South Yorkshire ground source heat pump; rescuing an unfinished installation.

Rescuing a Ground Source Heat Pump Installation

B.A.R & Sons were contacted by a family from Maltby in South Yorkshire in 2015. They needed help to address issues they were having with their ground source heat pump installation.

A previous contractor had installed the horizontal ground collector array and the manifold. However the work had ended there and our client found himself without the complete renewable heating system for his barn conversion. Building work on the property was well underway and we were therefore working to a relatively tight timescale.

The installed ground collectors had been manufactured by Kensa Heat Pumps. With Kensa’s assistance, we were able to get the project back on track!

We completed a full room by room heat loss to determine the heating requirement of the property. Because of the size of the property, the heat loss calculations showed the need for a 24kW 3-phase ground source heat pump and the Kensa Twin was selected. This would provide space heating and domestic hot water.

We supplied and installed the header pipes from the manifold into the property and were then able to connect up the heat pump and flush the collector through to ensure it was correctly sanitised. The system was then filled with antifreeze brine solution, before setting the heat pump to work.

Before installing a ground source heat pump, there is a requirement for a complete and accurate design to ensure the system performs as it should. If this design phase is completed correctly then a ground source heat pump will provide years of hassle free heating and hot water.

The Kensa unit proved to be a simple unit to install and has continued to provide heating and hot water with no problems for the client. In addition to the savings on their heating bills they also receive 19.51 pence for every kilowatt of renewable heat their property is deemed to need, as stipulated on the properties Energy Performance Certificate.

The Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive continues to offer great paybacks for home owners who opt for a heat pump to heat their home.