2. Mrs S Brennan - Air Source Heat Pump
Air Source Heat Pump Installation case Study
CLIENT:
Suzie Brennan, North Yorkshire
BRIEF:
Provide heating and hot water for a four-bedroomed, Grade 2 listed, stone-built former farmhouse and new extension. There is no gas supply to the hamlet.
SOLUTION:
An air source heat pump to provide all services - plus under floor heating to the new extension.
PROJECT:
An oil-fired boiler previously heated the property, however the oil storage tank needed replacing and the heating system needed extending to the newly built extension. So with a certain amount of financial outlay inevitable Suzie seized the opportunity:
“I was going to have to pay out anyway and I wanted to become a bit ‘greener’ - and I was definitely concerned about the soaring price of oil supplies,” she said. “I was also looking at the possibility of using solar panels. But in the end, after I had researched the subject, I decided that an air source heat pump was the best way to go. The ground here in the dale doesn’t lend itself easily to the installation of a ground source pump, so an air source it had to be.
Suzie used to live in Durham and therefore knew about Natural Warmth and she has never regretted bringing them in to carry out the installation.
“When the team first arrived Steve was on hand to introduce them and, with one thing and another, they must have been here for about 3 weeks. In all that time they were unfailingly polite and clean and tidy. If they had to leave before I returned home and there was something I needed to know, they would leave a number for me to call and they would talk me through the matter.
“This is a big, old, stone house and takes some heating,” she said. “But the house is kept at a constant temperature and always feels nice and warm. This winter the temperature has dropped to minus 12 some nights, but I never have to use anything other than a thin duvet. It is, without doubt, one of the best things I have ever done.
“Another smart idea was to put an extra radiator in the play room, that has made a big difference to the amount of time the girls spend in there… although they always gravitate towards the kitchen/dining room, especially the youngest, for the under floor heating as well as the snacks.”
SUMMARY:
Suzie says she is “absolutely delighted” with the system. A part failed early on, but a replacement was sourced and installed within the week – luckily it was during summer.
“Everyone comments on the under floor heating in the extension - and the cat loves it,” she said. Like most youngsters her two young daughters might not pay too much heed to the heating system, but Suzie says it has improved their lives too, “you know what kids are like, but both of them have remarked that their bedrooms and now warmer than they used to be.”
Suzie has done her sums and says it is costing her approximately £200 per month in total to run the system that provides all the heat, lighting and hot water she needs. She considers that very good value given the amount of use the washing machine and tumble drier get – remember she has two fashion conscious young daughters!
Suzie admits that the initial financial outlay had given her plenty of food for thought, but she reckons that the system should have paid for itself within around ten years.
In addition, she is convinced it will be a major selling point if she ever comes to leave this beautiful hamlet at the head of Bilsdale on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors National Park.
Related Articles
Natural Warmth - Specialist installers of Ground Source Heat Pumps, Air Source Heat Pumps