Radiators for heat pumps

Heat pumps are going to be worth considering for all as the deadline approaches for gas boilers to be an item that cannot be sold anymore in the UK.

We have many people contacting us in respect to radiators for heat pumps, so we have gained over the last 5 years a real understanding of what is required and the technology involved here.

As popular as heat pumps are many people are still a bit bewildered as to how they work and what is so unique about them for all the hype. So here goes….

A heat pump (air) is an electric device that works to a point like a fridge in reverse. The unit draws heat in from the air outside and that is sent over a refrigerant liquid housed in a series of tubes. The liquid is then warmed up and turned into gas. From there a compressor is used on the gas to increase pressure, which in turn increases the temperature of the gas until it becomes hot. The hot gas passes into a heat exchanger, where it heats water – at this point it is very much like the way a gas boiler functions and then it is circulated around the home.

All the above technology is condensed into a unit that looks like an air condition unit we have become accustomed to seeing on the side of European homes.

So it provides my heat in the same way a boiler would? So what! So, we have not used gas, gas is a fossil fuel and the drive is to eradicate the worlds need for fossil fuels.

The system is electric and if we then combine the heat pump with per se solar panels or some other form of renewable energy source, then they have much lower emissions in comparison to the gas boiler alternative. Big green tick here.

If you take the plunge to a heat pump then a question that will or should certainly arise with any nominated installer is – will my current radiators work? Or do I need something different? Radiators will remain the way to transfer the heat generated from the heat pump, radiators remain and will for years to come the best source for heating your home.

So yes still radiators. Whether your current radiators will work is most likely a no unfortunately. The reason being, you have most likely transferred heat production from a 70 degree gas boiler to a heat pump which sends it around the system at more like 45 degrees.

Probably over stupefying this but if we boiled the kettle half the time to half the temp the tea would not be as hot would it but that is where the efficiencies with this system are found, lower heats…in respect to the cup of tea, not using the energy required to boil the water. Fortunately we combat this by appropriately sizing the radiators, in brief this means as a fair generalisation radiators are required to be bigger, to emit the heat required at the lower temperature delivered to them.

At this stage and just to reiterate you are not alone, we are here to help with this and you need not worry about resizing your radiators or any complicated calculations to do, we do all that for you.

So generally you will need new radiators, these will need to be specified specifically for your heat pump, heat pump operating temperatures can vary across models so we will ask the correct questions to obtain the information we need to specify the sizes correctly to achieve the heat you require considering a number of other factors, based on a very healthy volume of heat pump enquiries and sales of radiators for them, you can be sure of a correct radiator specification being provided.

Lots of talk of heat pump compatible radiators exists and yes there are things that would lean you towards aluminium radiators for example, science tells us that, but it can also be said the same science should really mean even with our current heating equipment in our homes, aluminium is the most efficient choice.

So why don’t we all have aluminium now? Why are radiators predominantly manufactured from steel? Simple answer is because it is also a very good emitter of heat too.

It would be fair to say, measurable levels of savings for aluminium as an emitter over steel could end up being very negligible on a year to year basis.

I’m not detracting from aluminium as a radiator choice here, we would call it the shrewd choice low water contents, quick to react but also quick to cool down and more limited in designs. No doubt about it steel and cast iron can be used here and their retention of heat due to being a denser material gives them some advantages over aluminium.

We are on hand to assist with the radiator sizing and the radiator choice, we are well experienced in supplying radiators for heat pumps.