Air To Water Heat Pumps

An air to water heat pump absorbs heat from the outside air through an evaporator (a low-temperature heat exchanger). The refrigerant gas inside the evaporator absorbs this heat and evaporates. The gas then passes into a compressor, which increases its temperature and pressure. This hot vapour moves to a second heat exchanger, where it transfers heat to water for heating or for domestic hot water.

The refrigerant then flows through an expansion valve, lowering its pressure, and the cycle repeats.

These systems are popular for heating radiators and underfloor heating systems, and they can also produce hot water.

Unlike ground source heat pumps, air-to-water systems don’t need underground piping, making them cheaper and easier to install.

Air to water heat pumps are efficient. They deliver three to four units of heat for every unit of electricity consumed.

Also, most systems come with integrated heating controls, allowing precise scheduling of heating and hot water to match household needs, reducing energy usage by up to 20% (according to seai.ie).

A heat pump’s efficiency is often referred to as a “Coefficient of Performance” (COP) and all heat pump manufacturers are giving this value for nominal conditions of 7°C outdoor temperature and 35°C flow temperature.

The Coefficient of Performance (or COP) describes the ratio of electrical power used to heating power produced under fixed input and output conditions by the heat pump unit only. A COP is used for examining the performance of a heat pump unit at ideal test conditions, usually in a laboratory.

COP of 4 means for every 1kW of electrical energy used, 4kW of useful energy is produced, a net 3kW of useful energy will be ‘free’ generated by the heat pump.

Air to water heat pumps can be used in conjunction with underfloor heating and low temperature radiators, aluminium or steel panel or fan coils which require flow temperatures up to 55 °C.

Air to water heat pumps typically cost between €13,000 and €17,000, including installation.

Many factors impact the cost of a heat pump including:

• The size of the home (the unit size and power must match the size of the home.)
• Available indoor & outdoor space (different heat pump types, e.g. monobloc and split, have different space requirements.)
• Available grants (this can substantially reduce the overall cost of installing an air to water heat pump.)

The air to water heat pump grant is €6,500 for houses and €4,500 for apartments.

There is also a grant of €200 available for a technical assessment of your home (payable in conjunction with the heat pump grant).

All homeowners (incl. landlords) with properties built and occupied before 2021 can apply for the heat pump system grant.

There are a number of criteria that you must meet in order to qualify.

To qualify for the air to water heat pump grant:

• The dwelling must have low heat loss.
• A technical assessment must be carried out on pre-2007 homes (2007 onwards requires a “self declaration” form be completed).
• The system must be designed to meet 100% of your space heating demand and at least 80% of your hot water demand.
• The heat pump system installed must satisfy the technical requirements specified in SEAI’s Better Energy Homes Programme.
• It must be a first time system, not a replacement or upgrade.
• Your air to water heat pump installer must be SEAI registered.

All our air to water heat pump installations are eligible for SEAI’s heat pump system grant, and our grant coordinator will help you through the entire process.

The best air to water heat pumps are Daikin Altherma 3 units.

Based on efficiency, suitability to Irish climate, heating capabilities, warranties, design, sound levels, size, maintenance requirements, ease of use, along with many other factors, we find the award winning Daikin Altherma 3 air to water heat pump series to be the best on the Irish market.

As a result we install these as standard.

Several different units make up this series of heat pumps. The specific unit we install depends on the customer’s needs.

Model numbers include Daikin EHVH-UE6V, EHBX-E9W, ERLA16D2W17, EDLA-DV37 and EDLA-DV37.