A Complete Guide to Air source heat pumps?

Thinking about installing an air source heat pump? Or wondering how much an air-source heat pump cost?

Air source heat pumps are a highly efficient way to heat your home. They can work by themselves. Or partner up with your existing central heating system to provide hot water and affordable year-round heat.

Here is the content list:

What is an air source heat pump?

How does an air source heat pump work?

Are there different types of air source heat pump installations?

What is an air source heat pump?

Most home heating systems either burn fuel or convert electricity into heat. But heat pumps are different, as they don’t generate heat.

Instead, they move existing heat energy from outside into your home. This makes them more efficient. Since they deliver more heat energy than the electrical energy they consume. So, a heat-pump system typically costs less to run than a traditional heating system too.

How does an air source heat pump work?

An air-source heat pump works much like a fridge operating in reverse to heat your home. Outside air is blown over a network of tubes filled with a refrigerant. This warms up the refrigerant, and it turns from a liquid into a gas.

This gas then passes through a compressor, which increases the pressure. Compression also adds more heat – similar to how the air hose warms up when you top up the air pressure in your tires.

These compressed, hot gases now pass into a heat exchanger, surrounded by cool air or water. The refrigerant transfers its heat to this cool air or water, making it warm. And this is circulated around your home to provide heating. Meanwhile, the refrigerant condenses back into a cool liquid and starts the cycle all over again!

Are there different types of air source heat pump installations?

Yes! Most air source heat pump installations in the UK are what’s known as'air to water'types. In these systems, the heat is transferred into a conventional 'wet' heating system. And this set-up gives you hot water and central heating.

A minority of UK air source heat pumps are 'air to air. And, as their name suggests, these transfer the heat into the air, which is distributed around the home. They don't provide hot water, though.

Because air source heat pumps give out less heat than a boiler, they’re not always suitable as a straightforward boiler replacement. Especially because there are still a lot of older, poorly insulated homes in the UK.

But heat pumps can often be combined with an existing central heating system and boiler. In these hybrid air-source heat pump systems, the heat pump provides a ‘base load’ for the day-to-day heating and hot water. With the boiler only firing up to provide hotter water. Or a quick heat boost during a particularly cold snap.

Hybrid systems can be a great way to reduce costs and carbon emissions in older properties. Particularly if you’re not on a gas supply, so you’re reliant on irregular and expensive deliveries of fuels, like LPG or heating oil.

MICOE has developed a variety of different air source heat pumps. If you are in the air source heat pumps business, you can consider using our cost-effective products.