Ireland's only dedicated building services engineering journal
Ireland's only dedicated building services engineering journal

Heat pumps now a major force

Richard Sherlock, HPA Director and Heating Sales Engineer, Daikin Europe NV

The HPA has been a member of the EHPA for the past two years and in 2012 accompanied an EHPA delegation to the European Parliament. Among those we met with was Irish MEP Sean Kelly, who gave a positive reception to the idea of heat pumps as an alternative heat source for rural Ireland.

In some respects the marketplace in Ireland has already spoken in that heat pump sales across the entire country – in both rural and urban locations – are significantly up on last year. Sales for the first six months of this year point to a further significant increase for 2014. Essentially, heat pumps have come of age as a market segment and are now viewed as an energy-efficient, cost-effective alternative heating source when compared with traditional products and systems. 

A furnace is a great option to improve the heating system in your home, and it’s very easy to install.

You can use a furnace to keep the air temperature as warm as possible. This is not necessarily the easiest kind of heating, but it can be helpful in hot climates (like California) where you don’t want to use much natural gas to heat the home. They can be a bit complicated to repair yourself, so if you ever need assistance just contact the furnace repair service in st. paul mn.

With the publishing of energy credits in 2013 on the SEAI energy saving credits table, heat pumps firmly took top place in the energy saving measures with more credits than any other technology. This further reinforces that a heat pump is the most energy efficient heating system and, when you factor in that it is also cheaper to run than traditional fossil fuel systems, it confirms heat pumps as the obvious choice for heating.

Heat pumps are the only primary energy-positive heat generator due to the use of a refrigeration cycle. Assuming a primary energy factor for electricity of 2.42 and a heat pump Seasonal Performance Factor (SPF) of 4:1, the primary energy efficiency of the heat pump is 165%.

This is important in terms of the reduction of primary energy and the carbon reductions needed to meet our 20-20-20 targets. Couple this with an electricity grid which is being decarbonised and has a reducing primary energy factor and there is a combined reduction in primary energy use associated with heat pumps that is unrivalled by any other heat source.

There have been multiple positive interactions with SEAI over the years and we would like to thank SEAI for looking objectively at the proposals which have been put forward, and for making some positive changes in order to show that the technology has a lot to offer in terms of running costs and energy and carbon savings.

The HPA represents the most proactive and responsible members of the heat pump industry in Ireland, all of whom work cohesively to achieve and sustain industry best practice; to promote the correct use of the technology; and to create a market awareness of the features of heat pump technology and the many benefits it offers.

Current members include Alpha Innotec/Origin; Nibe/Unipipe; Daikin; Dimplex; Panasonic; Danfoss/ Heat Pumps Ireland; Toshiba/GT Phelan; Water Furnace/Alternative Heating and Cooling; and Hitachi. 

Membership of the HPA is open to all bona fide companies – manufacturers, distributors and agents – involved in the sector. To find out more, and to join, simply email:hpaireland@gmail.com or log on to www.hpa.com

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