
What are the rules?
In order to gain accreditation for an installation, the applicant will have to demonstrate that an installation meets the RHI eligibility criteria by providing proof / evidence including:
- The heat is used for heating a house or for heating hot water; this includes fully enclosed swimming pools but not outdoor pools.
- Details of the installation‘s design and installation, such as technical calculations, drawings, commissioning data or other operating and maintenance documentation.
- The installation was completed and first commissioned on or after 15 July 2009
- That no grants were given to the owner for the installation,RHI only applies if no grants from public funding have been received for purchasing or installing the installation.
- The plant must be new at the time of installation. You cannot apply if the kit has been moved from one site to another. If you move it you lose the RHI
- Both installers and plant must be certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS).
- Evidence the kit reaches the minimum COP of 2.9 at EN14511 conditions; All Samsung and Hitachi kit does this.
Who gets the RHI?
The owner is the person who will have to apply to Ofgem and will receive RHI payments for an accredited installation. The owner will normally be the person who purchased and paid for the installation of the equipment. They are going to ask you for all the relevant paperwork, this will all be in their MCS handover pack; we can help you with this.
How does it get measured and how do I get paid.
In the commercial world the amount of renewable heat provided is measured with a heat meter installed in the system pipework. It is not clear whether this will also be the case in domestic applications but is likely. If your heat pump can cool it will still be eligible BUT only the heating will qualify for RHI.
Heat Meters will have to be of a certain standard and details of it will need to be submitted at the time of accreditation. These meters retail at £350 each.
Once a quarter the owner must give the heat meter reading to Ofgem using the website. The reading is then adjusted to remove any heat which is not renewable and is multiplied by the RHI fee.
Occasionally Ofgem will carry out a programme of site inspections to check the installation and readings.
Example:
Your heat pump provides 10000 kWhr of heat this quarter. If it operates at a COP of 3, 1/3 is electrical energy and 2/3 is renewable.
So you will get RHI for 6666 kWhr of energy. Currently this is at the rate of 4.5p/kWhr So 6666 x £0.045 = £300 This will be paid directly into the owner’s bank account quarterly for 20 years.
Anything else that the owner needs to do?
Ofgem requires the equipment to be maintained in line with manufacturer instructions, the owner will need to keep evidence of maintenance work carried out, for example, servicing receipts, and to provide evidence on request.
What happens if they move house?
The Regulations allow for the ownership of an installation, or part of an installation, to be transferred. This means that if you are the existing owner of an accredited RHI installation and wish to sell or transfer all or part of the installation, the new owner will be able to assume entitlement to payments under the RHI. There is a procedure that has to be followed.
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Renewable Energy information update
Date 10th March 2011
Today further information about the RHI grant was released on the DECC web site. As expected it is a weighty document full of information. From the point of Air source heat pumps a subsidy towards the installation cost is available at £850 a system. The much anticipated rebate towards run cost has been put on hold until October 2012.
Why you may ask has this been done?
The answer is simple, DECC do not think that air source heat pumps are a proven technology and would like more time to consider its effectiveness before committing to subsidies. The evidence for this is available in a report by the energy saving trust. The report states that 80% of heat pumps are inefficient and don’t operate as the manufacturers claim, this is entirely due to bad installation, bad sizing and bad commissioning.
So we as an industry only have ourselves to blame. It’s clear what we need to do, from today we must install good kit, designed for the application and set it up to operate well. We need to prove this technology is effective and is “the “ way to heat your house.
World's first Renewable Heat Incentive launched to reduce emissions
£860m government scheme expected to increase green capital investment by £4.5 billion up to 2020, stimulating a new market in renewable heat;
The tariffs will be paid for 20 years to eligible technologies that have installed since 15th July 2009 with payments being made for each kWh of renewable heat which is produced.
Once in the scheme the level of support an installation will receive is fixed and adjusted annually with inflation. However, as with feed in tariffs, we expect the levels of support available for new entrants to the RHI scheme will decrease over time as the costs of the equipment and installation reduce through economies of scale.
RHI premium payment: households
There will be clear eligibility criteria in order to qualify for a Premium payment, including:
We plan to publish details of the “RHI Premium Payment†and how this will apply in May this year. We will consult on the RHI tariffs that will apply from October 2012 later in the year.
In brief there is NO subsidy for air source heat pumps
An installation grant is available its £850
Table highlighting likely levels of support for RHI Premium Payments:
For information please visit the department of energy's website: Click Here
Atmospheres are Accredited Ecodan Installers (AEI)