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Are Heat Pumps The Future Of Home Heating?
Heat pumps are an extremely efficient way to heat homes without damaging the environment, yet there is still a lot of confusion as to what they are and what they do.
We all understand that carbon is the common enemy and are constantly told that reducing our carbon footprint is one of the most important tasks that we should undertake.
We’re diving into how heat pumps could be the answer to reducing our carbon emissions when heating our homes.
Carbon emissions: how responsible are UK homes?
A recent study has shown that homes in the UK account for 23% of UK carbon emissions, with
immediate action required to bring this percentage down. Not only will bringing the figure down bring us closer to our goal of Net Zero by 2050, but it will also drive down the cost of heating our homes; it’s a win, win.
The answer to more affordable and economical heating is quite simple: heat pumps.
How do heat pumps work?
Heat pump integration works by taking thermal energy (heat) from the air or the ground and delivering it to your central heating system. Powered by electricity instead of gas, heat pumps are more efficient and don’t require the burning of fossil fuels to generate their heat.
Why are heat pumps a sustainable solution for homeowners?
As we increase our use of renewable energy sources, less energy needs to be generated by the burning of fossil fuels. Instead, we can generate energy to heat our homes sustainably — it can be used, recycled and then used again which is virtually carbon-free.
One of the best parts of the process is that heat pump integration saves the homeowner money.
Unlike gas-powered boilers, electricity-powered heat pumps give you three units of heat for
every unit of electricity that they receive.
Quite simply – heat pumps lower your heating bills.
Could hydrogen be used to heat our homes?
Hydrogen is often touted as an alternative to heat pump integration for the future of home heating.
However, it has been revealed via many studies that using hydrogen to heat your home is not a viable solution to reducing the carbon footprint of UK homes currently.
Dr Richard Hanna, who co-authored The Future of Home Heating believes that whilst hydrogen
could heat homes in the future after some significant investment in research, it is too costly to replace the current gas systems that are used in the UK, meaning the hydrogen alternative to heat pumps is simply too expensive to utilise at present.
Powering a heat pump is a much cheaper way of heating the home than using hydrogen, with five times less electricity required to heat the home with heat pumps compared to their hydrogen counterpart.
Integrating heat pumps into your smart heating system
When it comes to sustainably heating your home, heat pumps are a cost-effective, efficient green heating solution.
You can integrate your smart heating system with the Aquarea heat pump from our partner, Panasonic, for low-carbon, sustainable home heating. Have a different heat pump? Not to worry, Wiser works with other heat pumps that support third-party controls.
Learn more about the Wiser Smart System and how you can step into the future of home heating with heat pumps.