Air Source Heat Pump - Planning permission required!

Reed_Richards

Fundamentally, what is needed is equitable treatment between heat pumps and boilers.  

matt_drummer

Reed_Richards said:

Fundamentally, what is needed is equitable treatment between heat pumps and boilers.  

I agree, but I am not sure that will happen any time soon.

It does seem ridiculous though that the planning process for installing a heat pump where noise may be a concern (which is actually most homes in the UK I would imagine) is the same as having an extension.

All this is caused by the MCS noise regulation, perhaps that is what needs changing.

Because of noise, now all sorts of other factors are being taken into account.

The truly ridiculous part of this is that if I installed my heat pump in the same position but just 3 metres up in the air, I wouldn't need planning permission!

matt_drummer

Today's update!

I have received a letter from the Environmental Protection Team at Ipswich Borough Council.

They want me to reposition the heat pump against my neighbours garage wall, run pipes and cables underground and build a 2 meter high screen from either bricks or timber of at least 20mm thickness across part of our garden to screen the heat pump from our neighbours view.

Their view is that even though my neighbour supports the application, the heat pump will be too noisy for them to live with.

If I don't agree to their proposition by 27 April 2023 they will oppose my planning application.

In another helpful move, the planning officer dealing with my case is on annual leave until 01 May 2023.

Brilliant!

matt_drummer

This is what they say,

                              As your proposed  ASHP does not meet the MCS 020 standard, you do not have permitted development rights and hence you have applied for planning permission. The Council must consider the amenity of your surrounding neighbours and current guidance published by jointly by the IOA/CIEH states that:

“Where PD does not apply, a planning application will be necessary and, under those circumstances, a noise assessment should be provided, undertaken by a Suitably Qualified Acoustician (SQA) or Environmental Health Practitioner (EHP)5. The assessment should be proportionate and take into account the local circumstances and the nature of the installation…………Where it is practical to do so, it is recommended that the installation sound rating level does not exceed 35dB at any noise sensitive façade of neighbouring residential premises (it is recommended that a feature correction of 6dB is added to the calculated sound pressure level in order to obtain the rating level. This adjustment assumes the maximum tonal penalty that is found in BS 4142:2014+A1:2019) . If it can be demonstrated that it is not practical to achieve this value, and the local context supports a relaxation, then a higher criterion may be suitable. Under those circumstances it is recommended that the reasons for the relaxation are fully set out and justified. Nevertheless, it is recommended that the sound rating level should not exceed 40dB.”

Environmental Health will object to your application if it remains as it is, since 43 dB(A) is unacceptable and is likley to be detrimental to the amenity of nearby residents despite your assurances that your neighbours will not object.

You are welcome to engage a suitably qualified person at your own expense.  However, I have looked at your application and have found alternative locations for your ASHP along with a noise barrier which will ensure that the ASHP meets both MCS 020 and the IOA/CIEH criteria.    The manufacturer’s literatiure states that the maximum piping distance to the tank is 10m.  I have moved the ASHP 2 to 2.5m to the boundary with your neighbours garage.  This will involve a very short length of buried insulated pipe  which is comfortably within the capacity of the equipment.   I have also factored in the addition of a noise barrier 1.8m wide and 2m high in line with the corner of your neighbours garage. The screen must be solid and imperforate to be effective and at least 10kg/m2 surface density (this is a similar weight to 18mm plywood). Hedges are not acoustic screening. Thus it could be a brick garden wall or a timber fence constructed from 20mm thick timber such as T&G or rough sawn feather edge board.  A thin fence panel will not be sufficient.

Option 1 requires the ASHP to be located approximatly in line with your building line (allowing for sufficient space for access to the side of your home) and 2m from the noise barrier which allows a Q factor of 4.  The calculations are shown  in Tables 1 to 4 below.

Option 2 places the ASHP closer to the noise barrier which increases the Q factor to 8. The calculations are shown in Tables 5 to 8 below.

If you need planning permission, this is what you might be up against. 35dB is effectively absolute silence!

I have asked if their objection would result in a refusal for planning permission, but I haven't really been able to get an answer on that.

Qyburn

matt_drummer said:
If you need planning permission, this is what you might be up against. 35dB is effectively absolute silence!

Not really. That's the limit for simplified assessment for wind turbines, and installations meeting that limit are still audible. But surely cutting to the chase isn't the obvious answer to choose a quieter heat pump, one that complies with MCS noise limits and thus benefits from simplified planning.

matt_drummer

Qyburn said:

matt_drummer said:
If you need planning permission, this is what you might be up against. 35dB is effectively absolute silence!

Not really. That's the limit for simplified assessment for wind turbines, and installations meeting that limit are still audible. But surely cutting to the chase isn't the obvious answer to choose a quieter heat pump, one that complies with MCS noise limits and thus benefits from simplified planning.

It is the answer, yes.

But I don't really believe that other heat pumps are appreciably  quieter, its just a number in a brochure.

40dB is quoted as the noise in a quiet library, 35dB is pretty quiet, I live half a mile from the centre of Ipswich, it's a fantasy that it would ever be 40dB here let alone 35dB.

I wanted to do it with Octopus, not because it's the cheapest (honestly) but because I just love the company and what they are doing.

I can afford to go elsewhere but finding an installer is not so easy around here it seems.

I am just really disappointed that it appears I w't be able to  do it with Octopus.

matt_drummer

I think the point of this is that I am not actually that close to any of my neighbours

The officer I spoke to today admitted that they would oppose an application at the majority of houses in Ipswich.

Somehow that doesn't seem right to me given the government's objectives.

matt_drummer

I have written to the council telling them that I cannot site the heat pump where they propose and build a 2 meter high wall, it will be an eyesore for us and our neighbours, it will look awful and the heat pump will be on the wall of the room on the back of our neighbours garage, I can't do that to them.

If they reject the application I will have to consider my options, another installer with a different heat pump or keep spewing out fumes from my gas boiler into Ipswich.

matelodave

Why are you putting yourself through all this pain when obviously Ipswich Council dont really want heatpumps. 

I'm guessing that its already cost you a fair few bob just to get to this stage and even if you do get it all sorted out its still probably going to cost you more to run than your existing gas boiler.

matt_drummer

matelodave said:

Why are you putting yourself through all this pain when obviously Ipswich Council dont really want heatpumps. 

I'm guessing that its already cost you a fair few bob just to get to this stage and even if you do get it all sorted out its still probably going to cost you more to run than your existing gas boiler.

Good question.

I am not doing it to save money, I just don't want to burn fossil fuels anymore, I think it's the right thing to do.

I am just documenting my progress, might be useful for somebody in the future, plus venting a bit!