Ground Source Heat Pumps
A ground source heat pump is an electrically powered system that uses the natural energy stored in the earth to heat your home. The system is very energy efficient – for every single kilowatt of electricity used to power the heat pump, four kilowatts or more in energy is generated.
The principle is simple and the result is low-cost comfortable heating that uses sustainable energy and causes no direct emissions or other damage to the environment. An integrated additional heater avoids the need for a supplementary heat source and the system is designed to be the sole source of heating and hot water in the home. For maximum benefit and efficiency, a ground source heat pump is best used with under floor heating, but oversized radiators are also an option.
Three methods of obtaining the energy from the ground are available. In a horizontal collector, lengths of pipe are buried underground to a depth of around 1 metre. This is a good solution if the property in question has enough land to accommodate the collector. Compact collectors reduce the amount of space required by increasing the amount of pipework in a given area. For vertical collectors, a bore hole is drilled to a depth of between 60 and 200 metres and the collector is fed into the hole thereby minimising the amount of land required.
Recently, planning permission for ground source heat pumps has been significantly eased.
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