Ground Source Heat Pump

In the autumn of 2005 we installed a ground source heat pump to provide all the heating and hot water for River Barn and Lois' cottage. Again this is an expensive piece of kit and we were lucky to be awarded a grant towards the large capital outlay.

 

A heat pump, for those who don't know, works in the opposite way to a fridge. Instead of extracting heat from within a fridge to cool down the interior, a heat pump extracts the heat from either the outside air or the ground. Underground, water is pumped around the 800 meters of pipes that we laid over 1.2m deep in the field. As the water passes back through the heat pump, the heat is extracted, cooling the water to below 0 degrees. The water contains anti freeze to stop it from freezing. The icy cold water is then pumped through the ground again where it slowly warms back up to the ground temperature. The heat extracted from the ground is converted into lots of hot water, which is stored in a very large insulated cylinder. For every 1kW of electricity used, 3 to 4kW of energy is extracted.

 

The heat pump is less efficient at heating water to high temperatures.   This is why a heat pump is so effective used in combination with underfloor heating. Hot water used for UFH runs at a lower temperature than water used for traditional radiators. Underfloor heating is also great because the heat is under your feet and the stone floor conducts the heat well into the rooms. It is a very much more pleasant heat to live with than radiant heat produced by conventional radiators.

 

If you are thinking of reducing your carbon emissions by installing a ground source heat pump with under floor heating, do ask for more information. Whilst staying here, guests are very welcome to look at the heat pump and heat store at Treworgey.