What are the advantages of a heat pump? Which heat pump should I choose? How does it work? We explain it all to you!
Are you freezing in your home in winter? Your heating bill has been salting away? Then it may be high time to switch to a new heating system and choose a heat pump. Let us advise you …
If you choose a heat pump to replace your current system, you will benefit from several advantages at once:
There are three types of heat pumps, which exactly match the needs and systems. Each type of heat pump has advantages and disadvantages. So it is up to you to find the heat pump that is best suited to your home and meets your needs.
The air-to-water heat pump is the most common because it is easy to install. The way it works is also very simple: it extracts calories from the air and turns them into heat. This heat heats the water in the heating circuit, which in turn distributes the heat through the radiators or the floor in your home. The air-water heat pump can also produce hot domestic water. In this case, it is called a combined heat pump.
The ground source heat pump works in a similar way, except that it takes the energy naturally present in the ground rather than that in the air. However, the installation of this type of heat pump is more complex.
Finally, there are air-to-air heat pumps, which, just like the air-to-water heat pump, use the energy present in the outside air. However, they do not produce hot water, but hot air. The hot air heats the air in your home via one or more fan coil units. Thus, the air-to-air heat pump requires the installation of an air fan duct system, for example in false ceilings or in the attic, which is not easily possible. Furthermore, this type of heat pump cannot produce hot domestic water.
That air-to-air heat pumps and air-to-water heat pumps may not be powerful enough in a severe winter, such as we have experienced in Luxembourg for several years, because they take their energy from the air? To ensure that your home is always pleasantly warm, we recommend an additional heating element.
The heat pump works with electricity .
But you can be sure that it is not an energy guzzler! On the contrary! It enables the production of a lot of heat, similar to an electric radiator.
There are so-called “coefficients of performance” that indicate the efficiency of a heat pump. For example, the coefficient of performance 3 means that the heat pump produces 3 kWh of heat with 1 kWh of power input. Be sure to look at this coefficient of performance when choosing your heat pump.
Two conditions must be met before a heat pump can be installed in your home. Firstly, you need an outdoor area – e.g. a balcony or a garden – where you can place the heat pump. Secondly, you need central heating (if you choose an air-to-water or ground source heat pump).
Regardless of where you live and the type of home you live in (house or flat), you are eligible for a grant to install a heat pump. However, if you live in a condominium, you will need the prior consent of the co-owners and the house community.
Do you think you have put your finger on the sore spot? Not at all!
The most commonly installed heat pump (air-water) is already available for an average price of 20,000 EUR. But you can take advantage of premiums from the government through PrimeHouse and from Enovos through the enoprimes programme and the fonds nova naturstroum. Moreover, these premiums can be combined with each other.
Here is an example of a project (taking into account the premiums valid on 23/03/2021, which are likely to evolve over time):
If you invest EUR 25,000 in your heat pump, you will receive an enoprimes premium of EUR 2,500, from the fonds nova naturstroum EUR 500 and via PRIMe House a premium of EUR 2,500. In total, you will benefit from premiums of EUR 5,500. You therefore have to invest EUR 19,500 yourself. If you now take into account that with a heat pump you save 65 MWh/year – i.e. 3,800 EUR – per year, your investment will have paid for itself in just over 5 years (5.13 years to be exact).
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