Atamate Blog

This winter’s hike in international natural gas prices will lead to heating price hikes this winter. It exposes the vulnerability of Britain’s dependence on imported gas, both for heating homes and for generating electricity, and illustrates the importance of initiatives to replace gas heating systems.

If you’ve looked at the news recently, you’ll have seen dire reports of soaring gas prices and dire predictions of either a very expensive or a very cold winter ahead.

Yesterday, the government announced a £450 million boiler upgrade scheme, offering £5,000 grants for households replacing gas-boilers with low-carbon heating systems. The scheme does not specify what low-carbon system should be used although it repeatedly refers to air-source heat pumps.

Standards for space heaters are governed by several European Union standards that remain in place in Britain including Regulation 2015/1188, often called Lot 20, which sets minimum standards for energy efficiency and emissions that all heaters powered by electricity, gas or oil must meet.

District heating schemes use a single powerplant to provide heating and hot water to many buildings. They have been promoted as important in decarbonising the British economy but their dependence on gas limits their carbon efficiency and heat is lost as it is distributed which causes internal gains.

We often specify and control electric heaters and ASHPs in projects, and thought it would be interesting to compare and contrast what each has to offer. There are 2 main points to consider, the energy efficiency of each, and the capital cost of installation and maintenance.

The government's Future Homes consultation presents air-source heat pumps as a mass-market high-efficiency heating solution. However, field trial evidence shows that in well-insulated buildings, occupancy-controlled electrical heaters are more efficient. Heat pumps may have a role in existing homes but have not proved...

What are the pros and cons?

A smart meter will save you the cost of 3½ days of electricity per year. To put it another way, the average home in the UK has an annual energy bill of £1,300, so having a smart meter will save that home £11 per year.

They should be!  It is the 21st Century after all.  With all the talk about the environment and sustainability and meeting targets to save the Earth, building homes that are conducive to reducing our carbon footprint is the very least we can do.  Not to mention saving those vital pennies.

 So you’re embarking on a new adventure? All of your ducks are in a row; career, partner, kids. It’s time to tick that next box – build your own home.  The years of dreaming and scheming have finally paid off and here you stand on the threshold of… of what? How will you approach this mammoth task and what, if...