The UK government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero commissioned Montreal-based environmental consultancy firm WSP to assess whether heat pump guidance and planning rules are “fit-for-purpose” for the technology’s large-scale deployment.
In November 2020 Downing Street announced it would deploy 600,000 heat pumps by 2028 and gradually phase out fossil fuel-powered boilers by 2038 as part of its “10 Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution” – an initiative to achieve net zero emissions while creating jobs and fostering the local industry.
Current UK legislation and design features “enable and constrain” England's en-masse heat pump roll-out, WSP found in the report it handed down last month.
Removing size limits for an outdoor compressor unit and ditching the requirement that heat pumps must be at least one meter from the property boundary are two of the eight changes WSP recommended as part of the report's “development guidance and regulatory framework.”
Defining what a “solid barrier” is in the context of a heat pump installation location as well as considering the cumulative impact of air-powered heat pumps in a locality should also be considered, according to the report.
WSP reviewed literature related to planning standards, guidance and consumer perceptions; and conducted a small survey with 139 residents living near a heat pump for the review, titled “Review of Air Source Heat Pump Noise Emissions, Permitted Development Guidance and Regulations.”
According to the responses, heat pump noise complaints were “infrequent” but their impact ranged from being “noticeable” to “affecting sleep patterns” and were described as being a “low hum” to a “rumbling.”
The researchers highlighted the importance of developing better sound quality control if the UK Government wants to install more heat pumps en masse, which could lead to more sound issues. Recommendations for addressing sound issues include considering the “tonality correction” in heat pump noise impact assessments – which would require manufacturers to supply frequency tonality data – and providing guidance around sound power level test operational loads.
The report found noise emissions were a concern for a minority of studied customers, most likely caused by poorly installed heat pumps, with rubber matting or acoustic enclosures a possible fix.
The document will “help inform” future government policy on heat pump planning guidance and standards, the government said online.
UK heat pump group, the Heat Pump Association, states the UK currently has 412 heat pumps per 100,000 people, but the UK market – which sold 55,000 heat pumps in 2022 – is lagging compared to the European Union, with 620,000 heat pumps sold in France over the same period.
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Why are hybrid heat pump systems not available for government grants, for many older properties they seem an ideal solution in conjunction with a combi style boiler. Especially when the insulation of the property is prohibitive costwise or practically, that way a majority of the heat comes from an air source heatpump and the gas boiler used only when needed.
Why don’t heat pumps have their coils in the loft underneath the insulation. Or use the air underneath the insulation in an air heat pump.
Because that would result in a very cold ceiling and condensation in the room below. Also there is limited air there to replenish the heat. You’d effectively be chilling the room below to get heat to pass into the house. Better to insulate the house well and have the heat gathering part the othere side of the insulation.
You can get heat exchanger ventilation units that take stale air out of the house and bring in fresh whilst passing over baffles to heat the incoming air with the outgoing warmth. (Hence less overall energy loss)
We live in a rural location. There is no background noise at all at night and very little in the daytime. The noise from a recently installed Air Source Heat Pump in a neighbouring property, just 8 metres from our bungalow bedroom window, and up against our boundary, has been causing a lot of lost sleep, especially when it has been cold i.e. near to or below freezing. It is a persistent noise and of such a pitch that that it is a real nuisance like chinese water torture. A burglar or car alarm can make more noise but it stops, the noise from these pumps doesn’t. An engineer from the manufacturer has been out to look at it and he has adjusted some settings which (I believe) restricts the call for heat and makes it easier for the pump to cope within the limits he believes to be correct. It seems to be better but it hasn’t removed the noise altogether. The thing is this, if the settings can be adjusted then they can be adjusted back again if the neighbour (or a future neighbour) perceives that the natural lower heat in the radiators isn’t high enough. We have no control over the pump ourselves because it isn’t ours. The pump is effectively in our garden and interfering with the enjoyment of the living accommodation in our property rather than the living accommodation in the neighbouring property. There needs to be a lot more control of these things, especially the siting of them