INDUSTRY INSIGHT
www.heatingandventilating.net
Where to go for home heating?
go fo
ting g
David Holmes, founder at Boiler Guide, looks at how technological updates and environmental demands will impact domestic heating in the next decade and beyond
David Holmes, fo T ounder at Boiler Guide, loo
enough? but what are those chang homes, the heating indus emissions generated by t but with approxima achieve net zero ca he government has
New builds
them in readiness for low “new homes more energy future homes standard”w energy efficiency standard has announced, “a meanin Howdowebuild homes of
a h
with the intention of making ds as a stepping stone to the ngful but achievable uplift to fthefuture?Thegovernment
efficient and to future-proof carbon heating systems”.
The only solid plan of action is to ban gas boilers in new builds from 2025 with the most likely alternative being the installation of heat pumps from that point onwards. At the moment around 20,000-22,000 heat pumps are installed in the UK each year, but the government forecasts thi is will rise to one million per year by 2030. To make th
possible we would need 44,000 heat pump installers to be trained and existing heating engineers to be upskilled by 2035. We also need to educate the general public about these unfamiliar heat pumps and ways of living Unfortunately the journey best, unclear.
he government’s ambitions 4
gmoreenergyefficiently. ytothatdestinationis,a
at Existing home However, heat pumps are not going to save the day
million homes are using oi homes in theUKuse natur effective in poorly insulate ointment due to the fact th on their own as there’s a p
g
il. Studies suggest that ifwe ral gas for heating and 1.6 ed homes. Around84%of at heat pumps are not potentially major fly in the
gg
can replace all existing oil boilers and half of gas boilers with low carbon heating te
we could reduce the country’s carbon emissions by 8%. Heat pumps, however, do not work effectively in
echnology such as heat pumps
ges and are they coming fast stry is facing big changes, the domestic boilers in our ately 60% of the UK’s carbon arbon emissions by 2050, spledgedthatwewill
oks at how technological updates and then increase the ratio of hydrogen to gas as we build
atmosphere. develop a way to ca producing hydrogen While it may soun for external work. 100% hydrogen hea up supplies. Eventu
ating on the grid without the need ally we could make the switch to
pture carbon before it enters the ndoesemitcarbon,soweneedto nd simple enough, the process of
Off -grid homes
The other hurdle to overcome is how we heat homes which are not conne
ected to the grid and are not well
task repl Not stoc poor
ck is some of the least energy efficien rly insulated properties. Our existing
nt in Europe. housing
kthatneitherthegovernment,heating acing boilers in the majority of UK ho only that, but the cost and upheaval i
mes on the gas grid and off-grid home oil, we need to take a different tack.
Homes on the gas grid som
whe prot
into plac
gindustry omes is a nvolved in
or the public want to face. When it comes to existing hom
es heated by
insulated, as neithe rhydrogennorheatpumpswill be suitable solution s. The Clean Growth Plan states: “Our ambition is to p
phase out the installation of high
carbon fossil fuel heating in new and existing off-gas grid residential buildings (which are mostly in rural areas) during the 2020s.”
Research and trials have been underw me time looking into the viability of not
treplacing way for
gas boilers, but changing the type of fuel they use. The heating industry is investigating and developing totypes of hydrogen boilers. Unlike na en hydrogen is burnt it does not relea
ce to test the viability of adding hydro the atmosphere. Trials are currently yg
se carbon atural gas,
ytaking gas network to at first reduce the amoun v
gen into the nt of natural
gas used and then – when we have a su fficient and relia
able supply – to replace natural gas a the village of Keele a hydrogen heating tr
made up of 20% hydrogen and 80% na M
pyp
altogether. In rial is being
run by HyDeploy; the gas being supplied to properties ism
More hydrogen trials are expected to b
and and
Baxi have now revealed prototypes o leading boiler manufacturers Worce
grad run phas
of ‘hydrogen ster Bosch begin in 2020 atural gas.
yg
ready’ boilers. Theoretically, these boilers could be sed in across the country from 2025. on natural gas at first, but the aimw dually introduce hydrogen into the ga
as supply and ould be to They would
effectively. ensure renewable h stock is likely to be could be effective. T electric heating sys which require a hig panels, but these ar heat pumps, biomas The potential hea
heating technology can work increasing insulation levels to The first step for off-grid housing tems powered by solar PV panels
hupfrontcost.Alternatively, re all unfamiliar technologies ss boilers, and/or solar thermal ating alternatives could include
The future of home heating
support to enable the
solutions.Off-grid ho to embrace heatpum new builds from 202 waywelive over the Arewelikely to see s
significant practical changes in the next decade? For people buying 25, yes it is likely that they will need mptechnology or other renewable omeowners will also require emto upgrade their efficiency.
For the majority of
putting the plan into in terms of the gove
o the UK who live in homes on the
gas grid, while practical change is unlikely to come in the next decade, the next few years will be crucial
oaction. ernment committing to a plan and
or
!"
March 2020
www.heatingandventilating.net
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