Help please! We have to make a decision!

pit1821

Depends what you want the heater to operate normally in sikoni

Cardew

mindovermatter wrote: »

Hi Jeepjunkie,

Many thanks - youve just put me in a spin again - talk about me sitting on the fence!
I have asked the air source chap for some references to work that they have done in similar houses.......
My wife now likes Cardew's advice re simple electric heating as we are looking at huge startup costs for the oil which would pay for years of electric panel heaters in bedrooms. We already have electric showers so would not need tankful of hotwater all the time.

To further confuse you! Have you considered a simple Air to Air heat pump for part of the house?

[Deleted User]

mindovermatter wrote: »

Hi Jeepjunkie,

Many thanks - youve just put me in a spin again - talk about me sitting on the fence!
I have asked the air source chap for some references to work that they have done in similar houses.......
My wife now likes Cardew's advice re simple electric heating as we are looking at huge startup costs for the oil which would pay for years of electric panel heaters in bedrooms. We already have electric showers so would not need tankful of hotwater all the time.

Yes it is a difficult decision and there are lot's of right answers depending on how long you plan on keeping the house, future resale, lifestyle, expectations etc.

Keep us all posted and feel free to ask more specific questions if need be.

Cheers

[Deleted User]

grahamc2003 wrote: »

Remember that full house, air to water heatpumps attract subsidies - I think the one-off premium payment is £800, and then there's the rhi which wll comne into force at some stage, which will probably/possibly be around 7/8p/kWh probably/possibly deemed on the heat loss survey (not actual heating).

It will have to be commissioned (effectively meaning installed) by the MCS cartel, so won't be cheap. Also, they're bound to spec new radiators (or possibly more) - not sure if they'll install something other than what they specify and still collect the rhi. (Anyone know?)

The biggest concern, imo, with (decent, i.e. daikin, mitsui) heat pumps is
the correct installation and setup, assuming your house is fit for one.

What I would add is try to seek out a local experienced ASHP installer with a solid background in plumbing/heating who is MCS qualified and will charge you a fair price for a properly designed and installed system. Not one of the DG type sales companies who only exist to mop up your subsidy...

We got the £850 RHI premium payment towards the ASHP but believe some people after us got a total of £1300? Cashback/trade-up deal???

mindovermatter

Hi Jeepjunkie
What size house are you heating with Air Source?
I also gather that we might not get any RHI due to the low insulation here?
Best wishes
Mindovermatter

[Deleted User]

mindovermatter wrote: »

Hi Jeepjunkie
What size house are you heating with Air Source?
I also gather that we might not get any RHI due to the low insulation here?
Best wishes
Mindovermatter

106sqm. ceilings vary between just over 2m to 3m and 50% or more is the orig wooden floor boards. Only the two bedrooms and hall have carpet.

Looking at the T&Cs of my £850 voucher this is the only line for insulation...

The property to where the renewable heatingsystem is being installed has loft insulation to 250mm and cavity wallinsulation where practical.

I don't think you have anything to worry about.

If you PM me with an email address I could send you the EST/DECC PDF?

Cheers

TiredGeek

Jeepjunkie is right, I agree that ASHP can work well as an alternative to oil or LPG, IF DESIGNED AND FITTED RIGHT.
OK, they're never going to replace mains gas, but for us who can't get it, there's very little choice.

I know the outlay is much higher initially, and you can get interest on the money you haven't spent which offsets the higher running cost of oil, but for me at least the advantages outweigh the negatives.
I couldn't be bothered with biomass, LPG is too expensive to run, oil can be stolen.

The problem is finding a company to trust.....

[Deleted User]

TiredGeek wrote: »

Jeepjunkie is right, I agree that ASHP can work well as an alternative to oil or LPG, IF DESIGNED AND FITTED RIGHT.
OK, they're never going to replace mains gas, but for us who can't get it, there's very little choice.

I know the outlay is much higher initially, and you can get interest on the money you haven't spent which offsets the higher running cost of oil, but for me at least the advantages outweigh the negatives.
I couldn't be bothered with biomass, LPG is too expensive to run, oil can be stolen.

The problem is finding a company to trust.....

Hi TiredGeek,

Hope all is going well?

Thanks for the plug but I understand renewables are not for everyone due to the upfront cost. Guess it generally only makes sense if living in the property for a while like solar.

Like yourself I like it cos it's simple and totally hands off, essential for the wife therefore my sanity Plus being all electric it's one less direct debit each month

Still have that spare Ecodan, weighs a flippin ton so not easy to move, which I really must do something about. But the wife has me working in the garden for 3-4 hours every evening so little time for much else at the moment

All the best!

mindovermatter

Hi Jeepjunkie,

I have sent you my email address - thanks

muffter

We have a similar house in Northumberland, but oil is out of the question due to limited access, so we're considering a wood pellet boiler system: not sure why some of the correspondents here seem to dismiss is out of hand. Can you explain please?